Page 21 of Claimed By the Possessive Mafia Prince

DARIO

S iena leans the flowers against the door and then marches down the pier. She’s wearing another flowy dress that settles against her body, outlines her, and emphasizes her curves as she walks.

She stops just short of me, like she’s scared to come too close.

“Do you get off on playing with women’s emotions?”

“What?”

“Don’t give me that pretty-boy, oh-so innocent smile, Dario. Don’t act so na?ve. It’s a simple question.”

“Has something happened?” I take her hand, feeling the adrenaline coursing through her. She lets me hold her hand for a moment, then snatches it away.

“First, you decide you don’t want to stay in the same roo?—”

“Easy, Siena. I did that for you. I just wanted to make you comfortable. The last thing I want to do is push you. If I had my way, we’d be wearing World’s Best Roommate T-shirts right now. Or did you change your mind? Do you want to move back in?”

She looks out at the water, purses her lips, and clenches her fists, fighting an internal battle. Slowly, she uncoils, letting out a shaky breath. “I’m not saying that.”

“What are you saying, then? You can talk to me.”

“Can I?” She looks at me. “Are you sure about that?”

“Yes,” I say firmly.

“Because something weird is happening, and I think you know more than you’re letting on.”

Fuck. I don’t want to lie to her. But she’s backing me into a corner.

“I visited Rosy, the resort manager. She basically admitted there’s some funny business happening.”

“What sort of funny business? ”

“A reason for all the delays and cancellations. She looked scared. And now my mind is going a million miles an hour. What if someone wants to sabotage this event? And there’s you, Dario. Your phone calls. Your darkness.”

My darkness.

I didn’t want her to see that. But if I want her, really want her, she’s going to see it eventually.

“My mind is spinning,” she says again.

“What did the resort manager say exactly?”

“It was a look,” Siena replies with a shrug. “Don’t laugh at me.”

“I’m not laughing. You’re a capable, practical, intuitive person. You’ve got good instincts.”

She takes a step forward, so close I can smell her sunscreen and perfume and just her. I take her hips in my hands and pull her against me.

“There are things I can’t tell. Things about my family. About certain… feuds.”

“Old Money stuff that’s above this peasant’s paygrade?”

I wish I could tell her. I wish I could trust she wouldn’t say anything. Or is that an excuse?

Perhaps it’s what Rocco said. I don’t want her to see me as the bad guy.

“You need to trust me,” I tell her. “Trust that I have your best interests at heart.”

“Is it your uncle? Edoardo?”

“Why would you say that?” My voice has gone cold. My blood too.

“Instinct,” she replies. “The way he looks at your father… at everyone. It’s like he’s angry all the time. Maybe there’s some, I don’t know, inheritance stuff going on. Or it’s just a plain old sibling rivalry. I don’t know how that would fit into your phone calls though.”

“Maybe you’re seeing puzzle pieces where there aren’t any.”

She takes my shoulders and stares at me as she sinks her fingernails in. “Swear to me you don’t know what’s going on here. That I’m being paranoid and seeing connections where there aren’t any.”

I try to make myself lie to her. But I can’t.

“Siena, please, just try to do your best. Try to keep your head down.”

“Someone trashed my room. You’ve moved me close to you to keep me safe, right?”

“I’m going to keep you safe.”

“From what? From who? Your uncle?” She huffs when I don’t respond and turns away.

I grab her hand and spin her so she’s facing me again. When I pull her in for a kiss, she plants her hands on my chest and tries to push against me. But then I feel her resolve melt, and she leans in, giving herself a few moments of pleasure.

We kiss passionately as if we’re still fighting but with our mouths. I savor the texture of her lips, her taste, her everything.

She leans back, breathless. “Stop–people can see.”

“I don’t care if they can see.”

I kiss her again. She moans and grinds her body against mine. For long seconds, we sink hungrily into the heat. Memories of last night return to me-her beautiful, perfect body. Her curvy temptation.

She pushes away again. “Maybe I care.”

“Maybe, maybe,” I repeat. “I like the sound of that. Gives me a chance.”

Her sunlight smile pierces her bad mood. “I’m serious. Stop. We’re just friends, remember?”

“I can agree, but I won’t mean it.”

“Oh–another lie, then?”

I sigh as I press my forehead to hers, wishing she could be inside my head.

“Aren’t you going to deny it?” she says.

“I’m doing my best here.”

“I don’t even know what that means.” When I don’t reply, she snaps, “But I get it. You want the young, na?ve girl to bury her head in the sand and stop asking inconvenient questions. God forbid your island hookup has a head on her shoulders.”

“Again with this island hookup stuff. You’re the one who thinks this can only ever be that.”

“What is it going to be, then? Are you going to propose to me after a week of knowing each other, and then we’re going to ride off into the sunset for our happily ever after? Grow up, Dario.”

“There’s a middle ground between hate and love, Siena.”

“How poetic.” Her voice trembles, tears springing to her eyes. “Oh, really?”

She’s talking to herself now, demanding to know why she’s crying, angry with herself.

“Hey, come here.”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re not. And that’s okay.”

I pull her into a hug. She slides her arms around my waist and presses her face against my chest, letting out a shaky sob.

Again, I wish I could tell her the truth. I’m in the mob. I’ve done bad things. She’s not crazy. There is something more happening here.

Then I imagine her looking up at me with hate in her eyes. Let me go. You’re a monster.

“I just want to do a good job.”

“You are, angel,” I tell her. “And you’re doing a kickass job.”

“Do you have any idea how frustrating it is…” She sniffles, then leans away from me. I cradle her in my arms. “Knowing that someone is trying to ruin this chance and not knowing who or why?”

“I don’t know who or why.”

“But you’ve got suspicions.”

“That would mean sharing things with you I can’t, not until…”

“Until what?” she demands.

“I know you, and I go beyond this island.”

“Is that what you want?” she says. “Because, newsflash, we barely know each other.”

“On one level, you’re right. But honestly, beautiful, I’ve got more chemistry with you than I’ve had with anyone in a long time. Ever, maybe. And I know you want to stay focused, and that’s the last thing you want to hear, but it’s the truth.”

“It’s not the last thing,” she murmurs, her cheeks glowing a gorgeous shade of red. “Honestly, I feel the same… sort of. But I was ruled by my feelings once, and it messed everything up.”

“The prom thing?”

She takes a step back. “The prom thing,” she repeats. “You said it like it’s some silly, pathetic little concern. Like it doesn’t matter. But I ruined my mom’s business.”

“That wasn’t your fault.”

“What about your parents’ vow renewal? When I ruin that, will it be my fault?” When I don’t reply, she turns away. “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

I watch her go, wanting to call for her to come back, but there’s no point unless I can offer something more.

Instead, I go to find my uncle, asking around some of the other mafia men. When one of them tells me he said he was checking in with island security, I grit my teeth.

I catch him as he’s leaving the building, a dark look on his face.

“What business do you have questioning the security, Uncle?”

He stops, hands stuffed in his pockets, eyes narrowed at me. “I’m not discussing anything with you.”

“That sounds suspicious.”

He takes a step forward, glaring at me. “Are you playing games, nephew? Are you who I think you are?”

“You sound unhinged. And you’re projecting again.”

“I’ve known men to wear masks before. For years, they wear masks, until one day the mask falls, and the blood starts to flow. I’ve seen it countless times. Is that who you are, Dario?”

I grab the front of his shirt. “This sounds like some real amateur-hour reverse psychology to me.”

“Something is happening on this island, nephew, and I don’t fucking like it.”

“So, your tactic to avoid suspicion is to blame everyone else. Are you forgetting I know you’ve been vying for the Don spot?”

Eddy pushes my hand away and walks into me, knocking into my shoulder. I almost chase after him and smack him across the mouth, but that would mean starting a conflict we can’t come back from. That would risk bloodshed.

I can’t make that move until I’m certain he’s the one pulling the strings.