Page 13 of Ruined Vows (Borrelli Mafia #5)

Bianca is the source of my waking up with morning wood, and I wish she were beside me. I groan and reminisce about her in the gym and reassure myself it’s only a matter of time before she’s spreading her legs for me.

I’m fantasizing about her even as I drink my coffee. I shower and dress casually in fitted jeans and a designer button-down shirt, and slide into Italian leather loafers.

Dragan picks me up in the armored Hummer. It’s a safety precaution. One can’t be diligent enough.

We head to the warehouse, my base of operation. I was talking to David in my office to get the daily update when Uncle Milan entered. He, too, is like a bad habit, popping up when I want to play Wack-a-Mole with his head. Like a bad penny, he tends to show up. He’s becoming predictable.

“Y’know, Vukan, no man wants the Serbian leader to marry an outsider.”

I smile. I’m a man who takes and claims. She’ll be no different. And fuck him for talking to me like I’m a kid, and that I need his advice.

“She’s not a weakness. It’s a strategy for peace. And you can’t deny that you’d love to be in the same room as her,” I snark.

Fuck him. Even his brother passed him over, knowing he was not worthy of being a leader.

I can weather the storm. I can withstand him and Radovan. Let them all come. Hell, I can withstand whoever thinks they can unseat me .

Because if she’s the death of me, then I’ll die smiling.

“Who I marry is no one’s business.”

“Believe what you want,” he shrugs. He gives me a side-eye to see if I’m rattled. I’m not, and even if I were, he’s never going to know.

Bianca is a woman unlike any other. She’s the type of woman wars are fought over. And perhaps it’s already begun.

She’s the first woman who isn’t afraid to challenge me, and I respect the hell out of that.

Besides, who wouldn’t want her? She has a tongue like a sniper and a killer body. I can’t wait, I fuck her with my hard cock and make her scream my name when she comes. I want her to beg for me to fuck her again, and again. And I’d die a happy man.

But Milan? He’s the eternal pessimist.

“This peace won’t hold,” he argues. His cigarette has burned down to his knuckles. He smokes the nasty, unfiltered ones. He tosses it to the floor and gives my brother a side-eye, like he’s making a point.

“It’s not a matter of believing. Not for me.

I base my decisions on facts and make choices that will lead to a successful future for our organization.

You pledged your loyalty to a dead man. He’s in the past. I’m planning a prosperous future for all of us.

” I say. “You need to look to the future. But make no mistakes, even if you disagree with my decisions, I’ll still have her. ”

My word is law, and he’d better fall in line—quickly.

He grunts with disapproval before he walks out without saying another word. He is smart to do so because he was trying my patience.

And I let him walk because I have more pressing things to attend to.

Namely, a woman who thinks she can break me.

I can’t lie. She jabs well, and her punches are solid. I have a high pain tolerance, but when no one’s around, I shake pain relievers into my hand and reach for another ice pack.

And I hope she’ll fall in love soon, otherwise she might kill me.

Later in the day, David meets me at the end of the shooting range. No words. Just a nod, a box of ammo, and a silent offer to watch my six.

He’s always known when to talk and when to let the fire of silence burn.

The weight of the Glock feels good in my hand. It’s predictable and trustworthy. Unlike the men who want to overthrow me, who smile with their teeth and poison their loyalty the second they think no one’s watching.

“You heard?” I ask, lining up a shot.

David loads a magazine beside me. “Radovan’s been whispering.”

I fire. It’s a clean shot, dead center.

“He’s saying Milo? died because of me,” I say, interjecting.

David doesn’t flinch. “Milo? died because he couldn’t follow the code. We both know that.”

“And yet I’m the one who’s taking the fall,” I mutter.

I fire another shot. This one lands just left of center.

“Our Uncle is playing the long game,” David says. “Waiting for doubt to settle into the soft ones. No doubt he and Radovan are working together.”

“Then we tighten the ranks,” I say. “Pull in the men who remember what we saved them from.”

David looks over. “You thinking about taking Radovan out?”

I pause. I’d love to take him and my uncle out, but I need concrete evidence that they want to kill me. The optics of another family member dying so soon after my brother is one I won’t survive.

“I’m thinking about not having to kill anyone yet. I can’t kill everyone with an opposing opinion—there wouldn’t be many men left. I doubt they’ll fall in line, but I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt for now. If they move, we’ll be on them.”

And we both know what that means.

Realistically, Radovan probably won’t stop until I give him a reason to. And when that moment comes, it will probably be too late, but I’ll make sure he earns his death. And that’s something I can live with.

Milan, on the other hand, is a wild card.

I don’t know what he’s capable of. He’s been on the sidelines for years, but I know he’s still seething because he’s never agreed with the chain of command after my father died.

He’s never acted on his anger before, so maybe he’ll settle down. I can only hope.

“I’ll keep my ears out for betrayers, like always,” David says. He fires a few rounds, hitting the black dot on the target repeatedly.

I pause as he pushes bullets into the .45 cartridge.

“I appreciate that. Keep it low, but no one is beyond scrutiny.”

He nods. “And Bianca?” he asks.

I glance toward the door, then back to him.

“She doesn’t know anything yet. And she won’t—until I’ve wiped every last whisper of threat off the map.”

“She’s already a target,” he says pensively.

“I know.”

David stares at me. “You really are not going to tell her?”

“No,” I reply solemnly.

He studies me for a long second, then tosses the filled mag back into the gun case.

“You always were a quiet bastard.”

“And you always did talk too much.” I chuckle .

I love my brother. He has my back, always did, always will. I didn’t tell him about my deal with the Borrellis that paved the way for me to take over. I didn’t need to because he already knew. He’s highly competent and intuitive. I’m sure he read between the lines.

Besides, we both knew Milo? was headed to a bad end. He never played fair, and he was never good at losing. He was always erratic, impulsive, but also deadly. He lacked integrity and honor, which ultimately cost him his life.

We knew he would take over when Dad died. He was the oldest. Neither of us wanted him in power, but our hands were tied. We couldn’t say a word.

But now, I’m in charge. And my eyes are wide open to the fact that there will be defectors.

We need to root them out. It will take time, but I’m a patient man, especially when waiting benefits me.

David walks off, leaving me alone with the targets and the truth that the woman I’m falling for is walking blind into a house I’m still trying to purge of its rot.

And the men I have to kill?

They might try to take her from me first.

But I’ll bury them.

Even if it means burning what’s left of my soul to keep her safe.

I’m not Milo?.

My men need to get in line and fucking bow.