Chapter 12
Massimo
Evelyn’s wide green eyes fix on mine, but her pupils aren’t dilated with desire. Her pale cheeks and the lines of strain around her lush lips convey one terrible emotion: fear.
Evelyn is afraid of me.
My gut twists.
I’ve enjoyed seeing myself as her savior. I should’ve known reality would ruin that eventually.
I straighten my shoulders, hardening my resolve. George Crawford is a piece of shit, and she’ll be in danger as long as he’s breathing. I’ll continue protecting her, whether she likes it or not.
Evelyn isn’t going anywhere.
But for now, I’ll give her a little space to process her situation.
I become acutely aware of the faint pink smudge on her cheekbone where I wiped my blood away. More of my blood stains her camisole, even though it’s covered by my t-shirt.
Better mine than Crawford’s.
That fucker has no claim over her. Not anymore.
She wriggles in my arms, and I reluctantly let her go. She reels, as though she didn’t expect me to release her. I brace my hands around her waist to steady her.
Her lovely eyes narrow, and her chin tips back in that defiant posture.
She’s brave, a quality I admire even as I crave to kiss the tension from her lips—until that impertinent expression melts from her delicate features.
I want her soft and pliant in my arms, panting against my mouth with hungry lashes of her tongue.
I force myself to let her go and take a step back. I cross my arms over my chest to prevent myself from reaching for her again. She looks so damn fragile in my oversized shirt, her willowy frame appearing more delicate than ever.
Keeping her locked in a stern stare, I nod in the direction of the ensuite.
“Go get cleaned up. I’ll be right here,” I add, a reassurance and a warning.
If Evelyn thinks she has a chance of slipping away from me, she’s mistaken. I’ll allow her out of my sight so that she can wash the blood off, but I won’t stray far enough to give her an opportunity to run.
Not that she’ll get far if she tries. I can easily catch her, and I’ll restrain her if I have to. I know how to bind a woman to keep her exactly where I want her without inflicting pain.
The prospect of having Evelyn bound at my mercy makes something dark stir in my chest.
I take another step back, careful not to scare her even more. Any sign of carnal desire will terrify her, and I can’t bear the fear that pales her complexion as she watches me warily.
“Go on,” I prompt, my tone leaving no room for argument.
She stiffens with indignation, but she slowly backs away from me. She doesn’t take her eyes off me for one moment—as though I’m a predator that might pounce if she allows her focus to waver for even a heartbeat.
I don’t like that, but I don’t ease my firm stance until she disappears into the bathroom and shuts the door between us. The lock clicks into place, but that doesn’t concern me. No lock is strong enough to keep me out if I want to get to her.
For now, I’ll allow her privacy and space to gather her thoughts. Maybe she’ll process the fact that Crawford endangered and abandoned her.
“So, are you going to explain exactly what the fuck is going on?” Gian drawls from the threshold to the sitting room.
I turn and find the brothers facing me. They fix me with twin disapproving frowns.
“Is that who I think it is?” Enzo asks, the scar that curves at the edge of his right cheekbone drawing deeper on a scowl. The mark is always more prominent when he’s pissed off. “She was talking about George. She’s Crawford’s fiancée. The one you saved that night you killed Duarte’s men.”
He doesn’t finish with a question. It’s a statement of fact: a condemnation.
“Why is she here?” Gian demands. “And why isn’t Crawford dead yet? Unless you’re keeping her as bait.” His frown deepens. “You’re not usually this sloppy, Massimo.”
“She’s not bait,” I snap back. “But I am keeping her. She’s not going anywhere without me until Crawford is eliminated. She was almost shot tonight because of him.”
Enzo hisses out a disapproving breath. We’re all perfectly happy with our lawless lifestyle, but none of us like collateral damage. Innocent civilians are kept out of the line of fire.
At least, that’s the way we conduct our business in Naples.
“Send her back to the feds,” Gian insists. “You’re not her babysitter. Let her be someone else’s problem. We have enough of our own to be dealing with.”
“Not happening,” I refuse. “I’m not sending her back to the DEA. Crawford will be able to get to her.”
“She might want to be with him,” Gian counters, infuriatingly calm and rational. “She’s his fiancée, after all.”
“She’s mine.” The fierce declaration leaves my chest on a snarl that I usually reserve for my enemies, not my closest friends.
Enzo blinks and takes a step back.
Gian looks like I’ve punched him in the face.
A beat of heavy silence passes, and I force my fists to unfurl.
“I won’t let her go,” I declare, a hint of a growl still roughening my tone. “She’s safest with me.”
“Massimo, be reasonable.” Gian maintains his cool demeanor despite his shock at my aggressive outburst. “I get it. She’s beautiful. But just because you want to fuck her—”
“Don’t talk about her like that!” I thunder.
Enzo takes another step away from me and places a restraining hand on Gian, a warning to back off. I’m rarely this unstable, and Enzo knows my moods well enough to recognize that I’m on the edge of violence.
“Fine.” Gian is as smooth as ever, placating. “Keep her if you want. Just don’t forget why we’re here. We have to conclude our business with Duarte and his Colombian partner, Rodríguez. If we fail, we won’t be able to take on the Boss back home.”
His dark green eyes glint on the last: hatred and something more fervent. He has a burning need to wrest control from the old man who commands our lives with the Camorra.
Most of the aggression drains out of me. “I won’t fuck this up for you,” I promise. “You know where my loyalties lie.”
I would die for my friends. Gian and Enzo loathe our boss, Cesare Salerno—a personal vendetta that goes deeper than resentment of his casual cruelty. They’ve made it their mission to overthrow the bastard and take everything he holds dear.
We’ve bided our time for years, and our work here in Mexico is the first clandestine move in our planned coup.
Once the three of us control the lucrative new trafficking route into Europe, we’ll have the global connections we needed to take on the boss.
We’ll have powerful friends to back us up when the time comes.
Then we’ll be kings of our own domain, truly free for the first time in our lives.
It's everything we’ve always dreamed of, going back to those early days of deprivation in Le Vele. It’s taken us over twenty years to get to this point; I won’t mess it up for us now that we’re so close to attaining everything we’ve ever wanted.
My obsession with Evelyn has proven to be a dangerous distraction. But she’s in my power now; I won’t have to worry for her safety anymore. I can keep her close, and I’ll continue our work here in Mexico.
“I trust you,” Gian finally replies. His posture remains relaxed, but his mouth twists in a frown. “But I’m worried for you, Massimo. Enzo’s returning to Italy with me tomorrow. You have to stay here with Duarte while we arrange the payment on our end. We won’t be around to watch your back.”
Shit. I didn’t realize that my friends would be leaving so soon.
It’ll be up to me to play the role of charming Italian guest in order to solidify our alliance with the drug lord, and he’s notorious for his lavish parties. I’ll have to figure out how to navigate the social niceties with one of the most dangerous men in the world while keeping Evelyn close.
“I’ll be fine,” I promise the brothers. “I can handle myself.”
“We know you can,” Enzo agrees. “But this isn’t a situation you can fight your way out of. You almost attacked us over this woman. You can’t lose your shit like that around Duarte’s people. Especially when we won’t be around to help you.”
I offer him a grim nod, acknowledging my fuck-up. My possessiveness when it comes to Evelyn clearly worries my friends, but now that I have her under my control, I feel calmer than when she belonged to Crawford.
I fix Gian with a steady stare. The coup means everything to both of them, but we all know that Gian will be the one to take control of our organization when the time comes. He’s the cleverest of us, and his strategies have gotten us this far. I owe my fealty to him above all others.
“I will do everything in my power to seal this deal with the cartel,” I vow. “We’ve been planning this for years. I won’t fail you now.”
If I have to play the part of affable guest to Duarte’s mercurial host, I’ll do it. Evelyn might try to put up a fuss, but she’s no match for me. She’ll be more amenable once she realizes that I’ll take better care of her than Crawford ever has.
I resolve to lavish her with beautiful clothes and expensive gifts. I’ll prove to her that I can keep her safe and comfortable.
And give her more pleasure than she’s ever known. She won’t want to leave.
I’m not the most subtle man compared to my wickedly smart friends, but I can be persuasive. Charming. Ruthless.
No matter how much she might protest at first, Evelyn will surrender.