Page 49 of His to Possess

And then a very important thought occurs to me. Why would Angelo introduce me to his family like this if we didn’t potentially have a future together? What would be the point? But, it’s like they all know me already which means Angelo was talking about me to them.What did he say?I wonder. To be welcomed so completely and kindly, he must’ve said good things.

“I just came from Carmine Gallo’s and I have some very important things that you all need to know immediately,” Iannounce. Because, as of this very moment, I am Team Rossi one-million percent. Fuck Gallo.

“Let’s go back inside,” Miceli says.

“Yeah, good idea,” I murmur, looking around for any sign of trouble. We’re all standing out in the open and it leaves me feeling on edge. Especially since my name is still on the Kill List and there are a lot of people out looking for me right now.

Once we’re all back in the warehouse, Angelo pulls up an extra chair and I sit down beside him. The entire table is studying me closely and I have the full attention of the most powerful ruling organization in New York City. And, yeah, it’s a little intimidating.

Doing my best, I explain how I met with Gallo and how it all went down. “He gave me an ultimatum—either kill Miceli or Gallo said he’ll kill Angelo.”

“That sonofabitch,” Angelo snarls and I reach for his hand.

“I’m not a killer and I would never hurt your family,” I tell the Rossi’s. “I also can’t allow Gallo to kill Angelo, so we’re going to need to come up with some kind of plan before he sends his goons to do the job.”

“He wants to usurp power,” Miceli says. “From all of us.” The table goes into an uproar and everyone starts talking over everyone else. But the gist is the same—they’re going to eliminate Gallo before he can follow through on his threats.

Despite the fury, I can feel everyone eyeing me warily. Well, at least the other families. They don’t trust me and I can’t blame them. Once they settle down, I want them to understand that I have their backs.

“I’m on your side,” I say quietly, and Angelo squeezes my hand. “I refuse to let anyone here die…even if it results in my own death.”

“No, not gonna happen,” Angelo immediately tells me. “We’re going to figure this out right now. You’re not sacrificing yourself for me or anyone else. Got it?”

His dark eyes flash and I can see he means business. I merely nod, but if it comes down to it…

I’m sorry, Angelo, but I will go down fighting for you. Because I love you.

The thought hits me hard and there’s no denying it. Somehow this beautiful, cocky, sweet, amazing, complete pain in the ass has captured my heart and I wouldn’t have it any other way. For the first time in my life, I see potential with a man. So damn much and I will give it my all to make sure he and his family come out of this mess safely.

When I don’t say anything to reassure him, he shoves up out of his chair and it scrapes backwards, nearly tipping over. “We need to talk.”

Before I can respond, he’s practically dragging me across the warehouse and I have to jog to keep up. “You’re manhandling me,” I hiss, trying to pull my arm away. But his fingers are wrapped around my upper arm like a vice.

“You’re lucky I’m not cuffing you,” he retorts and I press my lips together. I suppose he does have a point. “Because I’m one step away from locking your sweet ass up.”

I can feel the rest of the room watching as we face off in the dimly-lit corner. In fact, I think I caught smirks from Angelo’sfamily, but I have no idea why they would find our bickering so amusing.

When I finally manage to wrangle free of his hold, I huff out a frustrated breath. “I can take care of myself, you know. I’ve been doing it my whole damn life.”

“You don’t need to do that any longer, Blake,” he says softly.

His words catch me off guard. “What?”

“You’re not alone any more. I have your back, my entire family does, and we’re not letting anything happen to you. There won’t be any sacrifice on your part. We’re a team and we’ll work through this together.”

My mouth drops open and a flood of warmth fills my heart. “No one has ever had my back before,” I whisper, touched more than he could possibly know. Still, though, I’m confused. I’m a stranger to everyone over there, why would they even care? Why does Angelo care? “Why, though? Why do any of you care? You barely know me and they don’t know me at all.”

“Here’s the deal, kitten,” he says, his voice low. He reaches for me again, but this time his hold and touch are gentle as he pulls me closer. “They care because I care. At some point during this crazy journey, I fell head over heels for you. I’ve never been in love before, Blake, but you changed that.”

My eyes widen and I think my breathing grows erratic and slightly ragged.In love? Oh, my God.For a moment, I don’t know how to respond and I think he misinterprets my silence. A muscle flexes in his jaw as his dark eyes search mine.

“If you don’t feel the same, I?—”

“I do,” I interrupt. “I just didn’t think anything could come of this…of us.”

“Why not?” he asks quietly, almost savagely.

“I…I didn’t think I was good enough for you,” I admit, looking down and chewing on my lower lip. “No one has ever wanted me before, Angelo. Not my dad or the foster families or?—”

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