Page 26 of The Mafia King's Stolen Fiancée

Chet was doing his best to hide his fear, but the stark terror in his eyes was perfectly clear.

“Unfortunately, my boss doesn’t want to clean up the mess that would inevitably follow your disappearance. Which means today, you are going to walk out of here with…almost”—I sliced off a section of Chet’s earlobe, and Dante slapped a hand over his mouth to stifle his pathetic cry—“all of your body intact. But make no mistake, if you won’t stay away from Vivienne, you’ll be declaring war with the DeLucas.” I tapped the knife on his head condescendingly. “And while I think you’re seriously lacking in logic and common sense…and humanity in general…you’re smart enough to know that challenging us would be a very, very stupid thing to do.”

I gave him a few moments to digest what I’d said, then I pulled the gun out of his mouth and returned to sit behind my desk.

“I’m not scared of the fucking Mafia,” he spat.

“The terror in your eyes says otherwise,” I drawled. Glancing at Dante and Domenico, I ordered, “Get him out of here.”

Domenico grabbed Chet by his neck and dragged him out into the hall.

11

VIVIENNE

“I’m not scared of the fucking Mafia.”

“The terror in your eyes says otherwise. Get him out of here.”

Chet’s accusation echoed in my head. Could he possibly be right? Or was this just another example of him stereotyping someone?

Just because Rafa was Italian didn’t mean he was in the Mafia. Maybe his reply was just a taunt to get under Chet’s skin.

Then again, it certainly would help explain the need for armed guards at the gate. Also why he had a body guard who rarely left his side. And…

My thoughts were abruptly cut off when the door to Rafa’s office swung open and Domenico dragged Chet out, kicking and screaming. When my ex’s gaze landed on me, his lips curled into a nasty sneer. “You’re not worth the hassle, bitch. You could’ve been the First Lady of Tennessee. Maybe even the country. Now you’ll have to watch a more appropriate woman take your place and have the life you’ll wish you hadn’t thrown away with your stupidity. All you’ll be is some Mafia whore.”

Ignoring the shove in the back Domenico gave him, Chet continued to taunt me. “You’ll come crawling back to me once DeLuca is tired of you. He’ll toss you aside, and then I’ll teach you the lesson you deserve.”

“You won’t do shit to her,” Domenico growled, hauling him down the hallway and out of my line of sight.

“I’m sorry you witnessed that,cara,” Rafa murmured from behind me. “I hadn’t planned on you ever needing to see that bastard again.”

I shook my head, trying to wrap my head around what had just happened. I didn't know what to think and needed time to process it all, but being caught eavesdropping meant that I wasn’t going to get it.

There was no mistaking what I’d heard Chet say before anyone knew that I was out here, but he wasn’t the most trustworthy person. During the two years that I’d known him, Chet had spouted off about all sorts of things that weren’t true, never once doubting himself or his ridiculous beliefs. All I could do was hope that he was wrong again. And find out directly from the person who would know the veracity of his claims.

I turned toward Rafa, my stomach clenching at his wary expression. It didn’t bode well for me that he wasn’t exuding his usual confidence. His unshakable command had faltered enough for me to know that I needed to brace for what I was about to learn.

I shook my head with a deep sigh. “As much as I’m sure you’d like to, you can’t always control what other people do, Rafa.”

“Still, I should have anticipated that you would come looking for me. Then I could have saved you from that asshole’s ranting, at least,” he argued, scanning my expression with concerned eyes. “How much did you hear?”

“Enough,” I told him with a deep frown. “But I suppose it’s a good thing that I happened upon this confrontation.”

He looked at me quizzically. “Why?”

Feeling vulnerable, I crossed my arms over my chest as if I could protect myself from the emotional pain I knew was coming. “Apparently, there is a lot I don’t know about you. And I’m guessing I would never have found out about any of it if you’d been able to continue hiding them from me forever.”

I felt like there was something heavy sitting on my chest. It was reality, and the weight was threatening to suffocate me.

“Not forever,cara. I had every intention of telling you about who and what I am. I simply wanted to give you time to adjust to all the other changes in your life first.”

“I don’t know whether to believe you,” I admitted sadly. “And I’m not sure if I really want to hear the answers to all the questions swirling around in my head right now. I’m afraid of the truth.”

He took a step closer and reached for me but clenched his fists and dropped them to his side when I flinched. His dark eyes flickered with something dangerous. Not anger, but an emotion just as potent, something like desperation. “What truths are you afraid to learn about me,cara?”

“I’m afraid to learn who you really are.”

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