Married to the mafia King

The mystery man regarded my father for a long moment before he spoke. “Understandable. She is, I am sure, your most treasured possession.”

“I am no one’s possession,” I snapped

Which caused quite a response.

My father looked like he might have a heart attack.

The Bear looked surprised.

The Hothead got even angrier.

But the mafia don regarded me with amusement.

“Of course not,” he said in that deep, smoky voice. “I only meant that your father treasures you… and should not lie to me again in a wasted effort to ensure your safety. Would you not agree, signore?”

“Y-yes, padrone,” my father stuttered.

“Good. What was the victim doing in your cafe?”

My father gave a forced laugh that was full of fear. “Why, the same as anyone else, I suppose! Just having a meal.”

“Your cafe is rather off the beaten path. He didn’t come in for another reason?”

“No! I mean… not that I know of.”

Suddenly I thought of the ugly man’s strange words:

Tell your father my compliments to the chef.

I also thought about how I had suspected the ugly man knew my father

But I was afraid to voice those suspicions.

I was also afraid of lying to the mafioso again

But he hadn’t asked me anything.

So I wouldn’t technically be lying if I held my tongue… which I did.

The stranger looked at my father like he was trying to see deep into his soul. With those piercing eyes of his, I almost believed he could.

“Let me take him out back,” the Hothead snapped. “I’ll loosen his tongue.”

The don raised one hand, and the Hothead went back to seething in silence.

But the handsome stranger never looked away from my father.

Finally he said, “The man who visited your establishment tonight… the one who died over there…”

He gestured to the curdled pool of blood.

“…I received word that he was part of a plot against me and my family. But I don’t know what the plot entailed.”

“That’s horrible,” my father said earnestly.

“Indeed. If you hear anything of interest, you should contact me immediately. Massimo, give the man our number.”

The Bear reached into his suit and produced a business card. It looked ludicrously small between his giant fingers.

So the Bear’s name was Massimo…

My father took the card and nodded. “Of course, padrone.”

“I would greatly appreciate your cooperation in this matter.”

“Absolutely, Don Rosolini.”

“And until I am sure I have your utmost cooperation… I’m going to take your daughter with me as collateral.”

The words stunned me and they equally surprised my father.

Papa blinked. “Um… excuse me, padrone?”

“Are you deaf?” the Hothead snarled.

The mafioso glared at the Hothead. “Adriano.”

So the Hothead’s name was Adriano.

After the one-word rebuke, Adriano fell silent.

Then Don Rosolini turned back to my father. “I repeat: I’m taking your daughter as collateral while you gather more information for me.”

“What?!” I cried out angrily. “No!”

All four men the mafioso, Massimo, Adriano, and my father looked at me in surprise.

Of course, my father’s surprise was more like horrified shock.

The mafia don’s expression was far more amused.

“I am afraid you don’t have a choice in the matter,” he informed me.

“Is that so?” I snapped.

I turned to walk out of the room

But Massimo the Bear stepped in front of me. His speed was surprising for a man of his size.

He looked down at me and gently shook his head like, That wouldn’t be a good idea.

I stepped back and didn’t move.

“Padrone… please, I beg of you, not my daughter,” my father whispered.

“Don’t worry she’ll be well taken care of. You may have her back when you have more information about your visitor this evening.”

“But sir, I know nothing ”

“Which is why I know you’ll find out something for me.” The don turned to Massimo. “Take her to get her belongings.”

“Sir ” my father said as he stepped forward abruptly, which I guess was slightly threatening

Because Adriano shot forward, grabbed my father by the collar, and pushed him back.

“NO!” I screamed.

The head mafioso tilted his head to the side, and Adriano relaxed his hold.

“Don Rosolini…” my father whispered, “Alessandra is a good girl… she goes to mass every Sunday… she’s a virgin, padrone…”

My face flushed scarlet.

I was a virgin, it was true because of my religious beliefs.

…but also partially due to a lack of opportunity in the small village where I lived.

To hear my father say it out loud was mortifying.

The handsome mafioso fixed me with a stare like he was about to tear off my dress. “Interesting information, to be sure but what does it have to do with me?”

“Sir, your reputation precedes you,” my father whispered. “You are a worldly man… and you reap where you do not sow. My daughter is an innocent…”

The mafioso spoke to my father, but he walked slowly towards me. “Are you suggesting that I might take advantage of your daughter?”

I felt fear at his words but my face blazed even hotter.

The horror of this stranger and my father discussing me this way it was too much to bear.

And yet, as I looked into the stranger’s mesmerizing eyes, I felt a different kind of heat bloom between my legs.

“I…” my father said, then stopped. He was obviously afraid of offending il Mostro.

“I give you my word,” the mafioso said as he stopped just inches away from me. “I will not take your daughter’s virginity…”

The smile he gave me was both seductive and terribly cruel.

“…until she begs me to do so.”

My father didn’t know what to say to that. He was stunned into silence.

I, on the other hand, was not.

“I am not a whore to be bargained over,” I snarled.

With lightning speed, the mafioso pressed against my body and grasped the hair at the back of my neck.

He pulled my head back with a gentle tug so I was staring up at him.

I could feel him against me his muscles beneath his suit as they pressed against my soft body.

I was terrified

And yet at the same time, lust seemed to engulf me like fire.

Other than my father, I had never been this close to a man before in my life

And certainly not the most attractive and powerful man I had ever seen.

My heart hammered in my chest from both fear and excitement.

He was pressed so firmly against me that I was sure he could feel my heartbeat.

Then he leaned down to whisper in my ear.

I caught a whiff of his cologne subtle, expensive, and overwhelmingly masculine.

His lips brushed my ear, and my eyes half-closed in a haze of desire.

“You will be my whore,” he whispered. “But only for me… and no one else.”

Then he let go of my hair and pulled away from me.

I was furious

I was afraid

And yet there were stirrings inside me more powerful than anything I’d ever felt before.

“Massimo, take her to get her things while I talk to her father,” the stranger said.

Massimo gestured with his head like, Come on.NôvelDrama.Org: text © owner.

I looked at my father.

He glanced at Don Rosolini… then looked back at me and nodded.

I angrily went to my room upstairs with the Bear trailing along behind me.