Page 104 of Isabella

“I don’t give a fuck who’s on the other side of the barrel, Isabella. You willneverstand between me and a gun.”

She opens her mouth to speak but decides against it, and instead, gives me a small nod, knowing I’ll never budge when it comes to her safety.

“I told you I’d handle this,” I whisper to her, and she gives me a few small nods before I turn back around to face Matteo.

Enzo lets out an exasperated sigh as if he’s over this entire situation. “Alright, Teo, just put the damn gun down already.”

“And why should I do that?” Matteo says, his voice low and eyes still glued on mine. “I should kill this motherfucker and then you next, Enzo.”

“Okay, fucking relax. You’re not going to shoot anyone,” Enzo says.

“I think you’d be amazed at what I would do to protect our family.” Matteo’s voice is low, but the threat is loud and clear.

“Teo, you know I hate Giuseppe Silvestri as much as you do,” Enzo says, “but we can’t ignore what we just witnessed.”

Matteo clenches his hand around his gun once more, but I don’t flinch. Even if he shoots me right now—for fighting for the woman that I love—it’ll be worth it, because a life without her, is a life not worth living.

“I love your sister more than anything, Matteo. You can stand there and not support us, but it doesn’t change the way we feel about each other. I already told you you can take down my family’s organization if that’s what you think is the smartest decision to make, but if you ask me, I think it could be one of your dumbest,” I say with a shrug.

Enzo chuckles, breaking the tension that’s been bursting at the seams since I entered this room, and Matteo snaps his gaze over to him. “Have something to say, Enzo?”

“Oh, nothing at all,” he states. “Just that this is one big damn clusterfuck now. What’re you going to do, Teo? Kill Izzy’s boyfriend right in front of her? Lower the damn gun already.”

Matteo eyes me once more, clenching his teeth before begrudgingly lowering his weapon to his desk, then gesturing to the open chair I was sitting in. “You better start talking, Niccolò. And if I don’t like one word that comes out of your damn mouth, don’t think for a second I’ll hesitate to bury a bullet deep inside your skull.” Looking back at Enzo, he adds, “And don’t think you’re off the hook for this shit. You and I are going to have a conversation after this.”

60

ISABELLA

“Isabella, why don’t you go find Lux. I need to have a chat with yourboyfriend, and I’d rather you not be here for it,” Matteo says.

I’ve been vibrating with anger ever since my brother pulled a gun on Nicco, and that anger is about to erupt like a damn volcano as he tries to dismiss me so easily when everything they’re about to talk about has to do with me.

“I’m not a child, Teo. I’m staying for this conversation.”

My brother looks at me with a slight raise in his brow, but before he can argue, Nicco speaks up. “She’s staying. This conversation concerns my future wife, so shewillbe included in it.”

Enzo drops his head in his hand and mutters, “You justhadto go and poke the damn bear even harder.”

“Future wife?”Matteo repeats.

Even with the disdain that drips from Matteo’s voice, my heart swells at Nicco calling me his future wife. He glances over at me and grabs hold of my hand, giving it a firm squeeze before guiding me over to the chair. He gestures for me to sit before sliding another chair over from the table off to the side.

“It’s not a secret that your sister and I dated while she was at CU?—”

Enzo scoffs. “It was definitely a secret for us, but sure, we’ll ignore that.”

I whip my head in Enzo’s direction and hiss, “Enzo.”

“Anymore,”Nicco finishes. “At least not with you guys. My dad doesn’t know it was Isabella I dated back then, and I’d prefer we keep it that way.”

Teo’s posture remains rigid while he studies Nicco, keeping his loaded gun so close it would only take him a second to have it pointed back on Nicco. “If you don’t want your father to know about you dating my sister, why don’t you just end things with her now?”

“Teo,” I snap.

“My dad thinks I’m getting Isabella to fall in love with me so she’ll end up wanting to get married.”

Teo’s jaw sets as he takes in that information. “He thinks he can use my sister to access my ports.”

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