Page 35 of Of Lies and Shadows

It wasn’t just tension or proximity or a moment of weakness. It was real. Raw. It sank its teeth straight into my soul and took a piece of me with it.

And now, I can’t betray him.

Not because I’ve gone soft or forgotten who he is, but because I’ve seen the man beneath the reputation. The onewho doesn’t know how to show affection but feels it all the same.

I was already conflicted when it was just the children. I knew even then that I could never hand them over to Don Salvatore, no matter what my father demanded.

But now? Now, it’s impossible.

I want to tell him the truth. Every lie, every omission, every reason why I came here. I want to lay it all at his feet and pray he sees me the way I see him—not just as a capo or a father, but as a man. A man who keeps showing me pieces of himself no one else gets to see.

I saw it in the way he kissed me, like he couldn’t breathe without it.

I saw it when Lucia curled into his side during bedtime stories.

I saw it when Alessio spilled an entire bottle of ketchup on a rug worth thousands, and Dante just sighed and handed him a towel, muttering, “Pirates don’t clean, huh?” before doing it himself.

No one warned me how tender he could be and how much that tenderness would wreck me.

And now I don’t know how to protect anyone—not him, not the children, not myself.

Because I’m too deep. And I’m still lying. If the truth comes out, I’ll lose everything, including my life.

The children start school soon, and with it, the clock will be ticking louder. My father will be expecting meetings. Updates. Proof that I haven’t lost sight of the mission.

I brush my fingers against my lips, still feeling the phantom warmth of Dante’s kiss on mine, wondering how somethingso simple could have upended everything I thought I knew about loyalty. About right and wrong. About myself.

A soft knock at my door jolts me back to reality.

I turn, my heart hammering, half expecting to find a child with a mischievous smile or some new game to play.

Instead, it’s Matteo, one of Dante’s guards. His face is blank. Professional.

“Mr. Forzi would like to see you in his office. Now.”

I nod, swallowing down the rising panic that’s clawing at my throat.

Maybe it’s nothing, I tell myself. Maybe he just wants to talk. About the kiss. About… us. Maybe this is my chance.

I smooth my skirt with trembling hands, square my shoulders, and walk toward the lion’s den, toward the man I already know has the power to destroy me.

I’m giddy, hoping this is about the kiss. Nervous. Hopeful in a way I know better than to be.

I’m ready to tell him everything. About the lies, the fake identity, the reasons I came—and how none of it matters now, not compared to him, not compared to the children.

I walk into the office and find him standing behind his desk, stiff and cold, his jaw clenched so tightly the muscle jumps beneath his skin.

My heart skips. I think maybe he’s about to take it back—the kiss, whatever this is between us.

"Sit," he says.

I sit. My palms are damp against my thighs.

He stays standing, looming, his eyes black andunreadable.

I open my mouth. "Dante, I?—"

The sound of a gun cocking cuts me off. Cold metal presses against my temple.

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