Page 59 of Arranged Mafia Marriage

She walks around the desk, placing a hand on my shoulder. “Then we find one. Together. There has to be a way to outmaneuver Damiano without compromising our principles.”

I mentally count to three, trying to calm the storm of emotions raging inside me. Felicity’s words reverberate in my mind, challenging everything I’ve built my life around, but I can’t let sentiment cloud my judgment. Not when everything is at stake. The stark truth is, my wife is naïve, at least when it comes to the full reality of our world, and I have to shield her from herself as much as anyone.

“Protecting you and our family is my top priority. I’ll do what I must to ensure that.” I keep my tone and expression hard. I slam my hand on the desk. The sound reverberates through the room, making Felicity flinch. “This is war, Felicity. Damiano won’t hesitate to use any advantage he can get. Including you, and I must do the same.”

Her hand instinctively moves to her stomach, and for a moment, I see fear flicker in her eyes, but it’s quickly replaced by determination. “There’s always a choice, Kiril. We can find another way.”

I square my shoulders and adopt a hard tone. “You’re being ridiculously naïve. Principles won’t stop bullets, and they won’t keep Damiano’s men from hurting you or our child. I can’t take that risk.”

She steps back, her expression hardening. “And I can’t stand by while you use an innocent child as a shield. Not if I want to be able to look our own child in the eye someday.”

“Our child will be alive to look us in the eye because of the choices I make now,” I snap, standing up. “Sometimes, we must do distasteful things to defend what matters most.”

Felicity shakes her head, tears welling in her eyes. “If we do this, we’re no better than Damiano. We become the very monsters against which we’re fighting.”

“Then so be it,” I say, my voice cold. “I would rather be a monster and keep you safe than a principled corpse.”

She stares at me for a long moment with disappointment and sorrow. “I won’t be part of this.” With that, she turns and storms out of the office, slamming the door behind her. The sound echoes through the room, leaving a deafening silence in its wake.

I sink back into my chair, cradling my head in my hands. The wrongness of my decision threatens to crush me, but I can’t falter. I’ll pick saving my family over Damiano’s any time and without remorse, even if it costs me Felicity’s love and respect. At least she and our baby will be alive to hate me.

26

Felicity

Isit on the terrace, sipping tea and trying to calm my racing thoughts. The past few days have been a whirlwind of emotions, and I’m still struggling to process everything that’s happened. The fight I just had with Kiril lingers on my mind, leaving a bitter taste in my mouth that has nothing to do with the unsweetened ginger tea or lingering nausea.

Isabella arrives at the table, carrying her own cup of tea. “Mind if I join you?”

I gesture to the empty chair beside me. “Please, have a seat.”

She settles in, studying me with concern. “You seem troubled, Felicity. Is everything all right?”

I force a smile, not wanting to burden her with my worries, or reveal Kiril’s plan. I still hope to find a different solution, sparing her from ever needing to know she’s in danger. “I’m fine. Just a bit overwhelmed with everything.”

She nods sympathetically. “I understand. It’s a lot to take in, especially for someone who wasn’t raised in this world.”

I take another sip of tea, savoring the warmth as it spreads through my body. “How do you do it, Isabella? How do you cope with loving someone in this life when you weren’t born into it either?” I still don’t know how they met. Just that Tony wasn’t planned, and he panicked, hiding her away in Naples. It’s clear there’s friction between them for that choice, but I’ve tried not to pry.

She looks out over the city skyline as though gathering her thoughts. “It’s not easy, that’s for certain. There are days when the fear and uncertainty threaten to consume you, but the love... it’s powerful enough to overshadow even the darkest moments. Loving him so completely is the only way I could accept the man he is.”

I’m curious to hear more. “Can you tell me about when you first fell in love with Damiano? How did you know it was worth the risk?”

Isabella’s lips curve into a wistful smile. “It wasn’t love at first sight, if that’s what you’re wondering. Damiano was charming, of course, but I knew better than to fall for a man like him. Or so I thought.”

She pauses, lost in the memory. “We met at a charity gala in Naples. I was there with my father, a respectedlegitimatebusinessman. Damiano approached us, all smiles and polite conversation, but there was something in his eyes, an intensity that both thrilled and terrified me.”

“What happened next?” I ask, drawn into her story.

“He pursued me relentlessly, sending flowers, arranging ‘chance’ encounters, and trying to rearrange my life to make it easier for me, and him, I suppose. I resisted at first, knowing the danger he represented, but one night, everything changed.”

Isabella’s voice drops to a near whisper. “There was an attempt on my father’s life from a disgruntled client. Nothing mafioso,” she hastily adds, clearly self-conscious about that. “Damiano saved him, putting himself in harm’s way. When I saw him lying there, bleeding but still trying to take care of us. I knew I was in love.”

My chest constricts as I think of the times Kiril has protected me. “How do you reconcile the man you love with the things he has to do?”

She frowns heavily. “It’s a constant struggle. You have to separate the man from his actions, to see the heart beneath the armor. It’s not always possible, and there are times when the darkness threatens to consume everything, but in those moments, you hold onto the love, the tender moments, and the glimpses of the man you know he can be.”

I nod, understanding all too well. “And what about Tony? How do you shield him from all of this?”

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