Page 1 of Mafia Queen

PROLOGUE

Doe

I had suffered some of the worst torments, experienced the most unspeakable horrors any woman—any girl could endure. But somehow, somewhere, hidden within my soul was a tiny speck of humanity which remained untouched, protected. The evil of the world which swallowed me whole couldn’t reach it; even I wasn’t aware it existed. It was only when I met him that I realized there was a piece of me which wasn’t ruined. It wasn’t destroyed or mutilated by pain and fear, or scathed by the flames of hell that burned my flesh every day since I was ten years old.

It was only when he claimed me and made me his own that I discovered this tiny part of me which was untouched and unsullied, pure and beautiful enough to give to any man who demanded more than what my body alone could offer.

Antonio opened my eyes to a whole new world, making me see there was more to life than fearing every heartbeat and dreading every breath. But he was no hero, no knight in shining armor. And I was no princess, no beautiful damsel in distress who longed for her own happily ever after. I had my own demons to conquer, like Antonio had his own darkness he needed to fight.

He wasn’t perfect, and neither was I, but together we were the most perfect imperfection. We didn’t need the light while we walked through the shadows, embracing the darkness side by side. For the first time in my life, I didn’t long for the light, just as long as he stayed with me in the blackness of night. And the longer I remained with him, felt him beside me chasing away all my fears, the more I started to hope, the more I started to lose myself to the dream of having something more. Hope started to seep in through the cracks, slowly mending the broken pieces of me. And even though I knew it was dangerous and irresponsible of me to allow it, I couldn’t stop it. I couldn’t stop it from growing.

For most of my life, I knew that if I allowed just the tiniest bit of hope to take root deep inside my heart, it would be my ultimate downfall. Hope would be the one good thing that would ruin me, destroy me, and in the end…bury me.

I was right.

Chapter 1

Antonio

This was a huge risk. I knew that. And it was unlike me to take such a risk—especially when it came to her. But I had no choice. Even though it felt like my heart was about to explode, my chest tight with worry just thinking about what could go wrong, I knew this was something we had to do.

I turned to face her. “You okay?”

She tugged at the ends of her dark hair hanging down her left shoulder, the blindfold still intact. “I trust you.”

Three words. Three goddamn words that had the power to disarm a mean motherfucker like me within a second.

I reached out, taking her hand in mine. Every trace of the girl we found in the back of a container—dirty, filthy, scared, starved—was busy disappearing. Her cheeks seemed fuller now, her hips curvier. Overall, Doe was just fucking beautiful.

“You look gorgeous.” It was the fucking truth.

She let go of her hair and placed her hand in her lap, clutching the blue fabric of her dress between her fingers. “Karina bought me a few more of these dresses. I told her it was your favorite.”

“You know,” I looked down at the soft material that fell just above her knees, “even though I really fucking love the fact that you’re wearing these dresses to please me,” my gaze swept up to her beautiful face, “I want you to get things that you like too.”

Her lips curved at the edges. “I like to please you, Antonio.”

There was no way I could stop my chest from swelling like a goddamn peacock. I fucking loved the fact that everything she did was all about pleasing me, but I knew the best thing for her was to start acknowledging the woman inside her. She had to figure out who she was without a master, without an owner…without a man. But until then, I would just soak it all up and revel in her undeniable urge to please me because deep down, I was still the selfish bastard I was the day I found her.

Gently, I placed my other palm on her cheek, guiding her to turn my way. “Are you ready for this?”

She nodded while biting her bottom lip. It was clear as fucking daylight that she was nervous. And why wouldn’t she be? She had been held prisoner for more than half her life. Of course something like this would make her nervous—especially while blindfolded.

I leaned over and pushed my lips against hers. I wanted to kiss the worry right out of her. I didn’t want her to feel nervous about anything. There was no way in hell I’d ever let anything happen to her, and I needed her to know that as a fucking fact. I kissed her, letting my feelings for her flow from my core, through my kiss and into her. My tongue swept through her mouth, tasting the peppermint and lingering sweetness of the strawberries she had for dessert. It was her favorite. Strawberries. Every day, I would get someone from our kitchen staff to go buy a fuck-load of fresh strawberries just for her. I even ordered them to prepare dishes and bake everything there was to make with strawberries…just for her. Everything I fucking did was for her.

With a soft moan and a reluctant retreat, I inched back, our lips no longer locked together. “I won’t let anything happen to you. You know that, right?”

She nodded, her tongue lapping up what was left of our kiss from her lips. “Like I said, I trust you.”

My heart wanted to fucking explode hearing her say that. It was still so surreal, knowing that a woman like her, someone that had been through what she had, trusted me with so much. Her body. Her mind. And hopefully…her heart. There was such a thin line that separated me from the men who had hurt her in the most unimaginable ways. The scars of her ruin were still painted across the skin of her back, over the soft skin of her hands. And her mutilated ear was one giant reminder of what she had been through. Yet here she was, telling me that she trusted me. It wasn’t something I deserved, her trust, but by God, I would do everything in my fucking power to never make her regret it.

I took her hand in mine. “Promise me that whatever happens tonight, you will remember that you trust me. Promise me.”

A smile with the power to tame any beast spread across her beautiful face. “I promise.”

My heart pounded. My spine was all fucking tingly. And needless to say, my cock was rock hard and ready to fill her tiny body. Yeah…like Lorik would say, pussy-whipped. I was totally, utterly, and completely pussy-whipped. An Italian mobster, and his beautiful, broken girl.

“Okay.” I smiled just as someone tapped on the driver side window. I didn’t flinch. I knew who it was.

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