“Cool,” I say. “I look amazing in smoke.”
He grabs my face and kisses me like he’s starving for it. When he pulls back, I’m breathless and probably glowing.
“You’re insane,” he murmurs.
“So are you,” I whisper back. “That’s why it works.”
He pulls me into his lap, arms locking around me like I’m sacred, like I’m his last piece of sanity.
His voice drops to a whisper. “I want more.”
My heart thuds hard. “More what?”
“Mornings like this,” he says. “More of you on top of me. Under me. Everywhere. And I want every fucker who ever looked at you sideways to know they’ll bleed if they ever try again.”
I kiss him. Slow. Deep. Not like last night. This one’s soft. Scary soft. The kind that feels like peace. The kind that feels like everything I never thought I’d have.
“No more pretending,” I say. “No more lies. Let the world see it. Let them all know the truth.”
He presses his forehead to mine. “You sure?”
I nod. “Let’s give them the greatest show on earth.”
CHAPTER 33
RAFE
There's a moment after she says she wants in. After her words, raw and honest, tear through me. After she wraps herself around me like armor, a shield against the chaos of the world and the chaos within myself.
In that moment, everything inside me changes.
It’s not just about keeping her alive anymore. That was strategy. This is surrender. This is me offering up my bloody, brutal world and begging her to stay in it with me.
This life, with me at its center, is her future.
Our future.
I don’t want her as something I shield, something I keep hidden from the truth. I want her as something I build with. Something I fight for.
The indecision that plagued me, the constant weighing of risks and benefits dissolves. The choices are clear now. And I start moving with lightning speed to make it happen.
Step one: Kill the whisper campaign. The subtle probes from Scorpione Nero. The quiet inquiries about Nikki. The insidious rumors that threaten to undermine my authority and endanger her. This requires a direct confrontation, a clear message delivered in no uncertain terms.
I arrange a meeting with the heads of two neighboring families: Marchetti and Farino. Powerful men. Dangerous ones. They're watching closely. Waiting to see if I’ve been compromised.
I choose a neutral location, a private room in a restaurant outside the city. No press. No overt security. Just me, a blacked-out armored car, and enough leverage to crush them if they breathe the wrong way. My men are outside, silent and ready.
Alessandro Marchetti arrives first, followed by Salvatore Farino. Their eyes are sharp. Calculating. We sit. No pleasantries.
“I’m marrying her,” I say without preamble. “Nikki Ricci. She’s my fiancée. My future. That’s not a negotiation. That’s a declaration. I wanted you to hear it first from me.”
Marchetti laughs, low and dismissive. “Marrying her, Rafe? The American girl? The one who put your face on the internet? The one drawing unwanted attention from... certain quarters?” His gaze sharpens. “You’ve gone soft. Love makes fools of us all.”
I don’t laugh or blink. “They already dragged her into this. Every headline, every flashbulb photo was proof I couldn’t keep her hidden. So, I stopped trying. Let them look. Let them see exactly who she belongs to.”
Farino frowns. “This invites scrutiny. One we usually avoid.”
“Scrutiny will be their undoing,” I reply. “They want to test me? To see if I’m weak?” I lean forward. “Here’s the answer; any attempt to touch her, use her, question her place at my side, will be met with overwhelming force. And that force will be public. Brutal. It will expose every last one of you.”
