Rex
She was happy living a lie. I could see it in her self-assured step, in the way she smiled at strangers freely. Old man Alfera had not yet delivered on his promise. Caterina was supposed to learn the truth when she turned eighteen. I’d been waiting for her for six years. And now, our time was up. Caterina was coming home to me tonight.
I followed close behind her, keeping to the shadows and reminding myself that technically, I wasn’t a stalker. The difference here was that Caterina Alfera was mine. Mine to keep for as long as I wanted.
“Caterina.” An older woman met her at the bakery’s storefront. “I thought I wouldn’t see you today.”
“Dad can’t go to sleep without his Bombolonis and coffee.” Caterina pulled her coat closer to her as a wintery breeze blew through the length of the narrow street.
“I baked them early this afternoon. They should still be warm.” She pointed a finger at Caterina. “And I will have a talk with your father. Letting you go out alone at this hour is dangerous.”
“It’s fine, Martina. Dumbo is a safe area. Don’t worry about me. What you should worry about is me getting home late with Dad’s donuts.” Her easy laughter was a sweet sound that reminded me that I had waited long enough.
“Come inside. Get warm while I get your order.” Martina opened the door to her bakery shop and effectively bathed the street with the scent of sweet pastries.
I kept my eye on Caterina as she removed her hat to free her wavy dark hair, the perfect backdrop to her big brown eyes, high cheekbones, and pouty lips. Her beauty alone would’ve been enough for me to agree to her father’s contract with my family. Caterina was the payment for her father’s sins. And I was all too happy to collect.
I waited impatiently as she moved about the store, asking questions that made Martina beam with delight. The usual storm brewing at the pit of my stomach took hold. I’d never been the type who liked to share. Keeping to the dark parts of the street, I paced up and down the sidewalk like a caged animal, while my self-restraint grew thinner. Caterina had that effect on me. When it came to her, I felt out of time and out of control.
Fisting my hand, I inhaled deeply and focused on what I had to do tonight. In the next beat, Caterina’s voice filtered through the air as she bid Martina a good night. She stuffed her hat and bag of pastries in her large tote and headed down the street, away from me.
As soon as Martina went back inside, I sauntered toward Caterina. Up ahead I spotted a SUV that I didn’t recognize as one of mine. Something wasn’t right. The frigid air shifted around me, and my instincts kicked in. Caterina was in trouble.
I darted toward her to catch up. But before I reached her, a different SUV cut the corner a block away. She looked both ways before she opted to cut through a smaller street. It was dark as fuck, but I knew that on the other end she’d be safer, closer to home. I rushed in, not bothering to keep my distance anymore.
When she saw me, she took off running. Fuck. I threw all caution to hell and chased after her. One day, she would have to understand that she was safer with me, that her father’s enemies would not stop until she paid for what he did to them. To say that old man Alfera had a long-standing list of enemies was an understatement.
Tires screeched in the distance. If the SUV hadn’t entered the street, I could only assume it was because they couldn’t tell if she’d gone this way. In two long strides, I caught up to her, wrapping one arm tight around her waist while placing my palm over her mouth. Her body slammed against mine so hard the idea to fight me didn’t register right away.
For those few seconds, she fit me perfectly. And fuck me if her flowery scent wasn’t intoxicating. When she recovered from her shock, she arched her body to break free. I held her tighter, but she didn’t give in.
There was so much that needed to be said.
I’m here for you.
You’re safe.
You’re mine.
“Don’t scream.” I spoke in a stern voice in her ear as my cheek brushed against the cord of her neck.
Goosebumps fluttered across her skin, a mere second before she recognized my voice. I took her disbelief as an opportunity to pull her toward the wall and the safety of the shadows. At the end of street, a man hopped out of the SUV and ran toward us, stopping several feet away from us.
“Breathe, Caterina,” I whispered.
I stood still holding on to her until the man gave up his chase and returned to his SUV. As soon as the vehicle careened away from us, Caterina pushed against my body to free herself.
“Why are you following me?” She glared at me with her pretty eyes full of the usual contempt.
“You’re walking alone at night. Not very smart.” I pressed my lips together, the sense of control I had when she was in my arms was all but gone. “I stayed to make sure you were safe.”
“You’re the only dangerous beast I see.” She gestured to the dark street at large.
“You flatter me.” I smirked.
“I wasn’t…” She pushed a strand of hair away from her face, pursing her lips. “Why are you here to begin with? Don’t you have innocent people to torture somewhere? Puppies to kick?”
I chuckled. “Puppies?”
“Don’t follow me.” She turned on her heel and continued her way home as if a fucking asshole hadn’t just tried to grab her.
“If I hadn’t been here tonight, they would’ve taken you.” I fell into step next to her.
“You don’t even know they were here for me. Not everyone has a legion of enemies after them.” She shot me a glance.
“Then why did you run?” I asked.
“They spooked me. That’s all. Just leave.” She picked up the pace.
“No.” I let her get ahead a few steps.
During the ten-minute walk to her family’s brownstone, I considered telling her the truth. That she wasn’t staying home tonight. But I needed her father present. I needed him to be the one to say the words. Now that she was near, I felt capable of waiting a few more minutes.
“Go back to your ivory tower, Rex.” She called over her shoulder and rushed up the stoop to her place.
“I need to speak to your father.” I climbed the steps and leaned on her front door. “Would you fetch him for me?”
“Leave him alone. He’s sick.” Her eyes watered. “You’re killing him. Please stop.”
“I can’t stop.” I stepped into her circle and caged her with my body. “I won’t stop until his debt has been settled.”
“Rex, please.” She met my gaze.
In the dim light, her eyes looked golden. She had so much love for her father. This level of devotion was how I knew she would take her father’s place and come to live with me. Our parents had arranged our marriage over a decade ago. If she didn’t know this fact, it was because old man Alfera didn’t have the guts to tell his daughter what he’d done to get what he wanted.
“You’re the only one who can end this, Caterina.” I brushed her soft cheek with the back of my fingers.
“Bells.” Her father swung the door open. “Get inside.”
For her sake, I took a single step back and let her go. Caterina rushed inside, and Michael shut the door behind him. “She’s not ready. I told you that.”
“You look well.” I stuffed my hands in the pockets of my trousers. “Caterina is under the impression you’re at death’s door.”
“I need one more week. Please. I will pay my debt. I just need one more week.”
“No.” I stepped closer to him. “She’s coming home with me tonight.”
“Rex.”
I slow-blinked and turned around to face Caterina’s older brother. Once upon a time, Enzo and I were best friends. More than that, we were like brothers. But then tragedy hit in the form of Michael Alfera, and now he hated me, possibly more than his sister.
“Enzo.” I met his furious blue gaze.
“I’m here to remind you of the promise you made to my mother.” For all his anger, he kept his voice low. Unlike Caterina, Enzo couldn’t care less about his father. He was here for his little sister. He believed that keeping his father’s secret was for her own good. “You promised you wouldn’t force yourself on her.”
“I haven’t forgotten.” I said through gritted teeth. “The price for your father’s life is your sister. I have every right to take her. And you know that.”
Enzo’s jaw clenched as he glanced at his father. For his part, Michael was content to let his children fight his battles for him. With a quick nod, he retreated into his home like the coward he was.
“She needs time,” Enzo pleaded.
“My father is dead.” I descended the steps to be at Enzo’s level. “The king of the Society is gone. It’s my turn now. While Caterina remains here, the Society is at risk.”
“I know.” He swallowed, then his eyes darkened as if he’d seen the devil. “Of course you didn’t come alone. One damsel in distress, and the wolves descend.”
“My father sent me to watch over his interests.” Santino crossed his arms over his chest.
Santino was the oldest of the Buratti children and next in line to take over his father’s seat at the table. If his father wasn’t so stubborn and hadn’t made marriage a requirement for Santino’s ascension, Santino would be Don by now. As it were, Santino being Santino, he chose to dig in his heels rather than cave to his old man and vowed never to marry.
There was a time, not long ago, when I never would’ve believed that the three of us would become this—friends at opposite ends of a discord, with the five founding families of a century old secret society at the brink of war. All because one man couldn’t make the ultimate sacrifice.
“Enzo.” Santino spoke in his devil may care tone. “It’s fucking time. It’s his birthright.”
“You know that’s bullshit.” Enzo stepped closer. “But that aside, I’m only here to ask that he makes good on his promise to my mother.”
Fuck.
Yeah, in a moment of weakness, I did promise a dying woman I wouldn’t take her daughter by force, that when the time came, I would let Caterina choose. But I wasn’t about to let Caterina decide everyone’s future based on the lies her father told her. She needed to know the truth first. Even if that meant showing her the kind of monster her father was.
“Tell the old man he has one week to deliver Caterina to me,” I conceded.
“I will.” Enzo turned on his heel to leave.
“Enzo,” I called after him. When he faced me again, I continued. “It was good to see you, brother.”
He half nodded before his gaze darkened with pain. In the next beat, the SUV from before pulled up next to him. He climbed in and took off. So it was Enzo who had been following Caterina. He knew I was here.
I shifted my attention to Santino who had now been joined by our fourth friend, Donata. “You all knew I was in Dumbo?”
“Rex.” Donata left Santino’s side and threw her arms around me. “Aunt Vittoria told me you were making a move tonight. I thought the worst.” She hugged me tight. “The old man can’t be trusted. You know that. He’s dangerous.”
“We’re not in high school anymore, Donata.” I pulled away first. “The most dangerous monster in this city is me.”
“That doesn’t mean the Alferas won’t stab you in the back.” Donata pursed her lips. “I worry that your sick obsession for her blinds you to what’s in front of you.”
“She’s right, Rex.” Santino stepped closer. “You coming here alone was a stupid idea.”
“I’m not alone.” I gestured in the general direction of the small army hiding in the darkness.
“What happens now?” Donata hung from my arm. “How do you keep your promise to Anna Alfera and your dad?”
“Simple.” I met both their gazes. “Now we do it my way. Caterina will come to me of her own accord. She will accept the marriage contract and be my queen.”
“And if she doesn’t?” Santino raised an eyebrow.
“We all perish.”