Page 14 of Roped By Ryan

“And she’s my woman. I fucking love her.” I want him to know this isn’t some fling for me.

He blinks at me for several minutes silently. “You love her?”

“I do,” I tell him and glance over to find a smirking Dante Arakas glancing back and forth between us.

Lorenzo lunges to his feet and slams his hand down on the table. “How long has this been going on behind my fucking back?”

“Nothing has been going on behind your back. I haven’t seen Michela in years.”

“Then how the hell did you go from not seeing her in years to being in love in one goddamn week?”

“It isn’t unusual in Silver Spoon Falls.” Dante Arakas speaks for the first time. “They say drinking the water in town helps romances along.”

Lorenzo turns to stare at the other man like he’s grown a second head. “Excuse me?”

“It’s a legend in town.” He shrugs nonchalantly. “You can’t argue with the number of happy couples here in Silver Spoon Falls.”

“This whole town is fucking nuts.” Lorenzo downs his whiskey in one gulp and then turns to me. “I’d shoot your ass myself if I wasn’t dealing with a fucking meltdown in New York. The head of the Grimaldi family died suddenly without naming a successor. Now, his family is fracturing. They have two factions determined to seize control.

“One of the dumb fucks vying for control decided to flex his muscles by taking on the other New York families. Yesterday, his men took it to a-whole-nother level.”

That gets my attention. As the most powerful “family” in New York, the Amante family doesn’t usually have to deal with this bullshit. “What happened?”

“Marty Cierra was gunned down in front of his wife and daughter yesterday.” Fucking hell. Marty was Uncle Leon’s right-hand man. “It was a message for us to watch our backs. All the families are on high alert.”

“Fucking hell.” I rub the back of my neck as I pull out my cellphone to make sure I set the alarm on my house before I left Michela sleeping soundly in my bed.

“Where is my sister?” Of course, he’d ask that.

“At my house.” A huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders now that our relationship is out in the open, but I still don’t want to rock the boat and give Lorenzo a reason to off me.

“I’m taking her back to New York so I can protect her.” Oh, fuck no, he isn’t.

“The fuck you are.”

“You can’t keep her safe from these people, and her safety comes above everything else. If you want to pursue this relationship once the smoke has settled, we’ll sit down and have another talk. But right now, I need to make sure my sister is safe.”

My fists clench at my sides as I growl through clenched teeth, “I will keep her safe.” Lorenzo’s eyes narrow to slits. “No matter what it takes.”

“These motherfuckers don’t play around. Your house security system isn’t going to deter the Grimaldi goons.” Lorenzo stares me down, waiting for me to back down, but he’ll be waiting a long fucking time.

“No one is taking Michela from me. That’s not negotiable.” I stare into his eyes. "I love her, and I’ll do whatever it takes to keep her safe.”

For a moment, the room is silent, the tension palpable. Lorenzo exchanges a look with Dante, who nods subtly before mumbling under his breath, “Motherfucking hell.”

“I’m not going to say I told you so.” Dante smirks. “But I told you so.” Lorenzo glances over at the other mafia boss, and I can see some silent message passing back and forth between them.Hopefully, they aren’t planning where to hide my goddamn body.

After what seems like a lifetime, Lorenzo leans back, his posture relaxing ever so slightly. “Dante has a compound on the edge of town with several guest cottages. He’s agreed to let you and Michela stay there until the threat is over. I’m leaving a team of my guys here to be a protection detail for her since I know my stubborn, pain-in-the-ass sister won’t agree to stay hidden. I’m giving you this chance to prove that you can be trusted with my sister. But know this: one misstep, one moment where you fail to protect her, and there will be consequences for you. Permanent motherfucking consequences.”

I glare at my asshole former best friend. “And you suddenly planned all this with one look?”

Lorenzo smirks and shakes his head. “Naw, I had all this planned out before I even called you. At first, I planned to murder your ass, but Dante convinced me to give you a chance to prove yourself. I was testing you to see if you would be staying at Dante’s with my sister or if you’d be in a shallow grave, never to be seen again. Lucky for you, you passed my test.”

I have no idea why a mafia boss I’ve never met before went to bat for me, but I’m grateful since I’m still breathing. “Fucking hell,” I mutter, glad things went my way.

Chapter 10

Michela

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