Page 60 of Mafia Don's Secret Twins

“I am not so bad,” he says. “I would make… I would make a suitable husband. I would not be cruel. To you,” he clarifies. “I would treat you well. I am not so bad to look at, no?”

I don’t laugh at his joke.

He sighs, leaning back. “You are not so bad yourself.”

“I’ll pretend that’s a compliment.”

“It is,” he says quickly. “It is. You are beautiful. And there is so much more.”

He’s right.

There’s so much more to me. There’s my father’s organization. His debts. His failures.

Everything he has access to through me.

“Why not just enter the competition?”

“I can’t. No… I am not an heir,” he says with a frown in his voice.

“That’s a stupid rule,” I murmur.

Andrei doesn’t respond.

I don’t either. I stare at the fountain, aware of the dangerous Italian next to me. Andrei Moretti’s right. He wouldn’t be so bad, and I would be well taken care of with him. I think that I also would even be able to get the girls and bring them to live with me.

He’s not bad. It’s true.

But my heart holds on to one truth that it refuses to let go of.

He’s not bad.

But he’s not Dino.

Another three days, and it’s time.

My father is in the best mood. I haven’t responded to Andrei’s question, and he hasn’t pushed me on it. I’m grateful for that, because I don’t have an answer.

It’s an arrangement that makes sense.

But my mother’s voice keeps ringing in my head.

Decide with your heart.

My heart, unfortunately, is definitely not on board with the Andrei proposal.

I need to let that go. My future is about to walk into our courtyard. The whole thing feels absolutely archaic.

I’m dressed in an evening dress, like some kind of medieval princess. Inside, my father has prepared a welcome dinner. My role is to stand to the side, look pretty, and wave each of the men inside.

There are five, if the information I’ve overheard is accurate.

Five potential suitors. Five wealthy heirs to mafias across the world.

Five people who want to marry me for my father’s empire.

Zero who want to marry me for… me.

I shuffle. I hate wearing dresses like this, and I feel kind of naked standing here. Behind me, Moretti tenses, and I give him a little wave with my fingertips.

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