Page 151 of Broken Mafia Prince
“Isn’t that?—”
“What the fuck is she doing here?” I hiss. Didn’t she get my message? I was very clear about her not coming anywhere near the docks. I know she thinks she can handle anything that comes her way, but she’s going to get herself killed.
Without a second thought, I change direction and run toward her, heart thudding so hard in my chest that I’m afraid it’s going to break through my rib cage. Terror grips me like a vice when I spot one of my father’s men sneaking up her back, a wicked blade in his hand.
“Giulia, get down!” I roar.
Her gaze swings toward me and I see confusion in them. It takes too long for the realization to set on her face. I whip out my gun, aim over her shoulder, and fire, my bullet making its way between his eyes. He drops to the ground as I get to where she is.
“What are you doing here?” I snap, grabbing hold of her elbow and shaking her. “What the fuck, Giulia? I told you it’s dangerous.”
“I had to see for myself,” she spits, trying to dislodge her arm for my hold.
A scoff of disbelief slips out of my mouth. “You’ve seen enough. We’re leaving.” I try to pull her away, but she keeps her feet rooted to the ground.
“I’m not leaving. I have to protect my father,” she insists, glancing around for him.
“Stop being so stubborn, you’re going to get yourself killed.” I try to pull her away again, but she pushes against my hold, trying to rush off. Annoyed, I grab her, toss her over my shoulder, and hurry away from what is fast becoming a battlefield.
I don’t see Tommaso anywhere but I don’t worry much about it. He’s capable of taking care of himself, and I know he’s not foolishly racing into gunfire blindly, unlike the woman beating her fists against my back and screaming at me to put her down.
“What the hell, Raffaele!” she yells, pushing at my chest as soon as I drop her to her feet.
We’re a fair distance from the action, hidden behind a pile of metal junk. The noise is muted, but I still have to raise my voice a little above the gunshots and chaos.
I stagger back, more in surprise than anything else. “I think what you mean is thank you very much for saving my goddamn life that I care nothing about!” I roar.
“My father is still out there, and I’m not leaving him to the hands of your family.” Giulia retorts. “I’m not going to run away from this fight. I’m done running.”
I want to ask her what that means for our plans to elope, but this isn’t the right time. “I’ll handle it.”
“Like you said you were handling this?” She plants her hands on her hips, glaring up at me. “Doesn’t look handled from where I’m standing.”
I open my mouth to respond, but just then, another explosion rocks the docks, making me wince. I’m not surprised when one of her eyebrows flies up, and she shoots me a scathing look.
Annoyed, I lash out and cup the back of her head, dragging her into my body. Her eyes go wide with surprise, but she doesn’t try to fight away from my hold. “When I say I’m handling it, I fucking mean it. Have a little faith in me, baby. I have plans in motion and contingencies in place, but I can’t function andmake proper decisions knowing that you’re somewhere out here, risking your life. I need a clear head to get through today and protect your family.”
“Raff—”
“So you’re going to get in the car and get out of here,” I continue, narrowing my eyes at her to show her I mean business. “You’re not going to stop until you’re inside the walls of the Montanari estate.”
“I’m not leaving without you,” she says. “I’m not leaving until I know my father is okay, either. I don’t care if you think I’m stubborn or I’m making your life difficult right now. It shouldn’t come as a surprise to you that I don’t take orders from you or anyone else, so you can save it.”
She’s the most headstrong, infuriating woman on earth, and I can see a future full of arguments and tantrums. Do I really want to turn my life upside down for a woman who will argue over every little thing for the rest of our lives? I stare down at her now, taking note of her determined stance, jaw thrust in the air, shoulders stiff, spine straight as a board, and her hazel eyes hard.
I’ve never wanted to kiss her so much as in that moment, so I do it. I fist my hand around her ponytail, pulling her into an urgent kiss that lasts all of two seconds, knowing that any longer will make me lose all my bearing.
“Fine, stay here,” I tell her. “For the love of god, Giulia, don’t move an inch. I mean it.”
She searches my eyes for a second before giving me a clipped nod. I rake a hand through my hair and swear under my breath, battling the urge to just grab her and run, run all the way out of the city and straight to our new life.
As I turn away, her soft question stops me. “What are you going to do?”
“Fix this.”
“Be careful,” she says quietly.
I slip away from the cover of the metal junk and scope the area in search of Emilio. If I want to end this once and for all, the surest way is by cutting off the head of the snake, which happens to be my father’s right-hand man. I spot him barking instructions at one of the soldiers and make my way toward them.
