Page 79 of Savage Prince

“Grazie a Dio.”

Thank God is right. If I’m about to add grand theft auto to my rap sheet, I better be ready to run.

“There.” Antonio ticks his head at a two-door Alfa Romeo. It’s sporty but not too showy, and definitely a common enough car not to attract unnecessary attention. Best of all the window is open just enough to slip a hand through. “Can you?—”

Before he finishes his sentence, I slide my hand through the opening.Papàdidn’t only teach me how to handle a gun. I’m also damned good at picking locks, and I know how to hotwire a car.

I can feel Antonio’s weighty stare over my shoulder as I stretch my fingers to reach for the interior door handle. Just a few more inches… The driver’s side door pops open, and I take a step back, offering the spot to Antonio. “Do you want to do the honors or should I?”

He watches me, mouth curved into a grin. “You can hotwire a car too?”

“Of course I can. Only one of my many talents. Maybe someday if you’re lucky, I’ll show you more.”

“I only wish I would be so lucky.” He smirks before taking my hand and tugging me to the passenger’s side and opening the door like an actual gentleman. “The least I can do is start the car. If I don’t make myself useful, then you won’t have any reason to keep me around.”

“That is true.” A stupid grin flashes across my face before I can stop it.

As I settle into the car, Toni gets to work on the wires beneath the steering wheel. In less than a minute, the rumble of the engine breaks the silence of the quiet street. He turns to face me, an unreadable expression on his face, then he leans in, and his lips are suddenly only inches from mine. His eyes dart down to my lips, and tension thickens the air as anticipation tightens my core. Slowly shaking his head, he heaves out a breath and stretches his arm out, reaching for my seatbelt.

I sit there, barely breathing, as he draws it across my hips and snaps it into place.

Merda, what is this man doing to me?

CHAPTER 39

POWERLESS

Antonio

The silence in the car is unsettling, pervasive like the darkness stealing in through the windows along the quiet road. I hazard a glance at Serena from the corner of my eye, and I can practically feel her biting her tongue. It’s unlike her to be silent for so long.

Though I’m certain her reaction is in response to my foul mood, a part of me wishes she would give in already so her bubbly laughter would fill the car. It would certainly make the drive much more enjoyable and go by faster. As to my dark mood, I can’t even explain it. I should be happy to be done with this business, but the idea that my time with Serena has finally come to an end has my cold, dead heart raging.

I’m not stupid enough to think I’ve fallen in love with this woman in a matter of weeks, it’s not possible. Right?Of course not,stronzo. My father’s voice interrupts my mental musings, further souring my mood. Just focus on the damned road. I hit the gas, anxious to arrive to the city already. I need distancefrom this intoxicating woman. The day she dropped into my life, I lost myself.

Or maybe, it’s the complete opposite, and she helped me find the old me. The one who had been lost to the darkness. Turmoil rages in my gut, and I process the past week and a half with Serena, then the turbulent weeks before. The demise ofPapà’sprecious territory, the kidnapping, the ransom, the attempted rape, the burning down of the villa, losing Mariuccia… Fiery anger and pain war in my gut, and my foot presses harder on the gas. We zip across the winding highway, going faster and faster. Everything blurs as raw emotion bears down on me, suffocating.

“You might want to slow down there, buddy.” Serena’s voice cracks through the downward spiral.

I glance at her from the corner of my eye, and she offers a tight smile. I heave in a breath and glance down at the speedometer.Merda. Two hundred kilometers per hour. My hands grip the steering wheel so hard my knuckles are white. I let loose on the gas pedal just as flashing blue and red lights wash over us.

“Porca miseria,” I mutter.

Serena twists in the seat, glancing out the rearview window as thecarabinieri’s siren grows louder. “Well, shit, now we’re in trouble.”

I consider for only a moment before I slam the sole of my shoe to the gas pedal once more. My neck whips back from the momentum as the Alfa’s engine roars to life.

“What are you doing?” Serena squeals.

“I can’t risk getting caught right now.”

“What? Why? So you’ll get a speeding ticket. It’s much better than going to jail for resisting arrest.”

I cock a dark brow at her, shaking my head. “Oh, trust me,tesoro, we’re not getting caught.” The speedometer jerks to the right, then steadily rises.

“But why risk it?”

“Because if it is the Salernos or the Sartoris behind this, they’ll have our location within minutes. Both families have bought off more of the Milanese carabinieri than I can count. Getting caught is not an option, not until you’re safely aboard that jet with your cousin.”

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