Page 12 of Under His Embrace

I went from running from gun-toting strangers to winding up in the backseat of this SUV. I struggled to accept how this was my life, that all that I’d done had ended me up here, but I knew better than to think of a way out of it.

I wasn’t a stranger to the Mafia. Franco had always known he’d serve as a soldier for his uncle’s organization. He never kept it a secret when we dated, and he never got mad when I asked questions about how it all worked. Details weren’t given, and I never outright asked for specifics that would compromise my safety. I wasn’t stupid, only dumb enough to fall in love with him, the bad boy my parents disapproved of so vehemently.

Seeing him was a shocker, but I couldn’t lower my guard around him. In that first look we’d shared in that motel room, through surprise at seeing each other, I felt so much weight in his gaze. Too many heavy things passed between us, all the unspoken but powerful feelings that neither of us could deny. Franco and I had volumes of history, but that couldn’t matter now. It couldn’t be relevant with why they captured me.

No. Wait.Franco and Liam hadn’t only captured me. They’d also saved me. I spotted the dead man who’d been chasing after me since shooting up the deli. If not for Franco and Liam, I would’ve been dead. Caleb would’ve been an orphan.

In this light, Franco was my hero, but I’d be damned if I'd let that get in my head. He was a Mafia henchman, a man who chose a life of crime and corruption—both things he claimed fell in the line of “duty” to his family.

I had to remain on guard, no matter how much I yearned to see him again in other ways. In the way that he so easily reminded me of our youth, when we were young and so in love.

When we parked at a huge complex of enormous houses, I struggled to make eye contact with him. While I felt every tense bit of pressure when he stared at me, I couldn’t face him. Not with all these men. Not in a public setting like this. While the men spoke, I tried to look around and figure out where they’d taken me.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

I watched as he reached out his hand to steady me, but he seemed to think twice as he lowered his arm.

In what universe could I be all right after running into you, Franco?

“Are you injured?” he asked instead.

“No. Just from knocking my head,” I muttered and gently probed at the spot.

“Get her food and water,” he ordered.

“What about Danicia?” Liam asked.

Who?

“Yes, just to make sure her head wound won’t be an issue,” Franco replied.

And if it is an issue, it’s my issue!“Don’t talk about me as if I’m not here.”

“This way,” a guard instructed, gesturing for me to proceed toward the house. After snapping at Franco, I couldn’t dare to glance at him. For all I knew, he was counting down the time until I wouldn’t be here. I hadn’t committed a crime to work at A&J’s Deli. Nor had I done anything wrong in trying to run and hide from those killers. They had no right to treat me like I was an accomplice or an instigator of more trouble.

It’s not like they’re binding me up.It was a small grace, but I had to appreciate it.

They ushered me inside to a room and closed the door. As soon as the guards had left, another returned with a tray of food. This guy didn’t say anything, either. He set the food and bottle of water on a table, and only then did I slump to the edge of the bed and sigh.

My God. This is a disaster.I rubbed my face, overwhelmed with all the chaos, but deep down, I was grateful that it was just me suffering this time. With Caleb on spring break, he was far from this danger. He was staying with a friend in Brooklyn who lived with his grandpa, and I was so damn happy that I didn’t have to worry about him here as I settled into a new job.

What job?

I shook my head. While I hadn’t known Manny and Suzie at the deli for long, I did miss them and what they represented. They were supposed to be my new employers, bosses who wouldn’t mind paying me under the table and keeping things on the down-low. Regardless of how well I could’ve gotten to knowthem, I was certain they were innocent and didn’t deserve to die like that.

Now, my new start on life would need to be restarted again.

As soon as I get out of here.

I glanced up at the door as someone knocked, then entered. The tall man wasn’t the one I both dreaded and looked forward to seeing again. It wasn’t Franco, but his distant cousin.

“Romeo?” I guessed. Thatwas the name of the man he referenced the most, Romeo, the son of Dante—the Boss.

“Yeah.” He laughed once, lightly. “I’m surprised you remember.”

I nodded and cleared my throat. “Franco mentioned you. Way back when.”

“Right.” Romeo took a chair and turned it around to straddle it as he faced me. “Long time ago. It’s definitely a surprise to see you again—like this.”

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