Page 107 of The Empress

“Your mafia husband won’t kill me or arrange a marriage for some kind of business deal?” she teases me.

“Oh, I don’t know. He might,” I joke.

I see Edoardo coming around the side of the mansion to check the veranda, and I wave. He gives a smile before continuing with his inspection.

“Oooh. If you’re into bodyguards, I have one you might like. That’s if he’s single.”

Kristen laughs again before her tone grows serious. “Are you safe? You won’t get hurt being married to a mafia boss? What did your Mom say? Is she okay?”

“Mom’s okay. She’s living with my mother-in-law right now, but Leo’s bought her a house. We’re just waiting for all the paperwork to be finalized.” I take a breath before I continue, “Yes, I’m safe. Whenever I leave the house, I have four guards with me.”

“Great, but are you safe with Leo?”

I don’t hesitate to answer, “Yes. Leo loves me so much, Kristen. You’ll see it when you come to visit. He makes me feel like the most important person in the world.”

“Aww…I want to see this for myself, though.”

“Besides finding out about my family, I’m happy. Leo makes me happy.”

Her voice is soft as she asks, “Yeah?”

“He’s unlike anyone I’ve ever met, and the attraction is out of this world.”

“Have you slept with him?” she gasps.

“He’s my husband,” I mutter before chuckling.

“That doesn’t mean shit. Did you sleep with him?”

My cheeks grow warm, and I fall back onto the couch, kicking my legs before I say, “Yes.”

“You better tell me everything!”

“It was freaking hot, Kristen.” I take a deep breath before shrieking. “He’s a beast in bed.”

“Well, now it makes sense why you’ve forgiven him for the whole forced marriage thing,” she teases me.

“Yeah, probably,” I joke. “But besides the sex, he’s…he’s…”

“You’re so freaking in love you’re speechless,” she gasps. “Wow, you have it bad for Leo.”

“It’s so difficult to explain things. There are so many sides to him. One minute he’s all sweet and loving, and the next, he’s temptation on two legs.”

“I should be more worried about you, but you sound so happy,” my best friend says.

I sit up again. “Pack your bags. As soon as Leo’s back, I’m booking you the first available flight to Italy.”

Kristen lets out an excited shriek. “I’m going to hug you so hard! I can’t wait.”

We talk for another hour before we end the call, and I lie back down on the couch again.

I feel so much better after getting to unload on Kristen. I should’ve called her sooner, but with everything that was happening, it was the last thing on my mind.

It’s going to take some time to process everything I’ve learned about my past, and I’ll just have to take it one day at a time.

As for Leo?

Yeah, I’m falling fast and hard for him.