Page 99 of Unravel Me

I really want to type back, The fuck if I care, but I stop myself in time.

Ennio may be more approachable than the rest of my family, but he's still a full-blooded mafioso, and his loyalty lies with Anzo, who pulled him out of his stepfather's abusive household. I need to stay somewhat cautious around him, or at least use some common sense.

"I just want something real. You wouldn’t understand," I type, pursing my lips into a thin line and hoping he'll just leave it alone.

Ennio leans slightly toward me and says, articulating every word.

"Then move on from Jared, Mauro. Find somebody new. They're having a baby. Jared will be tied to Mark even more."

My head drops, my chin resting against my chest. This conversation has no point. So I give him what he wants.

I type, "Don’t worry. Whatever I was hoping for belongs in the past. Jared made his choice. He chose to create a family with Mark. I won't do anything to disrupt that."

Ennio takes his time before finally breaking the silence.

"Listen… Marcello has an omega brother named Ari. He's a really nice guy. He's a huge fan of yours. He cheers for you at every fight. Would you like me to introduce the two of you?"

I squeeze my eyes shut and don't type a single word. I don't have the strength, and more importantly, I don't want to.

No one could ever be Jared.

"Just consider it, Mauro," Ennio's tone is insistent.

Eventually, I can't hold it in anymore, and I type, "Would you really give up someone you believed was your True Mate if you were in my place?"

Silence hangs between us for a moment before he finally answers.

"Not all of us are meant to end up with our True Mate. And some of us never should. It destroyed your parents. They had the Bond, and their souls were connected, so they died together. Our world is too dangerous for that, Mauro. It's irresponsible to drag innocent people into it."

I raise my eyes to his, and for a few seconds we simply look at each other. Ennio isn't wrong. My father pulled my dad into this world, and they both paid the highest possible price because they were fated.

But as long as I don't get close to Jared and initiate the Bond, he's safe.

But then…

A timid thought flickers through my mind. That shy hope that I could leave the mafia someday is still there. The vacation cabins I built on Renato's land have been paying for themselves for the past two years, bringing in a solid income. If I could somehow free myself from this twisted life…

But I'm bound to the crime family by blood, and it means leaving isn't an easy option.

"Move on, Mauro," I hear Ennio's voice, distant now, as though it's coming from a dense fog.

Should I?

The thought alone is soul-crushing.

Jared is going to have a kid with Mark, strengthening their ties.

A dull ache spreads through my chest because I've spent years living on pure hope, and now it seems even more pointless.

My eyes drift to my forearm, where I have Jared's name tattooed, and I notice Ennio looking at it too.

"That's the kind of tattoo you should probably keep covered when you're dating prospective boyfriends," he says with a mocking smirk.

I press my lips tightly together and slowly shake my head.

Ennio just shrugs and leaves, his footsteps echo down the empty hallway.

My tattoo is the one part of my life I'll never be ashamed of. Even if Jared is never to be mine, he'll remain with me in this small, symbolic way.