Page 29 of Owned by the Italian Mafia Boss
Were there other men there? Men her age, men flirting with her, touching her…
I growl low in my throat, my fists clenching at the thought of another touching what is mine. I grip the edges of the plate as I’m assaulted with images of her in someone else’s arms. Some faceless stranger with greedy hands, grabbing at her, their lips touching. She gives into him.
Gives him everything.
Everything that is meant to be mine.
Her sounds, her orgasms, her virginity, it’s all meant to be mine.
The plate breaks in half and yanks me from my vile thoughts. Ari and Matias are staring at me. Matias looked concerned. Ari is grinning.
“You have anger issues. Anyone ever tell you that?” Ari asks, leaning back and drinking his coffee. “They have therapy for that. You should consider it, brother.”
I snarl at him. He’s right, though, and that’s what angers me most.
I clean up my mess and throw it in the trash. Marie minds her own business, humming a song she’s listening to as she chops vegetables. This is why I like Marie. She ignores us for the most part, does her job, and works around our brutal natures.
She’s the mom we never had, even if we never say it out loud. Marie is the heart of this household. If anything ever happened to her, we would avenge her without blinking an eye.
“We are leaving in ten minutes. Be ready.” I stroll down the hallway and slam the door to my room. I try to calm down, but Ari is right; I’ve always had anger issues, issues with things I cannot control.
How do people keep people in their lives? This situation with Delilah is already maddening. I’m obsessed to the point of wanting to kill everyone who looks in her direction.
“She’s agreed to be yours. She will not break the contract,” I mutter to myself, sounding like a man about to jump off a cliff if he doesn’t rein himself in.
I roll my shoulders to loosen the tension and step into my closet. I dress in a deep purple blazer paired with black trousers. Purple isn’t a color I wear often, but I do when I want to feel empowered. I want the upper hand; right now, Delilah thinks she has it.
She’s wrong.
We can play. She can be a mouse; I will be the cat, hunting her until she’s in my hands. Delilah needs a reminder that I’m a predator, and she’s my prey.
And prey gets devoured.
I tuck my gun at the back of my shirt so my blazer covers it. The last thing I need is for a professor to catch sight of my gun’s handle while I’m on campus—,
a campus I donate to, actively. So, they won’t be surprised to see me on campus checking how my funds have been allocated.
Strolling through my room and back down the hall, I’m confident, yet, rage still tickles my senses.
Ari, Matias, and Gianni wait at the end of the hall. I don’t know what comes over me, but I land a punch in Ari’s stomach. He tries to double over, but I hold him up by the back of his suit.
I lean closer and whisper, “If you ever let her walk out that door alone again, I will pull the nails from your fingers, Ari.”
Ari wraps a hand around my throat and shoves me against the wall. “Fuck with me, and I’ll fuck with you, brother. If I don’t challenge you, no one will. And someone needs to exist to bring you down a few notches.”
Matias pulls Ari away from me, and I straighten my blazer. They watch me, pure hatred shining in their dark gazes. Finally, I hold out my hand in a truce.
Ari shakes it, and the brotherly dynamics are back, the anger and violence forgotten. Ari makes it so damn easy to lose my patience. He pokes at me, but I need to be better.
We all climb down the steps and swing the door open, my eyes zeroing in on the gate. “I want more men on security at the gate. The new rule is that Delilah is not to leave without an escort. It will normally be me, but if by some chance it isn’t, then someone needs to be with her at all times. Okay?”
“Agreed. No one will fuck with our sister-in-law,” Matias says, the bloodlust in his voice evident. He barely knows Delilah,
but because she belongs to me, that’s all he needs to know.
“Shotgun!” Ari shouts, quickly jumping into the passenger seat.
Matias and I curse as we climb in the back.
