Page 160 of The Mafia King's Reign
I wait for him to say something else, but he doesn't.
He just watches me with those dark, unreadable eyes.
"I need to think," I whisper finally.
"I know."
He steps back then, creating distance again, and the loss of his proximity feels like something physical being torn away.
"Take the envelope. That’s non-negotiable.”
I stare at it for a long moment, then I pick it up.
The weight of it feels impossible in my hands.
Five million dollars.
My future.
Or my past.
I'm not sure which.
When I look up at him again, he's already moved back to the window, his hands in his pockets, his broad shoulders tense.
Dismissing me.
Letting me go.
"Salvatore—"
"Don't," he says quietly, not turning around. "Whatever you're going to say right now… don't."
My throat tightens.
"Why not?"
"Because I don't want to hear you make a decision you haven't had time to sit with." His voice is controlled, but I hear the strain underneath it. "And I don't want to say something that might influence that decision."
He's really doing this.
He's really letting me walk out of here.
"Go, Valentina," he says, and there's something raw in his voice now. "Before I change my mind about giving you a choice at all."
I stand there.
“Now… please.”
“Okay.”
I walk toward the door, the envelope clutched against my chest, my heart pounding so hard I can barely breathe.
I pause at the threshold, looking back at him one more time.
He hasn't moved.
He's still standing at that window, staring out at the city, his profile sharp and perfect and utterly closed off.
