Page 13 of Secret Baby for the Mafia Don

"When have I ever lied to you?"

Her eyes, those expressive brown eyes that once looked at me with desire, now flash with uncertainty.

“From the moment we met,” she says, and again her words are like tiny daggers in my chest.

Something inside me snaps.

I’d given her more of myself than I’d ever given anyone and she believes I’d been playing some sort of villain the whole time.

I grab the phone and begin deleting photos.

She’s smart enough not to challenge me verbally, but as the saying goes, if looks could kill.

At least now I understand what happened last year when she walked into my office, lambasting me and then leaving.

She thinks I'm plotting against Antonio, the man who saved my position in La Corona when everyone else wanted me gone.

“I can’t fucking believe you’d think I’d betray Antonio.”

“Sure you would. Your intentions with me weren’t noble, Marco.”

My gaze snaps to hers. “Is that what this is about? Because I fucked you with no promise of marriage? I was clear when?—”

“I had no illusions about us, Marco, but it’s still a betrayal to my father.”

She’s not wrong, technically.

Fucking her without intentions to marry her is a betrayal to Antonio.

A disrespect.

But she knew how I felt about marriage and relationships when she kissed me and started this crazy rollercoaster ride I can’t seem to get off.

“I didn’t take you by force or deceit. You wanted it too. You practically begged for my cock?—”

Her hand flies out, striking me on my cheek. I guess I deserve that, but I don’t apologize.

But then I see the pain in her eyes, and I realize my mistake. I’ve just sullied what we’d had.

“You have everyone fooled, don’t you?” She grabs her phone back. "My father trusted you. He’s always stood by you, and this is how you repay him?"

The accusation burns, especially because it's so fundamentally wrong.

I've spent the past year protecting Antonio's interests, covering for his lapses in judgment, redirecting conversations when he loses his train of thought in meetings.

I run a hand through my hair, frustration mounting. How can I explain without betraying Antonio's confidence?

How can I make her understand that everything I've done has been to protect her father's legacy until Luca returns to take his rightful place?

"Gabriella—" I start, but she cuts me off.

"Don't. I've seen the reports. The problems in our territory started right after I ended things with you. Quite the coincidence, isn't it?"

I push away the pain of her accusation.

I do what I learned to do at a young age.

I transform the hurt into something colder.