Page 44 of Forbidden Vengeance

Answer your phone Elena.

My men saw you leave with a girl claiming to be family.

We both know you don’t have family.

You’re making dangerous choices,cara.

Remember what happened to the last person who betrayed my trust.

No one disappears from me without consequences.

Iwillfind you. And we’ll have a long discussion about loyalty.

“What’s he saying, Elena?” Mario’s voice has gone dangerously soft.

“None of your business,” I retort, moving to put the phone away.

“Like hell it isn’t.” He snatches the phone from my hand before I can react.

“Don’t you ever,” I snarl, fury making my voice shake, “grab my phone without permission again. I’m not one of your soldiers to command.”

His eyes scan the messages, and I watch something lethal awaken in his expression. His whole body goes preternaturally still—the kind of stillness that precedes violence.

“He’s threatening you,” he says, each word precise and sharp as a blade. “Making promises about loyalty lessons.”

“Give. Me. My. Phone.” Each word drips with ice. “I’ve handled Anthony Calabrese for months without your help. I don’t need you to?—”

We’re on the verge of nuclear war when a knock interrupts us. The doctor enters—tall, blond, looking like he walked off a soap opera set in designer scrubs. His easy smile falters slightly when he catches the tension crackling between us, no doubt recognizing the particular brand of danger radiating off Mario.

“Ms. Santiago?” he says carefully, looking between us like he’s calculating the odds of violence erupting in his examination room. “I’m Dr. Matthews. Should we…perhaps reschedule?”

I take a deep breath, smoothing my expression into something professional. “No need to reschedule, Dr. Matthews. Someone,” I shoot Mario a pointed look, “just needs a lesson in boundaries.”

The doctor’s gaze flicks between us again. I hop onto the examination table, flashing him my most dazzling smile—the one that gets me past security checkpoints and into private files. “Besides, I’m sure you’re very busy. We wouldn’t want to waste your valuable time.”

Mario’s jaw ticks at my obvious flirting. Good.

“So,” Dr. Matthews pulls up my chart, “I understand there was an incident yesterday involving potential toxic exposure?”

“Just a scare,” I assure him. “The substance turned out to be harmless.”

“Nevertheless, we should run a full panel.” He glances at Mario. “And this is…?”

“Not the father,” I say loudly, satisfaction blooming at Mario’s barely concealed flinch. “Just a…friend.”

“I see.” The doctor’s expression remains professionally neutral. “Would you prefer to continue the examination privately?”

Some petty part of me wants to say yes, to punish Mario for grabbing my phone, for thinking he can control me like one of his people.

But then I look at him—the way his shoulders are rigid with tension, how his fingers grip the arm of his chair just a little too tightly. For all his dangerous grace, there’s something almost vulnerable in the way he’s trying so hard to appear calm.

“He can stay,” I finally say.

Something flickers across Mario’s face—a crack in that perfect mask of control. His eyes, when they meet mine, hold something that makes my chest tight.

“Alright then,” the doctor says, reaching for the ultrasound equipment. “Let’s check on your little one. This might be cold.”

I inhale sharply as gel hits my stomach, my heart racing as the wand moves across my skin. For a moment, there’s nothing but static, and then?—

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