Page 72 of Mafia Don's Twisted Proposal
“Then take me to my real family.” The words come out stronger than I feel. “If you’re so worried about my safety, let them protect me.”
28
LORENZO
No.
The word sits on my tongue.
I don’t want to take her to her family because she’s right. They’re some of the only people capable of keeping her safe. And they will. Family means everything to the Cardenas’, just like it does to the Andrettis.
That’s exactly why I need this alliance. Not just because they’re formidable, but because they understand what matters. Blood. Loyalty. Protection at any cost.
What I didn’t count on when I hatched this brilliant plan was Mia becoming family to me. Real family. The marriage was supposed to be a business arrangement, nothing more. A means to an end in a war I have to win.
But then she started laughing in my kitchen like she belonged there and curling up in my bed like it was hers, and something shifted. She stopped being a strategy and became the one thing I couldn’t risk losing.
If I take her to them, she won’t need me anymore.
After all the lies I’ve told, all the secrets I’ve kept, the only thing I have left is the fact that she needs my protection. Without that, why would she stay?
Mia stares at me, chin lifted in that stubborn way I’ve learned to both love and fear. She’s geared up for a fight, expecting me to deny her this one thing. That fire is back in her eyes, the spark that burns through me every time.
I could refuse. Should refuse. My entire plan depends on maintaining control.
Instead, I hear myself say, “Okay. I’ll take you to meet your family.”
Shock freezes her completely. “You...you will?”
“I don’t think I can deny you much of anything.” The admission costs me, but it’s true. “After everything I’ve put you through, it’s the least I can do.”
Her eyes narrow to suspicious slits. “Are you agreeing because you want me to help you form an alliance? Because if that’s what this is?—”
“No.” The word cuts through whatever accusation she was building. “I don’t expect that from you.”
What I hope is that she’ll find it in her heart to forgive me. The way she’s looking at me now, like I’m a stranger who happened to wander into her life, makes me feel hollow. Carved out.
There’s a risk she’ll choose them over me. A significant one. But taking her to meet the Cardenas family might be the onlyway to prove that not everything between us was calculated manipulation.
I think about the past few weeks. Learning that she hums while she does dishes. The way she steals the covers at night. How she gets excited about volcanic steam vents like other women get excited about diamonds.
She’s reminded me there’s more to life than territory wars and body counts. For years, I’ve given everything to the organization. Before I became Don, I had dreams that didn’t involve blood and bullets. Mia brought that version of myself back from the dead.
“Give me a day or two to contact your family and arrange a meeting.”
“A couple of days?” Longing bleeds through her voice. “It’s really going to take that long?”
The need in her tone hits me like a physical blow. For the first time since I started this mess, I recognize how incredibly selfish I’ve been. My plan to use her for an alliance, my reluctance to take her to her family. All of it centers on what I want, what I need.
This woman just learned her entire life is built on lies. She has a father and brothers she’s never met, a family where she might finally belong. I shouldn’t hesitate to give her that, regardless of how it affects me.
“Yes. I need to make contact and arrange travel. But I’ll take you to them as soon as possible.”
“Good.” She turns and walks out of my office without another word.
What else is there to say? I’ve spent the last hour confessing every deception, every lie. She needs space to process, even if it feels like torture.
The next twenty-four hours crawl by.
