Page 44 of Savage Bratva King

I chuckle. “Did you have a choice when you got engaged to Seamus Mulligan?”

“Do you always answer a question with another question? Or are you hoping that I’ll shut up and eat?”

“I’m assuming that your answer is no.” I refill her glass and hand it to her. Our fingers meet around the stem, burning my skin. “I do it because I’m the eldest son. I can’t walk away and watch my father’s legacy fall apart. He dedicated his life to building his empire. For me. It’s what?—”

“Stop right there.” She raises her index finger like a child who knows the answer to the teacher’s question. “He did not build his empire for you. You know that, right?”

“Is this a trick question to distract me when you take the last sweet treat?”

Gianna shakes her head and ignores me. “Your father built his empire because it was whathewanted. He wasn’t thinking of you when he gave an order to shoot a member of the Sicilian mob, or the Italians, or the Irish. He wasn’t thinking of you when he endangered the lives of his family. Same as my father wasn’t thinking of me when he arranged my marriage to Seamus.”

Her voice trails off as if she has run out of steam.

Everything she just said is true, I know this. But my reasons remain the same. I do what I do because it is what’s expected of me. I wasn’t raised to have fun at work. I was raised to get the job done.

“My mom was killed by one of my father’s enemies.” She confesses.

Her voice has faded to a whisper, and she doesn’t look at me. Instead, she tracks the whimsical journey of an insect that seems to have taken a liking to Marvel.

“I know he never meant for it to happen,” she continues. “He never wanted his kids to grow up without a mom, but he knew the risks, and he chose the family legacy over the people he loved.”

When she turns her face to me, her eyes are large with tears.

“Melissa found her. Can you imagine that? Can you imagine your own daughter finding your dead body? She was never the same again after that. It was like she went from being my sister who loved to dress up and experiment with her hair and makeup to this person who’d forgotten what it’s like to play. It’s the reason why she doesn’t like the color red, because of the blood…”

I don’t even think about what I’m doing. I pull her into my arms and hold her close to my chest while the tears flow down her cheeks. We stay that way until the sky starts leaking shades of violet and indigo and our shadows disappear.

Then, I take my jacket off and slip it around her shoulders to stop the shivers racking her body, and we walk back to the house in silence.

My men head discreetly inside the property when they see us coming. They know better than to question my authority with regards to Gianna, but I cannot stop them questioning my authority in general. I might just have to call a meeting to remind them that no man is an island. Isn’t that how the poem goes?

No man is made entirely of stone either. I might’ve argued this point a week ago, before I met Gianna Sedric. But I feel myself softening like butter left in the sun with every day that passes. I’m going to need some serious sessions in the gym when her time here is done.

We stop at the kitchen to hand Marvel over to Olga for his supper. His tail wags for food, and he turns his back on us without a second thought, fickle animal. But I can’t blame him for that. He and food didn’t exactly get off to a great start, and he will never lose that instinct to eat whenever he can.

The closer we get to Gianna’s guest room, the more oppressive the house feels. Like the walls are closing in on me. Perhaps she senses it too because she pulls away from me and puts a respectable distance between us as though she is afraid that someone might see us together.

On impulse, I take her hand and lead her to a different part of the property. The part that contains my bedroom.

“Where are you taking me?”

I don’t like the fear in her voice. In fact, fear is the last thing I want to hear or see when I’m with Gianna.

I stop walking and force her to look me in the eye. “Do you trust me?”

“Do you really want me to answer that?” She gives me a lopsided smile.

“I prepared a picnic.” Jeez, that sounds lame even to me. “I won’t even complain about you turning my dog’s head.”

This gains a real smile from her.

“So, I’m just going to say this once. I want you, Gianna. I want you in my bed tonight, but I understand if this isn’t what you want. Just say the word. Tell me right now that this isn’t what you want, and I’ll take you back to your room. I won’t stop you from walking Marvel, but we’ll spend no more time together.”

I realize that I’m giving her an ultimatum: be mine or turn around and walk away. But this is as much for my protection as it is hers. It’s the only way I can do this. I can’t be this close to her knowing that she isn’t mine.

“Do you mean that?”

Fuck, fuck, fuck! I let myself get too cocky. After the way she exploded on my face yesterday, I was confident that she would agree. I forgot that she’s only here because of me and because of the fucking Sicilian, Xander Amory.

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