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Inside, I sat on the edge of his bed, my mind racing. I gathered my clothes and picked out a sundress and grabbed the makeup I’d purchased from the shops on my day in the town. I hadn’t a single lifeline left, and I was unsure of what was about to happen. But I gathered myself into the dress and applied makeup, simply going through the motions.
Rocco had assured me I would not leave Italy alive. And even if I managed to escape the country without a scratch, it would still be the truth.
“You are so very beautiful.”
My heart sank as Daniello watched me from the door of the bathroom. I leaned over the vanity mirror as I camouflaged my face to keep up the lie.
Inside, I was dying.
“So are you.”
I lined my lips as he watched me closely. He moved toward me, but I cut him off with my words. “Please, I’m hanging on by a thread. If you touch me right now, I won’t survive it, Daniello. I won’t.” I let a single tear fall and saw his eyes close before he walked out of the door.
Surrounded by Daniello’s family, I sipped the proffered wine and finally gave into my hunger. Tula sat next to me, her beautiful eyes lit with sincerity as she complimented me. “You are beautiful, Taylor. I can see why my brother is so captured by you.” Her husband, Capo, sat next to her with one of their children in his lap. I’d recognized his face the minute he sat down at the table. He was one of the men Daniello had with him the night at the club. The other man must have been the one to take Laz’s bullet in the elevator. As if Capo sensed my stare, he looked my way with a short nod of acknowledgment.
He was the silent brooding type, much like Daniello.
“Thank you, I’ve heard good things about you as well, Tula.” I braved a glance at the end of the table, where Donato sat with Tula’s little girl planted in his lap. She opened another doll and held it up proudly for the table to see. I’d been greeted endlessly by the family with hugs and dual kisses. I was dizzied by the affection and at the same time mystified by the undercurrent of danger that went with the false atmosphere that seemed so genuine.
Italian mafia.
And that wasn’t even the extent of it.
I had no clue of the amount of threats Daniello had earned after the reign of revenge he had brought down on his enemies or the families of those whose lives he took.
Contract killer.
Daniello watched me closely as Tula poured more wine. “You will get used to the pressure. And eventually it will become your life. We are a very close family.”
I moved my gaze away from Daniello to face her. “I don’t think I’m staying.”
Tula frowned and glanced toward her brother. “He is in love with you.”
My lips parted as he ignored the chaos and chatter around him to watch me.
I mouthed his way. “Stop staring.”
He ignored me and kept guarded eyes in my direction.
“He was away so long from Italy, and not just here, but from himself. I had hoped one day he would return. I think you are responsible for bringing him back.”
“I’m responsible,” I whispered too low for her to hear. For his demise.
We’d ruined each other’s lives with our love for each other.
Still, the paths we were on were destructive in their own way. The lives we’d formed separately were leading to a different kind of death. One where our humanity was stripped away, and we survived as lost souls. No second reality, no love, no life. Machines.
I felt the weight of it all as I gripped my glass and met his eyes.
“Where in America are you from, Taylor?” one of his aunts asked as she stood with a bottle of wine and began to fill every empty glass.
“Tennessee.”
She was a robust woman with a booming voice dressed to the nines. “I don’t know of Tennessee. Daniello, have you gone?”
“I have,” he answered as one of Tula’s boys came up to him. He looked to be around three years old. “Uncle Nello, take us on the plane.”
Daniello could only give him a small smile. “Not today.”
