Page 101 of The Don's Forbidden Obsession

“And I’m in prison for something you did —andyou kidnapped my daughter — so I’d say we’re even!”

“And, I’m getting you out of prison. So the score is a little tilted.”

He sighed. “Just spit it out, asshole! Tell me what you want!”

“We’re going to go back to our original deal,” I said softly. “I’m going to marry your daughter—”

“Cut the shit!” He interrupted.

“This time, it’s her choice. But if we get married; I want to forge an alliance.” It was a disgusting pill to swallow. My gaze shifted to Annabelle.

Her presence kept me from sinking back into all the bullshit. It brought me back to reality. It reminded me that there were forces greater than our egos at play.

* * *

As Dimitriand I stood amid our club, I smiled.

It had undergone renovations to transform it into something even bigger and better, and I could tell as I looked at the work that our plan was succeeding.

“Are you sure you wanna do this?” Dimitri asked, breaking the silence that lingered between us as we looked on at the changes.

I sighed and pondered it for a moment.

I knew what he was asking.

The air mingled with dust particles that danced over the streams of sunlight that streamed through the front door as the sound of construction echoed all around us.

The hammers and drills faded, and I took a deep breath.

“Luca?” he asked again, his eyes scanning me. “Are you sure you’re going to be able to be done with all this?”

I took another moment to absorb the transformation of the club.

It was a symbol.

The club always had been a symbol of our family, of our power.

But now, the symbol was that the family as we knew it would be reborn.

We had come so far, but there was so much more we could achieve. The club would be bigger and better than ever, and I had a suspicion that our family would be as well.

We could adapt.

We could evolve.

A deep breath escaped my lips as I met Dimitri's questioning gaze. "Dimitri, this life … it's not for me anymore," I admitted carefully.

Truthfully, this weight had been too much to handle.

“For years I’ve wanted something more, something that aligns with who I am. Until I met Annabelle, I didn’t even know who that was.”

Dimitri's brows furrowed, his eyes reflecting mixed emotions. “But Luca, this life, our family, it's what we've always known. You were supposed to continue the legacy," he said.

A bittersweet smile tugged at the corners of my lips and I continued to gaze back out into the club.

I nodded.

The memories of our past — our parents’ reign — came flooding back.

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