Page 8 of Finn

“Not lying, just leaving out a clause they probably wouldn’t have even thought about.”

There was a time in my life when the idea of having kids was exciting, and there was a man I thought would be the father. Both of those fantasies were ripped from me in one night.

“Leave it out. If he says anything, then I’ll consider it.”

My father nods and sets his pen down. “Thank you for agreeing, Alessia. I know how hard this was for you.”

It is hard, but the relief on my father’s face is what makes me believe I made the right decision. I’m a woman in a world run by men. There isn’t anything I can do to change that, even if my father allowed me to live my own life for as long as possible. I have an obligation to him and our family. But that doesn’t mean I’ll be a doormat, and heaven help my future husband if he thinks otherwise.

Chapter three

Finn

“I’m still not sure about this,” Cillian grumbles in the passenger seat as we head down the highway to meet my betrothed.

I’m getting fucking married. I roll my eyes at the thought.

“What’s got your panties in a twist, Cill?”

Cillian lets out an irritated huff, shaking his head as though I asked one of the dumbest questions possible. “Where to begin? One, she’s a spoiled Mafia princess—”

“I thought you liked the idea of me having a little Suzy Homemaker waiting by the hearth for me to come home.”

I catch the hard side-eye he’s giving me when I briefly glance in his direction.

“Second,” he continues as if I hadn’t spoken, “just because you marry the girl doesn’t mean he’s any more trustworthy. Who’s to say Mario’s not using her to fuck us over? Having her live in your house and ‘accidentally’ stumbling across certain files or overhearing conversations then running back to daddy dearest?”

“I don’t keep anything at the house she could stumble across. Besides, how many men in the Mafia do you know of who use women to do their dirty work? I doubt Amatto is much different when it comes to his daughter. At least in that aspect. He’s more interested in getting control of the ports.”

“Which he’s sharing with you. It’s not a stretch to consider he’ll try to muscle you out.”

“That’s where my marriage comes in. It’s highly unlikely the man would be quick to screw us over if I have his daughter living in my home.”

“I wouldn’t bank on that. Our organizations have never really seen eye to eye, Finn. The way they conduct business and the way we do are miles apart. It seems reasonable his daughter is nothing but a bargaining chip to him. He doesn’t want you taking over the ports on your own, and he’s willing to give away his daughter because he knows you pose a threat to his power. He knows he can’t take it by force. Seems to me he isn’t interested in how his daughter feels or what happens to her at your hands, especially if he’s that quick to ship her off.”

“Jesus, Cillian. You make me sound like a monster.” My hands tighten around the steering wheel as I become increasingly annoyed with Cillian’s badgering on the subject.

“I know you, but he doesn’t. The Italians have made no bones about their distaste for us. Now he’s turning his daughter over to someone he thinks is dirt on his shoe, and we’re supposed to trust he isn’t planning on screwing us over?”

Everything Cillian is saying is true. But my family has been waiting to take out the Cataldis for as long as I can remember. With the old man being in prison and Carlo on the run, we’re finally in a position, with the help of Amatto, to destroy them.

“Listen, I understand the history with the Cataldis and why you want them gone, but I wouldn’t be a good lieutenant if I didn’t bring up the very real possibility that this could blow up in your face.”

My father made a vow to my mother at the funeral of her only sister. My parents believe she was murdered on the order of Francesco Cataldi for something as innocent as falling in love with the wrong man. Her son went missing that same night, and for years, my mother looked into the face of every blue-eyed, dark-haired boy for a resemblance to her sister. They couldn’t find evidence, but considering the father of her child was Francesco’s right-hand man, it made sense. Francesco was not the type of man to see that as anything less than a betrayal against him. My father promised my mother that he would make sure they paid for taking away her sister and her baby. So yeah, I’d say we have history. Back then, my father wasn’t in the position to destroy him and his empire the way I am now. We have more money and more power than we did during my father’s reign. The Cataldis, on the other hand, have been weakened. It’s the perfect time to strike. We’ll take them apart brick by brick and watch their kingdom crumble. Marrying the daughter of a power-hungry Italian is only one of the many moves I’ve been making.

Pulling up to the Amatto estate and seeing the giant house in front of me is exactly what I imagined it would look like, down to the gaudy fountain in the front of the house.

Cillian lets out a low whistle beside me as we stare at the three-story home in front of us.

“And here I was thinking your house was ridiculously huge,” Cillian mutters.

“This place is like a fucking palace,” I say, taking in the Italian palazzo-style home. Arches frame every window, and the dark stonework on the house showcases the vibrant green of the towering shrubs planted next to the house. The tall stone columns stretch from the marble steps to the sloped roof, and two guards walk from behind their considerable width toward our car. I didn’t even see the fuckers when we pulled up, that’s how wide the columns are.

Jesus fucking Christ, I feel like I’m in another country still ruled by medieval kings and queens instead of an estate outside of Worcester, Massachusetts.

Cillian rolls his window down as the guards approach, leaning down and looking inside the car.

“We’re here to see Mario.”

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