Page 113 of Broken Mafia Prince
“Well, forgive me if I’m not willing to take criticism from a guy who goes around fucking the entire population of this city. I hope you at least remember to wrap it up.”
“Jealous?”
If it’s possible, her jaw grinds more. “You’re an asshole.”
“Is that news?” I raise one eyebrow. “I didn’t know you were keeping tabs on me, or I’d have been more discreet. But it’s nice to know that you care about my health.”
“You’re disgusting.”
My only response is a slight smile that’s meant to infuriate her, and judging by the way her mouth purses, it’s working.
“How do you find a way to drag me back into this over and over again? I don’t want this. The overthinking, the second-guessing, the inability to move on from you. Haven’t you done enough?”
The pain in her voice cuts at me. “How do you think it’s been for me? I wish I could let you go. I wish I could tell you that thisis the last time you’ll ever see me. But I am not capable of staying away from you, Giulia. I never meant to hurt you.”
“And yet that’s all you’ve ever done.”
I hide my flinch beneath a frown. “You are the one who walked away from us; you ran like a coward.”
“No!” she barks. “I did what I had to do for both of us, and you know it. We’re not good together, and someone had to be brave enough to cut the cord that binds us.”
I glance at the space between us. “Is that why you are all the way over there? To protect us by being the brave one? Is that it? I never asked for your bravery.”
“Well, I never asked for any of this, either,” she says with a shaky laugh. “You shouldn’t have brought me here.”
“I had to warn you,” I tell her.
“There is nothing new about a Gagliardi hunting down Montanari blood. It’s a tale as old as time, and it’s going to continue happening for probably the rest of our lives.”
“I refuse to be drawn into a war that I have nothing to do with,” I growl out. “I refuse to continue being a pawn in their games. Jesus Christ, Giulia, aren’t you tired of all this? Aren’t you sick and tired of living a life dictated by what these men want? Don’t you want more for yourself?”
“And when are you going to realize that we are stuck in this as we are stuck with the blood in our veins?”
“Then I’ll cut myself open and let myself bleed out.”
Her eyes widen with shock, and she stares at me like she’s never seen me before. I hold her eyes and let her see that I mean every bit of it. My voice is softer when I say, “I only want to help you.”
“You can’t help me in the war your own family is instigating against mine. You have to pick a side, and unfortunately, that side was decided for you the moment you were born.”
“There’s only one side I am on,” I tell her.
I see her throat bob with a swallow. “Whose side is that?”
“Our side,” I say with certainty.
She sucks in a breath, and her lips part open wordlessly. I can see the wheels spinning in her head, so many thoughts, conflicting emotions, and denials rising on her tongue, but none of them are able to come out. I know exactly what she feels. I, too, have been haunted by the conflict of wanting to fight on the other side while knowing it would seal my name as a traitor for life.
Can I live with myself knowing that I’m a traitor to my family? I don’t know, but I also know that I couldn’t live with myself if I did something that lends a hand in destroying Giulia and her family forever.
As I stare at her now, I’m not thinking about the wars or what’s coming. I’m not thinking about the Syndicate involvement that has been a dead end, my father’s plots, or the fact that she’s engaged to some asshole. The only thing I can think about is how much I want her in my arms, how much I want to reacquaint myself with the taste of her. I want to shatter that icy resolve around her, make her whimper and beg for me.
“It’s not too late for us to leave everything behind and go away. We can be as far away from this as possible before the end of the day. I have enough money to?—”
She shakes her head, cutting me off. “You know it’s never been about the money.”
“The money can give us a fresh start,” I argue.
“What you’re saying is that you want me to run away from everything I’ve worked hard for my entire life. You want me to run away from everything I’m familiar with and put my entire life into your bloodstained hands!” she roars.
