Page 17 of Bound to the Enforcer

"This world corrupts souls, princess. What I had to do to that man would have shown you a darkness that I am sure you are not ready to meet yet. Trust me when I say that it was for your best interest."

He almost sounds like he cares. The words, simple as they are, strike something deep in me. It's not comfort—Alessio isn't the comforting type—but it's steady and reliable. And right now, that's enough to make me believe that I can handle this.

I push the papers aside and sit back, running a hand through my hair. "If we hit Domenico's supply lines, he'll retaliate, and then it's all chaos from there. What's to stop him from killing me then?"

"Nothing," Alessio says, his tone matter-of-fact. "But it's already heading that way. The difference is whether we control the battlefield or let him dictate it."

I nod slowly, his words settling into the pit of my stomach like stones. "Then we strike first and strike hard."

Later that evening, the house is eerily quiet. Most of the staff have retreated for the night, leaving only the guards stationed throughout the estate. The tension from the day still lingers, coiled tight in my chest.

I find myself wandering the halls. My thoughts are a tangled mess, a constant loop of plans and doubts, not to mention him.

Sharp angled jaw. Striking brown eyes and?—

What the fuck? I have to stop myself from drifting too far off. The last thing that I need is to be lusting over my damn bodyguard.

"He is hot, though," I say under my breath, but as I pass one of the guards down the hallway, they give me a look. Shit. Heat colors my face, and I speed walk my way in the other direction, completely and utterly mortified.

I end up in the library, drawn by the dim glow of the fire that Alessio lit earlier. The room is warm and inviting, but I can't seem to relax. My family is buried toward the eastern wall of the estate, a place I have yet to visit but have been meaning to.

A family of what was intended to be four was reduced to one. My chest twisted with the agony and grief I had refused to allow myself to feel.

The sound of the door opening behind me pulls me from my thoughts.

"You're up late," Alessio says.

"So are you," I reply, looking out to the night beyond the glass. "I've just been… thinking."

"Don't hurt yourself now, princess." The amusement in his tone has me pulling a face his way. He holds his hands up and walks over to where I stand by the window.

My body is immediately hyperaware of his existence beside me. The silent buzz that I now associate with him returns, and the heat in the air increases. My body always seems to have a visceral reaction whenever he is close, and I don't know whether to chalk that up to sexual frustration or genuine emotion.

It is a question that I don't want to busy myself with. Least of all in times like these.

"Penny for your thoughts?" He speaks against the crackling of the fire in the room.

I turn to look up at him. "Depends, will you reprimand me, call me a child, and insist you know better than me?"

He rolls his eyes at my obvious attempt to troll him. I believe this is the most normal we have been with each other. It's… nice.

"I am simply an ear tonight. I think I've been in your ear a fair share today. Go ahead."

"I never knew my mother, my sister was ripped from me at a young age. So, all I knew of my family was from my father. He was the one who I addressed all my holiday cards to. He was the one who would sit through all my recitals, sports events, and plays. No matter how busy he got, he somehow always managed to make time for me. He always told me that family was the most important thing that we had. Blood is thicker than water will ever be, and I believed him. So color me surprised when I discovered through my father's ledgers that Domenico was the one who likely killed him."

"Your father's ledgers?" I can feel his stare burning a hole into the side of my head.

I nod. "He left them in his study for me. I have only combed through one or two, but I have learned enough to know that my uncle has been waiting for his time. He killed my father, Alessio, and for that, I will put a bullet in the middle of his head."

I am not a killer. As far as the first bleed went, I am yet to end a life. But I am more than happy to make Domenico my first kill.

"You are not a killer, princess."

"I am a mafia boss now. The initiation to such a title is murder, and Domenico will be my first bleed."

He doesn't respond immediately, I just feel the weight of his presence beside me. Our hands brush against each other, and instant sparks move up and down my veins. I finally turn to face him.

"Domenico was always ambitious," I say, more to myself than to him. "But I never thought he'd go this far. To kill your own in cold blood, all for what? Now he risks war with me because he wants the crown. How pathetic must you be to live for only power?"

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