Page 89 of Brutal Crown
I flinch at his harsh tone, but I don’t say anything.
That’s enough of an answer for him.
He releases my hand roughly, walks over to the nearest wall, and drives his fist into it.
“Marco—”
“Of course, he did.” His laugh is bitter and cruel. “Francesco always gets what he wants.”
I don’t know if I should move toward or away from him, so I remain rooted where I am.
“Marco, please…”
“You think he loves you?” His voice cracks slightly. “You think Francesco’s going to save you? Protect you? He can’t even protect himself.”
His eyes are burning now. Not just with jealousy, but something darker. Something obsessive. I feel it in my chest like a warning bell.
“I would have given you everything!” he growls. “All you had to do was choose me.”
“I don’t have to choose anyone,” I manage to say, even though my heart is pounding wildly. “I don’t belong to anyone.”
“You think what you want matters? You think it’s your decision to make? That you have a say?”
My mouth opens, but no words leave my lips. I’ve never seen Marco this way before. This is not the same man who makes me laugh, makes me feel safe, and lets me cry on his shoulders.
He marches toward me and grabs my chin in his hands.
“You don’t get to pick who you want, Lia,” he grunts. “You are mine! You either choose me out of your own will… or you don’t. Either way, I’m the man you end up with.”
Tears sting the corners of my eyes, but I force myself to keep them at bay.
“Why are you doing this, Marco?”
He lets go of my face and backs up.
“Because I’m not the one who gets chosen,” he mutters. “I never have been. Not once.”
His eyes aren’t just angry now; they’re wounded, like he’s been holding something in too long, and tonight, it’s splittingopen. His hand runs through his hair, and for the first time, I notice how tired he looks.
“Everything was always about him. Francesco, the golden heir. Francesco, the future Don. Francesco, who could do whatever the fuck he wanted and still walk around with his head high because everyone respected him.”
He turns sharply, eyes on me again. “But me? I grew up in his shadows. I’ve had to work for every scrap of respect I get. I’ve had to be careful and strategic to get whatever I want. I’ve had to be patient, to wait for whatever I want while he thinks he can just?—”
“Wait for what?” I cut him off.
“For you!” He exclaims. “For this. Don’t you see, Lia? You’re the key.”
My stomach drops. “The key to what?”
He steps closer again, lowering his voice. “The key to everything I’ve always wanted.”
His demeanor changes as his eyes graze over my body.
“You think I was willing to live in my brother’s shadow for the rest of my life?” He chuckles, and I use the opportunity to take a step back from him.
“One thing about always getting what you want is that you start to get careless. So while he was busy chasing you around and getting his dick wet, I was getting the real work done.”
I shake my head at him, unable to fathom that the man I thought I knew is the same person saying all this.
