Page 41 of Diavolo

Elyse sank to the floor, shrinking to a child-like ball. Bleakly, she wrapped her arms around her knees. Years ago, on her ninth birthday, she saw firsthand how a man could be a brilliant poker playeranda self-destructiveasshole at the same time.Papáhad promised her a special birthday trip to Disneyland if he did well at his next tournament. He won enough money for the trip, but, then, greed lured him to gamble away his earnings. Elyse never made it to Disneyland. By the end ofPapá'stournament, they didn't even have enough to buy a cake. But Elyse forgave her father. She always forgave him. Because there had been hope in her heart that he'd do better next time. That he'd change.That he'd know better than to break her heart again.

For a moment, Elyse felt as though she was nine again, reliving the birthday when her innocence lost its shine. Today mirrored the dayPapámade her dream come true before gambling it all away. Until today, Elyse believed that her love could triumph overPapá'ssins. That through sacrifice and determination, she could repay his debts to the Mancinis. Elyse stared at her laptop screen again. The results glared back. Her dreams of freedom had just been shattered in an even more heartbreaking manner.

Blood is blood.

What a sick, terrible joke. Reality taunted her misery. A quiet, serene life had never felt further out of reach. Elyse sucked in a quivering breath. Her mind was a wreck. Through the despair, however, something savage rebelled against this cage she couldn't escape. Resentment became rage. She grew silentand still. Dangerously so. Defeat felt imminent, but Elyse was too fucking pissed off to surrender.

She'd never been able to rely on the men in her life. But Elyse could still trust herself. Her jaw set. Life had knocked her down before. She always found ways to pick herself back up and push onward. This time would be no different. If she couldn't escape her blood, then maybe it was time to stop running. Maybe it was time to acknowledge her birthright, own it, master it, and wield it until she no longer feared the blood running through her veins. At this, Elyse's thoughts swiveled toward the new monster in her life.

Alessandro Vitale.

Today—he’d revealed a glimmer of his true colors. This side of him scared her more than Stefano's threats or Mikey's fists ever did. Alessandro didn't threaten her life, nor did he hit her, but he was far less predictable and, therefore, by extension, far more formidable. She knew from Stefano and Mikey's stories that the wives and girlfriends and mistresses ofmafiosioften lived luxurious, pampered lives. But they were also mistreated, abused, and killed over the smallest infractions. Only men were allowed to be kings in the mafia. Their women weren't queens. They were pawns. Disposable and easily replaced.

This whole time, Alessandro had managed to seduce her while using her, lying to her, and betraying her trust.All for his own benefit. She was furious at the man. She wanted to hate him. However, Elyse couldn't bring herself to summon up such a taxing, wretched emotion. It was beneath her. He didn't deserve her trust, let alone her hatred. He did, however, earn her begrudging respect. She recognized a worthy adversary in Alessandro. He'd set an immaculate trap, and she'd dived head first into it.

Elyse didn't know how far Alessandro would go to bend her to his will, but she was ready to test his limits. Marriage was outof the question. Even if the man kept his word—that was a bigif—and divorced her in a few years, the trade-off would take too great a toll. Marrying into the mafia meant that she could never be her own person again. They'd own her completely.

For once in her life, Elyse possessed no plan. Or strategy. There no longer seemed to be a need. All of her schemes so far had crumbled to dust. The rules to Alessandro's game kept changing. She'd need to play everything by ear from now on. It seemed a quiet, serene life had never been in her cards. Her dreams of freedom were dead. Especially now that a devil planned to shove his ring on her finger. Distress nipped at her heels, but a desire to persevere spurred her on. With a sting in her eyes, Elyse grabbed her medical supplies and headed back outside to her 9 am appointment.

Alessandro's face lit up when he saw her return to the living room. He asked, "Did you receive the results from Mr. Schmid?"

"I did," she replied, "thank you."

Alessandro's gaze honed onto the watery gleam in her eyes. His expression softened. "Are you... alright?"

Elyse's eyes hardened. "I will be."

Neither of them addressed the elephant in the room. Yet, the unresolved matters of marriage and Alessandro's deceit now stretched between them like tendrils of smoke. Thickening the air. His closeness was suffocating. Elyse's anger grew so potent that she felt as though she might choke on it. Still, she willed herself to tamp down her wrath. Alessandro needed to know that he wasn't the only unpredictable fucker in this room.

Elyse flashed him a tight smile. Uncertainly, he eyed her bag of medical supplies. "I am ready whenever you are, Dr. Romero."

With a placid, composed face, she swallowed the violence simmering within her like jagged, little pills. "Let's begin."

Alessandro sat himself down on the couch. Elyse settled beside him. He was already shirtless. Her eyes scanned his muscledtorso. She immediately noticed the pale, raised scar tissue from his gunshot wound sat low on his abdomen. After snapping on a pair of latex gloves, Elyse inspected it up close. "This has healed nicely."

"You did an excellent job stitching me up, Dr. Romero."

"I know."

In adept, seasoned movements, she proceeded to remove a stethoscope from her bag to check his heart, lungs, ears, and blood pressure. Alessandro's breath hitched lightly each time her gloved hands brushed along his skin. Very noticeably, his heart rate kept picking up speed. Quietly, he asked, "Will you allow me to take you out to lunch today?"

"No."

He implored her, "Angelo..."

She mimicked the plea in his tone. "Sir..."

"I want to make things right between us."

Arching an eyebrow, Elyse challenged, "Why?"

"Because I care for you."

More lies.She scoffed delicately, "And yet you have no problem with hijacking my future or ignoring my wishes when it serves you."

It was infuriating to know that he could remain so unaffected. The scales kept tilting in his favor as though God Himself had pressed a thumb on the side of Alessandro's plate. Elyse decided to punish him the only way she knew how. She pulled off her gloves. Then, Elyse slid a hand inside his joggers to grasp his cock. Alessandro's brown and blue-gray eyes grew wide. "No… gloves?”

She gave him a few slow, pleasing tugs. "Would you like me to put them back on?”

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