Page 30 of The Forbidden Husband

And I couldn’t gethimout of my head.

Chapter Ten

Aria Bianchi

Jaimie woke me at sunrise and told me I would be going with Enzo for the day.

I had never gotten up and ready so quickly in my life.

I thought everything would be different after the kiss. Maybe he would push me further away, or maybe he would send me off to live somewhere else until the clear feelings between us had faded.

Instead, I sat across from him as a driver brought us deeper into the city.

“Where are we going?” I asked as I crossed my ankles.

“We have a few places to go today. You need to see the people who support us and plan to stand with us if the conflict with your father persists.”

I nodded, mentally cataloging the area as we pulled to our first stop.

“I don’t think my father ever visits places himself. It’s too much of a risk.”

Enzo chuckled. “Even once I become boss, I will never sacrifice a relationship with my people. It’s important that they know and trust the person who gives them protection.”

“I agree with that.”

I followed him from the car and into the first business where the owner immediately came out and welcomed him with open arms. Enzo listened to each of their concerns and collected the photographs of someone who had recently broken into the store and stolen a few things. He promised justice as we made our way down the street to another place.

I carried the folder in my hands as Enzo walked confidently, greeting a handful of other shop employees and pedestrians as if he knew most of them.

“Do you know all of these people?” I asked.

“No.”

The answer surprised me. “How do they know you?”

He stopped and looked down at me. “Aria, your father and I are vastly different. Uncle Giovanni and I walk down these streets often. We talk to the businesses, and we support them in exchange for various things. Some of them provide money, and some provide services. I don’t know every person we deal with, but everyone knows me. Beyond that, I’m a media presence. I’m a known businessman in the area, and people want favors.”

“Did you bring me here today to draw parallels between you and my father? To tell me that you’re infinitely better than he is? Are you going to give me a sob story about how he killed your puppy growing up or something?”

Enzo’s face went cool. “How much do you know about him?

Much, much more than you could imagine.

“I know he’s not a good man, but I don’t have to worry about that anymore. He’s no longer my problem.”

He gave me a knowing look. “Okay,” he conceded. “Come on. We have more places to be.”

I knew his motivations. I knew that Enzo had brought me here to show me my loyalty should lie with him. He wanted me to turn my back on my father, and he had no idea how little convincing that would take if I didn’t have a higher stake in this game.

I didn’twantto be loyal to the man threatening me and my sisters.

I didn’t want to be connected to a liar and a manipulative asshole for my entire life, but there wasn’t a choice. No matter what he showed me today, there wouldn’t be anything more devastating than the truth I had learned months ago. Nothing could convince me to turn my back on him when he held the two people I cared for most.

We approached a blacked-out apartment complex in the center of the business district, and Enzo waltzed inside as if he owned the place. Nobody waited in the reception area, and he made his way toward the stairs, walking up three flights.

“There is an elevator,” I panted as we reached the third-floor landing.

“Not a functioning one.”

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