CHAPTER ELEVEN
LORENZO
“You look beautiful,” I whispered as I walked into my mom’s house. I had dropped Maria off after Hannah left and made my way to my mother’s house.
“You are such a terrible liar,” she teased as I placed a soft kiss on her cheeks.
I smirked, dropping onto the couch beside her. “Good to see you too, Mamma.”
She gave me a knowing look, folding her soft fingers over her lap. “You’re overworking yourself again, aren’t you?”
“I run a business,” I muttered, rubbing the back of my neck. “Not much choice.” I tried not to look at her, to see how pale she was getting. It breaks my heart to see her this way and have so little I can do about it.
“You run an empire,” she corrected, shaking her head. “And you let it eat away at you.”
I didn’t respond.
She sighed, reaching for the teacup resting on the small wooden table beside her. Her movements were slower now and more careful than they used to be. The sight of it ached dreadfully through my chest.
“So?” she asked, taking a small sip. “Are you finally here to tell me about the woman who’s been on your mind?”
I froze, fingers tightening over my knee. “What makes you think—”
“Oh, please.” She rolled her eyes. “I raised you, Lorenzo. I know when something—or someone—is bothering you.”
I exhaled through my nose. “It’s complicated.” I wasn’t sure I wanted to tell her about Maria coming back. The last time, my mum was heartbroken when Maria left, and she felt I pushed her away with my attitude.
“It always is.”
I let out a dry chuckle. “You really don’t make this easy, do you?”
Her lips curled into a soft smile. “No, I don’t. But that’s why you love me.”
Damn her and her ability to see right through me.
I leaned forward, resting my elbows on my knees. “It’s Maria.” I finally came clean.
I looked up to find my mother watching me with that quiet, knowing expression.
“Ah,” she murmured. "Maria."
I studied her face carefully. “You don’t seem surprised.”
“That’s because I’m not.” She set her teacup down with a soft clink. “That girl had your heart long before you ever realized it. Even when she left, a part of me knew that wasn’t the end. You two just needed time.”
I dragged a hand down my face. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’m not the same person I was back then.” My voice was quieter now and strained. “She’s… good. She still believes in people. And me? I see the worst in them. I’ve become the very thing I swore I’d never be.”
Her expression softened. “Lorenzo.”
I shook my head. “You used to tell me I had a kind heart and that I was meant for more than this. But I look in the mirror now, and I don’t recognize that person anymore. I see him.”
I could see the expression on her face change, and I instantly regretted bringing him up.
She reached out, placing her cold hand over mine. “I never said you lost your heart, figlio mio. Just that you buried it.”
My throat tightened.
“You think you’re too far gone, but you’re not,” she continued. “You’ve let this world harden you, but there is still good in you, Lorenzo. I see it. You are not like him. You can never be like him.”
I swallowed hard, my voice barely above a whisper. “Then, why don’t I?”
She gave my hand a small squeeze. “Because you’ve spent so long convincing yourself you don’t deserve to.”
I looked away, jaw clenched.
“Maria sees it too, doesn’t she?”
I didn’t answer because I wasn’t aware how she saw me. When we helped the lady with her boyfriend, I was dismissive at first, and she had pointed out how I stopped believing in people. She must see me as some sort of monster.
She chuckled, her voice gentle. “Of course she does.”
She sighed, leaning back against the couch. “I won’t be here much longer, Lorenzo.”
My entire body went still.
“Don’t,” I warned, shaking my head. “We’re not talking about this.” My eyes welled up in tears as I pushed it back. No. I am not going to let her see how the thought of it affected me. I am supposed to be strong for her.
“We have to.”
“No, we don’t.”
“Yes, we do.” Her voice was firm, but her eyes were sad. “I need to know you’ll be okay when I’m gone.”
A sharp pain stabbed through my chest. I swallowed against the tightness in my throat. I didn’t want to have this conversation.
“You’re not going anywhere,” I forced out. “You’re stronger than this.”
She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “No one fights forever, my love.”
I looked away, staring hard at the floor. “You made it this far. The doctors said you wouldn’t, and you proved them wrong. You can prove them wrong again.”
She let out a soft breath. “I only fought this long because I couldn’t leave you. Because the thought of dying, knowing my son would be alone in this world, was unbearable.”
I clenched my fists, nails digging into my palms. I was struggling to keep the tears in, but I knew I had to for her.
She reached up, brushing a gentle hand over my cheek. “But I’m tired, Lorenzo.”
I squeezed my eyes shut. “Mamma—”
“The chemo, the pills, the endless hospital visits. I can’t do it anymore.” Her voice wavered. “I need you to understand that. I’ve only stayed this long because I knew you wouldn’t be fine.”
A lump rose in my throat.
“But I need you,” I whispered, barely able to get the words out because I was working so hard to keep the tears in.
She smiled, her thumb stroking my cheek the way she used to when I was a child. “No, my love. You need to live.”
I shook my head, my vision blurring. “I don’t know how to do that without you. Since Dad left, you are the only one I’ve had. How can you ask me to do that?”
“You do,” she murmured. “You just don’t want to. But son, I need you to start learning how to.”
Tears burned at the edges of my eyes.
She pulled me closer, wrapping me in the warmth of her embrace. I felt like a boy again, clinging to the one person who had never failed me. She was the one person who had never left my side, even when the world was tough, even when I changed and couldn’t recognize myself in the mirror.
“I know the world has hurt you,” she whispered into my hair. “I know you had no choice but to become what you are. But now, you do have a choice.”
My breath shuddered.
“Give love a chance,” she pleaded. “It won’t fix everything, but it will save you.”
I pressed my face into her shoulder, unable to speak.
“Promise me, Lorenzo.”
I inhaled sharply. “You’re so damn stubborn.”
A small chuckle rumbled in her chest. “At least you know where you got it from.”
I pulled back just enough to meet her gaze. Then, pressing a kiss to her forehead, I whispered, “I promise.”
I pulled away, and a single image flashed in my mind.
Maria.
*******
“You want me to stab him or just make him disappear?”
Dante was leaning against my desk, arms crossed, face far too serious for someone suggesting murder like it was a business lunch.
I exhaled through my nose. “We are not killing Enrico.”
Dante’s brow lifted. “You sure? Because I think the world would thank us. And so would your business. You do realize he’s the reason our shipment is hanging by a thread, right?”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. Of course, I knew. Enrico had been meddling for weeks, cutting into my operations, well Shade’s operation, and making problems where there didn’t need to be any. And now, he was interfering with our latest shipment, sending his goons to burn some of my shipment over the past week, which meant money, resources, and my patience were running low.
Dante tapped his fingers on my desk. “He’s using Luca’s dad’s company to launder his drug money. And if we let this keep going, it’s going to put our entire network under a fucking spotlight. If you’re not gonna kill him, at least tell me I can make him disappear for a few months. Maybe send him to some nice remote location with no cell service or breathable air. I am sure your wife-to-be won’t oppose.”
I smirked. “You really want to take out my wife-to-be’s uncle?”
Dante didn’t even hesitate. “Without question.”
“Bold of you to assume she’s my wife-to-be.”
Dante rolled his eyes. “Oh, please. I saw how you were looking at her when she came over to the club, and don’t give me that ‘it is just business’ brouhaha. You and I know it ain’t.”
I ignored that because my mind had drifted to something else.
I needed to find out whether Luca knew about his uncle’s little side hustle. If he was complicit, and I was going after Enrico, I needed to know Luca or Maria wouldn’t be caught in the crossfire. If they were, things were going to get messy. But I had to be careful how I brought it up without giving away that I had my own dealings.
I pulled out my phone and dialed.
Luca picked up fast. “If you’re calling to tell me you got Maria pregnant, I don’t want to hear it.”
My lips twitched. “Yet.”
There was a beat of silence. “I hate you.”
I laughed. “I want to come over for dinner tonight. Can I?”
“You want dinner?” Suspicion laced his tone. “Are you coming for dinner, or are you just looking for a means to see Maria, Bianchi?”
“You wound me, Russo.”
“Like you wouldn’t kill me first.”
I grinned. “So, I’ll see you tonight?”
“Fine. Just don’t piss me off.”
“Can’t promise that,” I chuckled right before cutting the call. He wasn’t wrong, though. I did want to see Maria.
Later that day, I drove to the mansion. The Russo mansion was just as obnoxious as ever. A damn palace, if you asked me. I let myself in. The scent of garlic, tomatoes, and something rich filled the air.
And then I heard it.
Music.
Low and sultry. Something you’d hear at two in the morning in my apartment when I wanted to just forget my troubles and soak myself in music and a glass of champagne.
I followed the sound, stepping into the kitchen—and I forgot how to breathe. As soon as I saw her, every sense in my body forgot how to fully function because my eyes were not just seeing her. They were tasting her.
Maria.
Dancing.
Cooking.
Wearing that.
The silk clung to her, teasing just enough skin to make a man think of how she would look without it. That was all that was on my mind. Her bare legs moved in an effortless rhythm, hips swaying as she stirred whatever was in the pan.
My mouth went dry. Maria, the ice queen, was moving like she had fire under her skin and like she knew exactly what she was doing to me without even trying.
It was unfair.
I should have left. I really should have left. The more I stared at her, her buttocks twerking to the pop music sound, the more I wanted to hold them firmly, have them on that counter, standing as I spread them apart.
Fuck! I should leave.
Instead, I leaned against the doorway and watched.
She turned mid-step and froze when her gaze locked onto mine.
Her lips parted slightly, eyes widening as she startled at the sight of me. “What the hell, Lorenzo!” She exclaimed.
I smirked. “Enjoying yourself?”
She straightened, her composure snapping back into place like she didn’t just lose it. “What are you doing here?”
I pushed off the doorway and slowly strode into the kitchen. I moved close enough to see she was making pasta and to smell the rich smell of berries on her skin. I was closing the space between us. “I didn’t know you had moves.”
Her brow lifted. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me.”
I kept moving, and she didn’t step back. But when I didn’t stop, she began to back up a little till her back hit the counter.
I braced my hands on either side of her, caging her in. I wasn’t just smelling her. I could feel every inch of her without touching her. Her breath came faster, and her pulse was visible at the base of her throat. She smelled so good—sweet, warm, and intoxicating.
Fuck.
“What else don’t I know?” My voice was lower now, rougher.
Her gaze flickered down, landing on the food before snapping back up to me. “The taste of my cooking.”
I tilted my head. “That’s what you think I want to taste?”
Her fingers clenched against the counter. Her eyes locked on mine as soon as the words left my mouth. She opened her mouth to speak but didn’t. It was almost like I took the words right out of her mouth.
I wanted to push. Just a little more.
“You sure about that?” I murmured, my lips inches from hers. “I want to taste other things.”
Her throat bobbed. “What other taste?”
She trailed off, and my eyes followed hers. That was when I heard the sound of footsteps.
Voices.
Luca’s voice.
Maria yanked herself away from me so fast she nearly knocked over the pan.
I turned just as Luca, Matteo, and Kayla walked in.
Luca paused as soon as he entered, his gaze shifting and scrutinizing with a scowl on his face.
Maria cleared her throat. “I’ll set the table.”
Luca didn’t take his eyes off me. “Lorenzo, I told you, I’m watching you.”
I chuckled, shoving my hands into my pockets.
That makes two of us because no matter what, I couldn’t stop watching her.