Page 62 of Mafia King's Forbidden Obsession

Wheels spin in my head as I stop and stare at him.Someone like me.It makes me wonder how he sees himself.

“That’s bullshit,” I mutter, my voice quieter as I run my hand through his hair. “Everyone deserves a chance at happiness.”

He chuckles, but it’s a bitter sound. “I’ve killed people, Raven. Maybe not innocents, but still, I have killed people.”

I nod, staring intently at his eyes. There’s barely anything there. No regrets, no anger… just pain. For the first time, there’s a small flicker of pain seemingly beyond vain…worldly things. Surely he’s killed… he’s sinned. But so have we all. Letting his sins stand in the way of something as tangible as happiness is unfair.

“Maybe,” I bite my lips while still holding his gaze. “But happiness isn’t a destination, it’s a journey.”

It’s a journey you take each day. Happiness is in the little things… the little actions and reactions…the little decisions.

Instinctively, I think about Harper and my job and how she’s taught me to live life one step at a time instead of brooding over Dad’s absence.

Silence settles between us, and he swallows before he speaks. “You’re too good for this life.”

I don’t expect him to say it with as much sincerity as he does. He knows… He knows I shouldn’t be here… entangled in thedealings of his world. He acknowledges that we’re from different worlds. Yet I’m still here.

As I stare at him, words form in my mouth, but they’re heavy on my lips. I can’t tell why… or maybe I can.

“Then let me go, Ezra.” The words hang thickly between us, his jaw drawing tight until he looks away.

When he doesn’t say anything, I inhale sharply, withdrawing my hand from his body and raking my messy bun. I reach for the tray and begin to toss the bloody gauze in.

I don’t know what it is I feel toward all this…him. But I know I yearn for the happiness and freedom I once knew.

Hurt or not, Ezra is as cruel as they come, and I shouldn’t let that sway my decision to leave.

Chapter twenty

Ezra

I exhale heavily as I adjust in the chair in my study and stare at the reports in front of me. Like it’s been lately, the weight of everything presses against me like a suffocating blanket. I rub my temples with my free fingers before closing my eyes.

My eyes flick to the IV bag, its contents dwindling, swaying gently from the pole beside me. The rollers underneath make it easy to move around, and with Raven's watchful eyes on me, there's no skipping the dosage—just like there’s no stopping the work.

The door suddenly swings open, and Raven steps in without so much as a knock. I raise my brows, surprised by her abruptness.

“I told you that you couldn’t be out of bed until you’re well rested and your dose is finished,” she says, hands firmly planted on her hips.

I blink at her, taken aback, before composing myself. “And I told you that I don’t have the time to lie around when I have work to do.” I start sifting through the papers on my desk, trying to ignore the inevitable confrontation.

“There’s only one day left—”

“You know what?” I begin, cutting her off and choosing my next words carefully. “I’ve been thinking…maybe it’s time for you to… see the outside world.”

My brain replays what she said. She wanted to know things, things I wasn’t ready to share.

My gut twisted initially, unsure whether she was just curious or looking for a crack in my armor. But as the conversation continued, I felt the yearning in her voice for freedom.

It was the first time since our recent interactions that she’d asked to leave with so much…brokenness. I’d always known it… that she didn’t belong here, but that conversation reiterated the fact in a different kind of way.

And maybe that’s why I’m being foolish. Maybe that’s why I’m trusting –half trusting– her with freedom beyond the mansion.

Her eyes light up. “Really?”

I exhale slowly, relieved that the conversation has shifted away from the IV. “Yes,” I say.

“Guards!” I raise my voice to call out to the men outside my office who no doubt escorted Raven here.

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