Page 8 of Wedlocked

And didn’t that make my dick thicken with lust, even as a part of me was sickened by the mobster families’ use of their children to maneuver through the ranks for their own gain. Not that Sabrina’s father needed to go any higher, he was the fucking Costa Don. He’d already reached his peak.

Clearly his tenuous hold wasn’t enough. He wanted to secure his position, one that would no doubt eventually see his son gain control. That it was at the expense of Sabrina boiled my blood. She deserved better. She deserved the moon and fucking stars.

No doubt one look at Sabrina would have been all the Accardi underboss had needed for Sabrina’s father to then broker some kind of deal with him. That I understood her dilemma, even sympathized a little knowing my father might well use the same tactic with my younger sister in the future, compressed every single muscle in my body.

Raw fury burned through my veins, threatening to take away all cold logic. I’d kill him first before my sister was subjected to such a fate. I might just do the same to Sabrina’s father…if she happened to live long enough to marry anyone.

I sucked in a breath as an idea sparked, then flared. I mentally shook my head. I might be desperate to keep her alive, but I wasn’t that desperate.

Not yet.

Sabrina’s lower lip trembled. She dug her teeth in, stilling her emotion and forcing back control. “You hate me.”

I stepped back. It was better that she thought the worse of me. At least then her coming death wouldn’t come as such a shock. “Get dressed,” I growled. “We have a party to attend.”

Chapter Five

Sabrina

It was just another party, or at least, that was what I told myself as Ethan escorted me down the sweeping grand staircase. Only all eyes—bloody hell, were there this many partygoers earlier?—were on us even as photographers stepped forward and took pictures of us.

I paused beside Ethan a few steps above the ground floor, his arm drawing tighter around me.

His dad clearly had some newspaper publishers in his hip pocket. While my own family strove to stay in the shadows, the Agostinos seemed to happily bask in the limelight. I looked at Ethan. No, going by his tight jaw and glinting eyes, he didn’t enjoy the attention either.

Then a man stepped forward with a microphone outstretched in his hand, and Ethan accepted it with an expansive smile at the crowd gathering below us who were gawking and whispering at seeing the strange woman standing beside him.

“Good evening ladies and gents,” Ethan drawled, his voice so damn smooth and commanding I involuntarily melted against his side. “Thank you for coming tonight for this special occasion.”

The three women I’d noticed earlier clapped and stared at Ethan with worshipful eyes. I didn’t doubt for a second all three of them would do him for free. That he chose to instead hire women for his sexual needs made me wonder just what exactly he desired in a woman that the three below us wouldn’t give him.

He nodded toward his father, who stood to one side of the expansive room, his goons either side of him. “To say none of the celebrations tonight would have been possible without that man standing over there is something of an understatement. Let’s hear it for my Papà.”

Everyone turned their attention to the don and applauded, like he was some kind of God, not the devil himself. Ethan relaxed just a little at their diverted attention while his father nodded and smiled, his demeanor screaming effortless power. He was the epitome of what many men coveted to become so badly but would never be.

Little wonder dons had such stringent security. They might have wealth, power and influence, but with so many hungry for their position, no one could ever be trusted.

I scanned the crowd, contemplating if now might be my one and only opportunity to escape. Except, most of the people here would be associates of the Agostino mob, others informants and soldiers. There would be no help from anyone here.

The tall, imposing stature of Evander at the back of the room caught my eye. He sent me a crooked smile, one that didn’t make feel more at ease, not even a little bit. He’d probably read my thoughts. He probably also assumed I’d be dead after this party was over.

That he was probably right made my legs weaker than limp spaghetti and it took everything I had just to stand upright. Ethan gripped me a little tighter around my waist, as though he sensed I was struggling, but otherwise he now looked impassive, bored even.

He and his men were beyond dangerous. Every one of them would no doubt be happy to see me tortured and killed just for being a Costa. The fact I’d been spying only added salt to their festering wound.

My breath shuddered out. My demise would destroy my brother, Salvatore. Not only did we share the same hair coloring, we really did share a deep bond. Though he’d been careful of his affection toward me, had been careful not to be too caring and therefore considered weak, he’d taken me under his wing when our mother had passed, had taken on the role of parent when my father had all but abandoned me—both of us—in our grief.

“I’m so sorry, Salvatore,” I whispered.

Ethan stared down at me, his lips pressed together, but he didn’t say a word, not until his audience turned back to him and he continued his speech. “I’m beyond honored now to be passed the mantle—“

I tuned out Ethan’s smooth, cultured voice, though the notes continued to wash over me and, for a moment, made me forget my life would soon be forfeit. That I might also bear unimaginable, torturous pain was something I reflected on from a great distance. Doing so was the only way I could face my inevitable future.

I’d been sheltered, yes, but I’d seen and heard things no innocent should. It would have been impossible not to know at least a little of what went on in my world. Of course, a lot of my knowledge had come from pressing my ear to doors I shouldn’t and eavesdropping on conversations that often included extracting information from oftentimes reluctant snitches.

I noticed a young, gorgeous woman in the crowd then. Her shiny hair that fell to her waist was the color of a raven’s wing, her dark eyes rounded by shock as they jerked from Ethan to me and back to Ethan again. She had to be close to my age, her energy vibrating off her.

Ethan’s voice penetrated my brain then as he finished off his speech.

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