Page 41 of Runaway in the Mafia (The shadows of Cosa Nostra Chronicles #3)

CHAPTER THIRTY

VITALE

S he fainted. My runaway girl, fucking drama queen, fainted. A sane man would take it as a sign of distress. I took it as her undying devotion to me. Missing factor was sane. I would never bother to pretend I even came close to it.

She was nothing I should marry. Sicilian, error. Catholic, double error. Virgin, unfortunately not, and innocent, no fucking way.

The thing was, she could be the poison running in my veins. The thorn in a good day of mine. The throb that brought on a migraine. It wasn’t enough to stop me. I’d thought not having her would kill me.

I was wrong.

Not having her forever would kill me.

I really didn’t care if she agreed to this plan or not. I was having her either way. Sealed with black ink, tied with a gold ring, marked with red on my skin. Every man who ever sighted her should know. She was fucking mine. Forever and ever.

But another swallow of whiskey in my darkened living room did nothing to quell the agitation itching on my skin.

She could have at least pretended to be happy.

Grateful maybe. But she had to go and fucking faint.

If I hadn’t caught her in time, she would have hit her head on the floor like a brick.

I couldn’t decide if it bothered me more that she could have easily hurt herself or that she’d lost consciousness at my proclamation.

Nothing felt right anymore. I told myself that I should have let her drop.

Would have served her right. A concussion.

A bout of amnesia would have done her good.

Something that made her forget whatever the hell she was running away from and run right into me.

Now that would have saved me a headache.

Jesus Christ!

I’d never had a headache in my life. Hadn’t even known what one felt like. Then she walked into my life and bam . Had one every damn day she pulled away. Made me really wonder what I was thinking about with my impulsive message.

Not.

That’s at least what my uncles thought. Didn’t need a crystal ball to know that. I’d let my dick do all the thinking, and honestly, when it came to her, it really wasn’t the best path.

Should have known I was an exact mould of Carlo.

I couldn’t be happy with having her once and letting her go.

I couldn’t settle for marrying Andrea’s daughter and keeping her on the side.

No. Another man having her had to abrade me all wrong.

Fucking greediness. It had to come and grind against me.

Made me do fucking impulsive shit. Shit that gave me a headache and left no regrets.

Regrets that I couldn’t get myself to have even after five whiskeys and two cigars. I knew that already after the second glass. But I’d shifted gears and hoped to numb out the world with the next ones.

It hadn’t worked because my hearing caught the crunch of gravel under heavy rubber tires. I swore I was going to kill the fucking bastard brave enough to darken my doorway.

My vision was hazy from the living room to the front door. I might have been more wasted than I had given myself credit for. All the reasons why I should be left alone. But my dark mood geared from first to sixth when I threw open the door.

Someone had a death wish, and it wasn’t me.

AHANA

I’d never felt more like backtracking the hell out of a bad situation. Vitale darkened his doorway, naked torso and black suited pants. More worrying was the glass clenched in his hand and the murderous rage in his eyes directed at the man behind me.

“It’s going to be a fucking kneecap this time.”

Hey Bhagwan! He was already fumbling for his gun. My heart sprang back to life when he came up empty. I didn’t miss the relieved sigh behind me.

“Don’t blame me, cugino . She just wanted a ride.”

“Ride my ass. I’m cutting your balls and feeding them to the dogs.”

“You don’t have dogs.”

“I’ll get some. Just for the sake of it.”

Romeo laughed, but it jiggled with nervous energy. “What was I to do? Let her come in a taxi?”

He directed his glare at me. His jaw was clenched tight enough to snap.

He’d grown taller and wider over a matter of a few hours, or his dark presence had enlarged.

The aggravation hanging off him, the thunderstorm on his sharp lined face, it was all an ominous sign.

He really was going to kill someone. Soon.

It was a horrible idea to dispute him. But I couldn’t get myself to move.

“Fuck off.”

On second thoughts—

“Not you,” he barked. He waved his glass at his cousin, amber liquid spilling off the rim.

Romeo shifted. Unsure. Vitale’s lips twisted into something that should resemble a smile when it came back to me.

“You want to plead your case, mia ammaliatrice?” He held his hands away from him in a gesture of surrender he didn’t mean. “I’m all ears.”

“I...” I cleared my throat to rid the knobble riding it. “I can’t—”

“Tsk, tsk…” he shook his head. “Your audience is private. I’ll be your judge and jury.” He nodded to his cousin. “I’m throttling you with my bare hands in one minute. And you know well enough, a few whiskeys in me will only make it worse.”

Two minutes. That’s all it took for the roar of the motor to come to life. He left dust and clouds as he sped out.

“Idiota,” he muttered, his eyeline beyond me, following the car out of the driveway before coming back to me. It sparked with ill intention. “Come on in.” He stood aside and waved me in. “Nice of you to visit me at my humble residence.”

His humble residence was as much a joke as him standing innocently to the side.

“Nah. I’m fine here.”

He shrugged. “Suit yourself.” And walked inside, leaving the door wide open.

Damn it.

I turned back. The place was deserted. Weirdly, he had no men here standing guard.

The only man was inside, and the other one had driven out of here so fast he was probably at Ada’s by now.

A step was all I took, but it was like he had eyes on me because the iron gates at the end of the driveway closed.

How was this man always a step ahead of me?

I could do this. Just storm inside and tell him he can’t just marry me. Then storm back out. Simple as that.

I had left a man who had shattered me into pieces. This should have been a piece of cake for me.

I stormed inside, the door swung shut, and I stumbled to a stop.

The place was pitch black.

“Vitale?”

Silence. Of course, he wouldn’t bother to answer.

A spark of fear lit inside me. I groped around until I hit a wall.

But no amount of following it along found a switch underneath my hands.

Wrong way, maybe? I turned to go the other way and smacked into another wall.

A breathing, cedar-scented, moving wall.

He was incensed with fury. Yet a sigh of relief filled me with his presence.

A warm arm wrapped around my waist and body walked me back blindly, confidently, into another room.

My back hit a wall. The arm abandoned my waist.

“I’m beginning to think you have a thing for walls.”

“Hmm.” A warm rumble rolled over my skin. He was still close. I could smell him. Could feel his heated whiskey breath on my neck. “You against a wall…” he moved closer. I could feel it without touching him. “With my dick in you.” Shit. “Anytime, tesoro.”

“I can’t—”

“No.”

“You don’t even know what I was going to ask.”

“Get out of a wedding? Runaway?” My face heated, and I was glad it was too dark to see. “I think not.”

“I was going to ask if you could put on a shirt.”

A dark chuckle. “Double no.”

“I can’t believe you.”

“I know. Annoying, right? When people don’t follow orders.”

“You are acting like a kid.”

“Fucking juvenile. What can I say? You make the child come out in me.”

“This is never going to work.”

“I beg to differ.”

His hands heated my skin. Crawled up my thighs and slipped inside the satin between my legs. A rough groan spilled out of his whiskey breath when he traced his finger along my line. “Next time, we’ll do it doggy style, okay?”

“There is no next time or now.”

“Keep telling that to your dripping pussy.” He didn’t warm me up.

Proved he didn’t need to by inserting three digits inside.

They slipped in smoothly. My thoughts scattered like marbles on the floor.

I couldn’t even remember why I’d come here.

I couldn’t even be bothered to bury the moan spilling out of my lips.

“You know,” he hooked his fingers lazily.

“My nickname for you is so…” he rotated his fingers.

“Perfect.” His hair slid along my neck as he nipped at my shoulder, leaving another set of marks, no doubt, in their path.

“You really are a fucking witch.” I shook my head mindlessly from one side to another.

Could he please put more pressure? Or not.

What did I want? I rocked my hips, but he pulled back an inch.

“What’s the magic potion you brew to keep me lapping after you like a fucking dog?

” His tone dripped with anger. He crawled his hand into my hair and yanked.

“You know the only thing that keeps me sane, barely…” His voice rumbled all dark and seeped like warm whiskey he’d consumed. “Is knowing you want me to.”

I shook my head violently.

“No?” He pulled out. Entirely. His body shifted off me. He wasn’t far. Maybe a breath away from me. But not close either.

“Go then.” His tone was tight. A glance to the side and I found a soft glimmer of light on the floor leading me down a path to the doorway. “Now, Ahana.” He growled angrily.

I couldn’t move.

He cursed loudly. “If you’re not out of here on the count of three.”

“One.”

I wanted him.

“Two”

One last time.

“Three.”

Then I’d tell him.

My breath spilled out of me in a gasp as he surged into me. My shoulders smashed into the wall. His chest drilled me to it. We went at each other like animals. He was malevolent. I was reckless. “One final time,” I whimpered, and he laughed with dark amusement.