Page 53 of His to Claim

“Don’t pretend you care,” he hisses. “You’re a liar just like the rest of your family. Maximo made the mistake of falling for your treacherous deceit and wicked beauty, but it’s all a facade. He tried talking to you, but you brushed him off, didn’t even give him the courtesy of a polite conversation.”

God, what is he talking about?I rack my brain, trying to remember where we were and who he was, but I can’t picture him no matter how hard I try. I honestly haven’t gone out much recently. Except for the masquerade party, I’ve been pretty antisocial since everything fell apart with Rendall.

Which means the last time I was at an event where I might’ve met Maximo…well, it would’ve had to have been the Rossi Winery anniversary celebration. It was months ago and my family had organized a huge party to celebrate fifty years in business. My parents visited from Sicily and we threw a huge shindig at The Plaza and practically invited the entire city.

Then I remember exactly. The man who tried to talk to me, but I was too worried about Rendall to pay him any attention.

“The Anniversary party,” I murmur, everything clicking in my memory, and Gallo nods.

“Ding, ding, ding. Finally, she remembers.”

Just barely, though. I was so hung up on Rendall at the time and he’s all I could see. Stupid, but true. I was totally smitten by the jerk, so when a slightly overweight man in glasses tried to talk to me, I was only half-listening because all of my attention was focused on the man who would later cheat on me. Maybe I should have given Maximo more attention. He was quiet and a little awkward, though, so when whatever little conversation we’d had fizzled, we parted ways and I didn’t see him again. Never gave him a second thought…until now.

“He barely said anything to me,” I say, “and I had no idea he was interested.”

“That’s because you are a self-absorbed bitch,” he snarls and lunges straight at me. I sidestep the trap door then throw myself to the side, sliding across the hay covered floor. But Gallo makes a grab for me and manages to snag a handful of hair. I scream when he yanks me backwards and then he wraps his fingers around my neck and starts squeezing.

Oh, God.I’ve lost the rope, had to let it go so I could grab Gallo’s wrists, and the pressure on my throat is increasing. Gallo looks down at me, smiling like a demented clown as his meaty fingers dig into the tender flesh of my neck. I’m trying hard to push him away, but I can’t. He’s stronger than me and even when I use all of my strength, it isn’t enough.

I can’t die. Not when I have so many things left to do and not when I still have to tell Damon the most important thing I will ever tell a man—I love you.

A burst of strength fills me and then I hear Damon shout my name.

“Carlotta!”

I can hear his boots pounding against the floor below, getting closer, but I can’t respond because Gallo is choking the shit out of me. So, instead, I muster up every ounce of strength I can and jerk my knee upwards, hitting him right in the balls.

With a shout of pain, Gallo loosens his hold enough that I can squirm sideways and kick him in the groin again. That does the trick. He finally lets go and I quickly scramble backwards. My attention shifts to the edge of the loft where Damon appears and relief floods me. Pulling myself to my feet, I take a step toward him when Gallo suddenly pops up. Without warning, he throws himself at me and everything seems to start moving in slow motion, as though my life is about to flash before my eyes.

Damon yells my name. Gallo’s feet get tripped up in the rope on the floor and his arms start windmilling, balance and control lost. I dive out of the way before he can grab hold of me and watch in horror as his momentum sends him careening past me and straight over the edge. Gasping, I slap a hand over my mouth as he falls through the trap door. His brief shout of surprise fills the air before there’s a loud, sickly thud from below.

Shocked, I feel Damon pull me up into his arms and he embraces me tightly.

“Lottie, sweetheart, are you okay?” He leans back, cups my face in his callused hands and searches my gaze.

For a stunned moment, I can’t speak. Everything just happened so fast. But then I find my voice. “Is h-he dead?” I ask, clutching onto his forearms.

“Don’t move,” he says and reluctantly releases me. Then he walks over to the hole in the floor and looks down. His expression remains unreadable, but when he looks up and locks eyes with me, I know.

“He’s dead,” Damon confirms.

“Oh, God.” Even though the man hated me and nearly strangled me—twice—I can’t find it in myself to be glad he’s gone. If anything, I feel bad for him. I think after he lost his son, he spiraled into an inconsolable grief that led him to revenge.

A revenge that he died trying to obtain.

I am relieved, though, knowing that I’m finally safe. My family and I will never have to worry about Carmine Gallo again. It’s over.

“C’mere, sweetheart.”

I take a wobbly step toward Damon and he catches me before my legs can give out. He holds me up and cradles me against his firm chest, providing me with renewed strength. After a minute of soaking up his warm, vibrant energy, I pull back and look up into beautiful dark eyes swirling with so much emotion.

“I didn’t think I’d get this chance,” I say softly and my voice catches. “But now that it’s here, I’m not going to hold back. I love you, Damon. I think I was half in love with you the first night we met.”

“Oh, sweetheart, I was the one who fell for you. So damn hard. And now there’s no going back because I am head over heels in love with you, Carlotta Rossi.”

The purest joy I have ever known pours through my body and then Damon’s lips crash against mine. The kiss we exchange is full of so much emotion and, even more, it holds the promise of a future together.

The pounding of feet below snags my attention and we pull apart, still wrapped in each other’s arms as we look over the side of the loft. Down below, I can see my brothers as well as some members of the other mafia families. Everyone’s attention is on Gallo’s body. A quick glimpse tells me all I need to know—he died of a broken neck.

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