Page 44 of Mafia and Captive

But then I brushed those thoughts aside. I wasn’t the one who’d started this war, and I wasn’t the one who was going to show mercy.

***

I took Juliana her lunch into the bedroom again, but I hoped that it didn’t feel as claustrophobic now that she had been allowed outside this morning.

That evening I came and collected Juliana and took her downstairs for dinner. “I’ll take you and Mr. F outside after dinner for a walk.”

“Mr. F?” Juliana looked puzzled at my new name for her dog.

“Debi doesn’t like me calling the animal ‘Dog’. I’m not sure why, but to please her I’ll call him ‘Mr. F’ instead.” I wasn’t going to call any animal ‘Mr. Fluffy’, not for anyone. I mean, I was a Made Man and a Capo, and I had a reputation to maintain.

Downstairs, we all sat around the kitchen island to eat. Dinner was a rich lasagna with grilled Mediterranean vegetables on the side. “Alessio, your lasagna is my favorite,” exclaimed Debi, when she saw what was for dinner.

“That’s why I cook it so often,” Alessio said with a smile at Debi.

“You cooked this?” Juliana asked, probably surprised that a Made Man could cook as well as this.

Alessio merely nodded, but Camillo added, “Alessio and Marco learned to cook when us kids moved in with them.”

“Zip it, Camillo,” I snapped. Juliana didn’t need to know all the details of our family life. I wondered if I would have been so secretive had we actually got married.

The rest of the meal was just casual conversation, talking about Danio and Debi’s school and talking about sports. Our family was huge baseball fans, even Debi. While we were eating, I noticed Juliana trying to look around, probably for possible escape avenues. I whispered into her ear, “There’s no way to escape, beautiful, so save your efforts. You’ll need all your strength for later tonight.”

I saw her face go pale. I liked to toy with her like a cat toying with a mouse, and I’m sure my words left her wondering what I expected from her tonight.

After dinner, I got up and looked to Juliana. “Come on, let’s get the dog walk over and done with.”

She called Mr. F and together we took him for his evening walk through the gardens.

We walked to the area which we called the fruit orchard. “It’s nice here, tranquil,” remarked Juliana. “What are these trees?”

“They’re a mixture of cherry, apple, pear, and plum trees. Danio and Debi loved coming out to pick the fruit from the trees when they were younger. It’s always been one of my favorite places on the estate.”

Mr. F ran up to us and stood looking at me with his ball in his mouth. “He wants to play fetch,” Juliana told me.

“You better get on with it then. Dealing with animals and their slobber-covered toys is beyond my pay grade.”

“Don’t worry, Mr. Fluffy, I’ll play with you,” giggled Juliana as she ran off between the trees while Mr. F chased after her to get his ball back. It was one of his favorite games it seemed.

I followed them deeper into the orchard. Turning back in a circle and not looking where she was going, Juliana ran straight into me, stumbling as she lost her balance.

I caught her in my arms before she fell completely, and I held her tightly clasped against my chest.

She had been laughing, but as my eyes blazed into hers, her smile faltered.

JULIANA

My smile faltered as his silvery gray eyes blazed into mine. His sleeves were rolled up revealing his thick forearms dusted with dark hair. He was so close to me that I could smell his clean, masculine scent with its hint of musk and lemongrass.

I don’t remember how it happened, but I felt the sudden sensation of his warm lips pressing gently against my mouth.

I tried to pull back, but he held me firmly in place and pulled me tighter against him. His body heat scorched me through our clothes, telling me how much he wanted me.

My mind stopped. I knew he was dangerous and this was madness. But I couldn’t think as I felt a haze drift over my mind and spread down through my limbs.

MARCO

She froze when my lips met hers and she tried to pull away.

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