Page 103 of Vicious Vows

“I know who you’ll choose,” she whispered. “I just need to hear you say it. Tell me what to do, and I’ll do it.”

Running my hand through her hair and twisting my fingers in the strands, I tilted her face and lowered my lips to hers.

“You don’t fucking know anything about me,” I growled. “I’m not sure you ever have.”

“Marchello,” she gasped.

I released her from my hold and hustled out of the room before I lost my shit.

Striding down the back stairs my feet thundered against the floorboard. I stopped in the kitchen and slammed my hand against the countertop. The audacity of that woman. Had I not been clear enough when I said I didn’t want her help? Why didn’t she understand I would never negotiate with her father?

I didn’t have the energy for another one of her absurd plans to blow up in my face. My men were preparing the docks for both cartels to bring in their shipments. There could be no mistakes. The Accetti family had to receive the shipments and keep them safe until I thought it was clear to move them through.

In and out. I had to pull this job off as smoothly as my father would. Only, he didn’t have the distraction I had. The one thing that could bring me down.

“Marchello!” Lissia rushed down the steps.

Right on cue.

She stopped when she reached the bottom of the steps, looking more disheveled than I’d ever seen her with her sex hair and flushed cheeks. My bite marks and fresh scrapes were prominently displayed on her neck and cleavage.

I leaned against the counter, resisting the urge to grab the vodka and drink it from the bottle.

“What can I do for you, princess?”

“Why did you walk out on me?”

“Why do you think?” If I had stayed, I might have snapped her in half.

“Because you didn’t want to hear the truth.” She placed her hand on her hip, but she didn’t hold any authority standing there in her underwear.

“Your version of the truth.” I stalked toward her, but she didn’t retreat. My jaw was clenched so tight my head hurt. “Do you honestly think I would send you back to your father? The man who wanted to marry you off to an arms dealer. The same father who took a shot at you.”

When I said it out loud, it sounded really bad. Was that how she saw me?

“You tell me all the time you’ll always put your family first.” She shrugged. “I’m giving you the opportunity to do that.”

I didn’t know what upset me more. The fact that she thought I would sacrifice her or that she didn’t know I considered her family.

“I don’t want to go back to my dad,” she said.

“Then why are we having this conversation?”

“Because if there is anything I can do to show you how much I love you, this would be it.” She rested her palm on my jaw. “You need your father here. I can see the conflict in your expression, and I hear you with Milo. I know the cartel is demanding you to do more, and now that you’re working with Lorenzo, you have more pressure.”

She had been paying attention.

“You said as long as we were together there could be no peace. I didn’t want to believe that, but it’s true.”

“I don’t want it to be true,” I said.

“But it is.” Rare tears skimmed the brims of her eyes. “I want more than anything to have a future with you, but we can’t focus on tomorrow if you’re constantly fighting with my father and trying to keep things afloat between two cartels, all the while doing whatever you can to find information to help your dad.”

A lone tear managed to escape and slip down her cheek.

“It’s too much, Marchello. I can’t watch you in so much anguish.”

I wiped her tear away with my finger, but another one quickly followed.

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