Page 67 of Dangerous Games of Trust

The color drains from my face. “I don’t want him to have a painting of her,” I snap in a panic, my voice trembling with fear.

Geovani rubs my back, trying to comfort me. “It’s okay, Alessandro won’t let that happen.”

I look up at him. It’s now or never, Harley, prove who you are. I shake my head slowly. “No,Iwon’t.” I take off back toward the table and take the paddle from Alessandro. Fuck this, fuck bowing down to this asshole. I won’t do it anymore. “Two hundred and fifty thousand,” I counteroffer, and the room gasps.

Enzo turns around to glare at me for having the audacity to challenge him, but Alessandro stands solidly by my side. He wraps his arm around mine in a show for his parents. He has my back. My heart races like crazy. He has my back when it counts. He plays their fucking games, but even he has a limit.

“Let Alessandro have this one,” Valentina suggests with a playful laugh. Alessandro, not me. The fucking bitch has a mischievous sparkle in her eyes as she says it as well. By the way she’s looking at me, I can tell she accomplished her goal for the night. She wanted to rattle me. She didn’t care if she went home with that painting or not. Those two are pure evil, and they’re coming for me.

“I could do this all night, Enzo,” I taunt him, anger dripping off my every word. He shoves his chair back and walks toward us as the room holds their breath. Maddox stands, and I feel the other two behind me as well. All of them showing their support for me against this fucking asshole of a man. His lips shift into anover-the-top grin that’s more scary than pleasant. He claps his hands together. “My beautiful daughter-in-law, everyone.” His booming voice reverberates through the quiet room. “I’m going to let her have this one, she deserves it,” he announces.

They all cheer for him, and he shifts his attention to me. I stiffen as he places a kiss to both my cheeks then lowers his mouth to my ear. “I know what my son sees in you. You’re not just beautiful like your mother, you have her fighting spirit as well. Best keep in mind she eventually fell at my feet, and you will too.”

Motherfucker. He’s openly admitting it. I shove him off me and lift my chin defiantly. “You would do best to remember I’m not my mother. I will never bow to you.”

Alessandro pulls me away from him, gripping my hand so I can’t grab my knife, and Maddox and Ricky step in between us.

The auctioneer announces me as the winner, and Alessandro threads his hands into my hair and kisses me, putting on a show for all who are watching. Then he takes my hand, and we walk from the room with the other boys at our side.

“What the fuck was that, princess?” But I know his anger isn’t directed toward me, it’s for Enzo. He heard every word he said to me and my response.

“A truth you needed to see.”

Yeah, tonight was all for show, and now the influential people in this room know Enzo isn’t in charge anymore. And I have some explaining to do.

Chapter 34

When we get backin, I head straight for my room. I’m exhausted, emotionally and physically. What else are they going to throw at me? I strip off my dress and get under the warm covers, lying there staring up at the shadowy ceiling with the curtains blowing in the breeze.

When I close my eyes, I can imagine I’m still her. That carefree girl who’s content in her life. But I can’t close my eyes and pretend tonight. I need a cold hard dose of reality. I need to save myself before I end up with a real Moretti baby inside of me. I thought I had considered the worst-case scenario, but I hadn’t. The idea Alessandro planted in my head tonight truly scared the shit out of me. I won’t bring a child into this world. Not while Enzo is still alive. I know I have to get out of here, but I can’t run. It’s too dangerous. Too many people I care about could get hurt trying to protect me. I need to make them believe I don’t need protecting anymore so I can just disappear.

A slight knock comes at my door. I don’t bother answering. I’m too worn out after having to explain to the boys what I knowabout Enzo. They didn’t even question me, they knew it was true, and after the show he put on tonight, he’d gone and proven it. Alessandro was quietly seething and headed straight for his office as soon as we stepped in the door. Geovani followed him.

The door opens and closes with a creak, and I feel the bed dip beside me. I smell his cologne and know it’s Ricky without even looking his way. As he laces his fingers with mine, a wave of affection and tenderness washes over me. I don’t want to hurt him by leaving.

Tears well in my eyes at the thought. He deserves so much better than to love someone like me. Someone who can only ever bring him pain. There is no good outcome here. There can’t be. Even if we all survive, where do we go from here? I can’t keep fucking the four of them. “When is this nightmare going to end? I want my life back,” I whisper through the pain now lodged in my chest.

“I know, baby doll. Just hang on a little longer. I wish I could take you away from all of this and start a life with you somewhere else. But it’s impossible.”

Facing him, I wrap my arms around him, savoring the warmth and security as I nestle my head on his broad shoulder. Why couldn’t I have met him in another lifetime when things were less complicated.

He strokes my hair, playing with the tangled curls as he brushes through them. The two of us lie there silently for a while, just enjoying each other’s warmth. I know he’s right; we could try to run away together. The idea is so romantic it hurts my heart. But we both know how dangerous it would be. We would be like sitting ducks out there alone. As much as it pains me, we need the protection of the family around us. And the truth is, I couldn’t just walk away from the others. Everything Maddox has done for me, the risks he’s taken to protect me are huge. And Geovani killed his pa to save me. He might have an odd way ofshowing it, but he would literally do anything to keep me alive. And even the overprotective asshole himself, Alessandro, has caused all sorts of trouble to have me by his side, creating a rift with his parents that his family will never recover from. They all deserve better.

And if I weren’t here, they could have it. Couldn’t they? I’m the reason they’re all trapped and fighting this war. If I disappeared, there would be no one left to protect. They could all get on with their lives and have a chance at some sort of happiness.

I kiss Ricky’s arm, staring up at him. “Ricky, can you promise me something?”

Piercing blue eyes meet mine. I feel how much he adores me, and guilt eats at me. “Anything.” His lips curve into a smile.

“When this is all done, you go back to medical school and become a surgeon.”

He kisses my forehead. “That’s a nice dream, baby,” is all he says, then he lays his head back down and closes his eyes; he doesn’t make a promise he knows he can’t keep. But I wish so badly he could have had a different life.

What would have happened to him if Enzo never found out he was his son? His mother would probably still be alive. He could have grown up a normal kid and lived out his full potential. I’m so sad for him. He could have been someone incredible, saving lives every day, but instead, he’s forced to play his part as a Moretti enforcer. Loyal to the bone but living in the shadow of his older half-brother. I wonder how he really feels about that situation.

Before I know it, his sleepy breathing sounds beside me. I wish it was that easy for me to find sleep, but I can’t. I’m so on edge. I know I have to change something; we can’t all keep living in this cycle of madness. Even with Alessandro supposedly in charge, I can see Enzo still has all the power. Otherwise, why lie about me being pregnant with his baby? He did it because he felt backedinto a corner, and he believed I was in enough danger he had to lie.

I move past Ricky’s sleeping body and throw on a robe before creeping out of the room as quietly as I can. I take the elevator down to the kitchen and pour myself a glass of milk. As I’m walking past the office Geovani has set up, I hear what sounds like Enzo’s voice.

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