Page 83 of The Mafia King's Reign
They didn’t want the man.
They wanted the danger.
The power.
The money.
The weight the Vitale name carries when it’s spoken in the right rooms.
They wanted the thrill of standing next to a man the world fears.
They wanted the empire.
None of them ever really saw the man holding it together.
None of them ever looked past the reputation… past the blood… past the crown that came with the name Vitale.
Until Valentina.
At first, I told myself it was just attraction. Possession. The kind of dark hunger men like me are known for.
I wanted her.
That was all.
But somewhere between the arguments, the sharp looks, and the moments when she forgot to guard her heart around me… something shifted.
Quietly.
Dangerously.
Now I find myself doing something I never planned to do.
Something I swore I never would.
Because the truth is… Valentina didn’t fall for the power or the name.
She saw the man behind it.
And now that she has him…
I’ll burn this entire world down before I let anyone take her from me.
And the most dangerous part?
For the first time in my life…
I want it all with her.
* * *
She’s still upset over the dinner with the prosecutor.
I walked out of the car towards the door and she followed me.
Through the front door, up the stairs, down the hall. Raging about gumball machine rings and macho men andCristothe whole way, she was magnificent. Every step I took, she matched. Every silence I gave her, she filled with fire.
The whole time, I had one thought: don't look back. If you look back, it's over.
