Page 103 of A Bossy Proposal

“We’re her bodyguards,” Jackson grunts. “And I know who you are.”

“Who am I?” Luca asks, tilting his head to one side and waits.

Jackson swallows, and it looks like he’s regretting opening his mouth, but Luca waits. “I read that you’re the Boston Psycho.”

Luca laughs. “You shouldn’t believe everything that you read.”

I swallow hard, trying to steady my racing heart as I take in the men standing before me.

“Are you really my cousins?”

“Gabe Mancini.” Gabe holds out his hand. He has a cute smile and dimples that softens his otherwise imposing demeanor.

“And Luca Morelli.” He follows suit. “Let’s take a seat and have a chat.”

“I’ve heard about you two from Lorenzo.” I’m unsure how they perceive my sudden announcement into the world I managed to hide away from.

“My father was shocked to see how much you looked like my mamma when they married,” Gabe states. “And your family, including Marco Senior, is desperate to meet you, as are your cousins.”

Family.

The word hangs in the air between us as I take it in. For so long it was only me and my parents. Now I had a family.

“How do you want Giovanni killed?” Luca asks.

His words take every breath of air that was about to release from my mouth.

“What do you mean?” I gasp.

His eyes lock onto mine with an intensity that unnerves me.

“Do you want a quick bullet to his head, a knife sliding over his throat—”

I turn to Callum when he shifts, but he remains alert, ready to react at any moment.

Jackson stands stoic beside him, ever watchful as they listen to my cousins.

“Or do you want answers?” Gabe suggests, striding to the window, looking out at Central Park below. “Nice view.”

“I want my inheritance back,” I blurt out, feeling the weight of my words as they hang in the air. The thought of Giovanni, that monster, holding what belongs to me, churns in my stomach. “He stole it from me. I don’t know how he managed it, but it’s mine. It’s all I have left of my family.”

Luca’s eyes narrow, absorbing my words.

Gabe turns back from the window, a look of understanding crossing his face.

“And how did he do that?” Gabe asks.

I wipe away a stray tear with the back of my hand. I don’t even know where it came from.

“When they died…he somehow managed to make himself the executor of the will, and he took everything. He said there was nothing left, that it was all gone.” My voice cracks as memories flood back.

Giovanni’s smug grin when the executor claimed I was penniless.

“What about your parents?” Luca leans forward, his gaze piercing through my facade. “Did they tell you what they had?”

I nod. “He told me I was the sole beneficiary of their will. The house was paid for, and I saw the money in their bank account. They had millions of dollars.”

I take a shuddering breath, my throat tightening at the thought of that fateful day. “I don’t want it to be about money, but he killed them and then took everything from me.”

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