He loved her.Absolutelyloved her.
She was his Achilles heel. His kryptonite.
It was as if the truth flooded over me all at once in a cool rush, then the love between them set me on fire.
In his own way, he had protected her from his enemies by having children from other women. Burying his love for her so she wouldn’t be tainted by his life.
The main reason of all, though, was the reason he killed the sheriff’s wife.
If my feelings were true, he killed an innocent woman and her child sohisinnocent woman andhischild could be together.
Probably the only true act of love he had ever committed, as screwed up as it was.
Knowing what I did about this family, they would have demanded Luca bring Brando to them, leaving Maggie Beautiful without a heart. She would lose the love of her life and the gift that he’d given her, their son.
Marzio would have never allowed Luca to leave his wife for Maggie Beautiful. That wasn’t the way things were done. The women who had his children were supposed to be that—surrogates. His wife couldn’t have children.
Maggie Beautiful would have never played second fiddle to anyone. Especially allowing another woman to raise her son as her own. She fought Luca tooth and nail not to take Brando. She would have fought until they killed her.
Because she knew.
She’d always known what was going on behind the scenes.
In my heart, I knew Luca had killed in her honor because he truly loved her. I knew he allowed them to lock him up for years so part of her would stay whole. But in this moment, he didn’t seem to have a clue as to how badly the situation had messed her up—Luca being Luca had cost her a lot. It had cost his son too.
Glancing at Brando, I swallowed down the lump in my throat. I’d rather take the risk of having Giulio Cesare strangle me than have him have children from other women.
I never claimed to be sane when it came to him.
As Mitch had once put it,wild in the head, freak in the bed. A bubble of laughter escaped my mouth. No one noticed except for Brando.
The party had gotten a lot more interesting after Maggie Beautiful showed up. As usual.
“You killed my husband, you bastard!” she hissed, eyes darting to Mia. “You stole his heart!”
“Your husband.” It wasn’t a question. More of ahow dare you say such a fucking thing tome. His voice came out smooth, but I was too well versed in Fausti not to feel the chill that came with it. “Tuo marito.”
His face overcame a remarkable transformation, following his voice, from genial family man to the creature that lurked below the depths.
Feeling it, Brando made a sudden, subtle move, but Maggie Beautiful stepped in front of him, blocking his way. The hand not holding the knife came down in astay putgesture. She was still protecting her son.
A woman is many things—mother, lover, daughter, sister, friend—but when it comes to her man, she knows her worth in his world. She knows his limits. A thin line only she could cross and come back alive after touching the other side.
Especially in this group.
Maggie Beautiful was dancing on that line, back and forth, knowing how to get to him. This man turned beast had taken the bait.
“Oh, how the mighty giant can fall at the scent of a woman,” I said, almost in awe.
“Scarlett.” Brando squeezed my arm, not to hurt, but to get his message across.Shut it.
It was a good thing that I hadn’t blinked, or I wouldn’t have seen him move. Luca was there and then he was gone. He pinned Maggie Beautiful against the wall, her wrists on each side of her head. The knife fell to the floor in a resounding clang.
“Shall we have this conversation here?” he asked in slow, sensual, rolling Italian. “Or would you prefer in private?”
He was giving her the choice.
She, on the other hand, was too crazed to care who watched or heard. Her eyes were still wide, her body trembling, her disposition urgent.
