Tempted By The Mafia Boss

CHAPTER THIRTY

Gabe

I wish I could put her on a plane and flee.

Flee.

Leave. Escape.

Hide. Hide her. Protect her from what I sense is coming.

No one could know the rage I felt roil through me when I heard what Tobias did.

I felt like a worse fool because I didn’t have enough guys on the lookout protecting her. I had three of my men who were keeping watch but low key enough so she wouldn’t suspect anything. I didn’t want to frighten her. they’d follow her when she went to work and anytime she was out with Cordelia. Neither of them saw Tobias because they were stationed too far away from the coffeehouse.

That motherfucker walked up to her at the coffeehouse and threatened her with his shit and there wasn’t a fucking thing anybody could do.

He did it because he can. He’s acting like every motherfucking Antonella that walks the face of the earth, doing things they want because they can.

Doing shit to people they want to shit on because they can.

I’ve run out of options and the only thing I can think to do that resembles fleeing is a break.

We can’t flee the way I want because it would be worse. In Chicago we’re on my playground. It’s like having things in one place where I have backup. Outside the city there’s no one, and even if there was, the guys outside know the Antonellas and would side with them before I could lure them away with a million dollars to keep their silence.

That is the situation and my realization. What grates me from the inside out is that I’m useless as fuck and helpless as shit until Tobias decides to make his move.

We don’t know where he lives or where he’s staying. We tried to trace the number he used to contact Charlotte but that came up with nothing. We are all useless until he decides when he wants us to start playing his little game.

What am I saying? We’re already playing. It’s like a fucked up version of the game and he’s instilling psychological fear in me.

Today I decided we needed a break. I’d go crazy at home or anywhere else, trying to figure shit out so I thought a trip to the countryside would do us some good.

Charlotte and I are driving in my car. We took the convertible because she likes it. The top’s down and her ponytail is flying in the wind. I’m wearing my shades. She looks content absorbing the scenery. I haven’t told her where we’re going yet. It was the place I was supposed to take her ten years ago after our birthday.

She looks to me and gives me a little smile. “Gabe where are you taking me?”

“You’ll see.” I smirk.

“Are we far? We’ve been driving for over an hour and now we’re in the countryside. I know we’re not running away because we packed light.”

I chuckle and pretend it’s funny. If only she knew how many times running away had crossed my mind. I’m sure it’s crossed her mind too.

“We’re going somewhere special. We’re about ten minutes away and we’ll be there overnight.”

She smiles at the sound of that. “That’s exciting. But I’m mad at you because you didn’t tell me to bring my overnight bag.”

“You won’t need it Goddess. We’ll be naked most of the time.”

She laughs and once again it sounds like pure happiness in abundance. You hear it and it makes you feel good, no matter what is happening. That’s charlotte to me and I will enjoy this day with her.

We have a few days before she has to give me her answer. I feel like I know what it will be but I give her this time without my influence or talking about it because I want her to come to her decision in her mind that she wants to be with me. That is the final part.

It’s so minor I guess in the grand scheme of things but important to me.

If I die I want to die knowing she was mine completely. That even though she belongs to me, she wanted to be with me, me the person I am and not anybody else.

I can change whatever she wants me to change but I can’t change who I am no matter what I do. I don’t want her to run from that.

Her excitement piques ten minutes later as the vineyard comes into view and then the beautiful manor home we’ll be staying at by the edge of the lake.

This is Stranton Manor. It belonged to my grandparents on my mother’s side and they left it to me.

I have a few staff who live here to maintain the house, the vineyard and the other parts of the grounds, but I’m rarely ever here.

I wanted to bring Charlotte here years ago because the place has that old European countryside feel to it that I knew she would like.

It reminds me of the poems she reads. They all have the same feel.

“Oh my God Gabe, where are we?” She gasps and looks me over with wide eyes as we park.

“My second home,” I answer.

Her mouth drops open. “What the hell are you saying to me? You live here?”

“This was where my grandparents on my mother’s side lived. They left it to me when they died because I spent the most time here with them.”

“You are so full of surprises. Holy hell Gabe it’s beautiful.” Her face brightens right up.

I get out of the car and open the door for her. She’s wearing jeans and a dark plaid shirt she’s tied up over a tank top. She looks like she could be eighteen again.

I guess though, that she’s a goddess and they have everything youthful and pure of beauty so I shouldn’t really be surprised she hasn’t changed much in ten years.

“You like it?” I look her over and she skips into my arms.

“I love it, can we look around? There’s a lake.”

“We can do whatever you want.” I raise her dainty hands and bring her knuckles up to my lips for a kiss.

“This is so nice. I absolutely love it.”

She throws her arms around me and I imagine us like this years from now. It’s not hard to see the future when you’re with a woman like this because she’s everything.

She always was.

She releases me with that smile on her face and I take her hand.

We haven’t brought many things but there’s a bag I need to put in the house.

The minute we go in, Rosa, my maid, starts fussing over Charlotte. She babbles on about how beautiful she is and asks me where I’ve been hiding her? Then she starts fussing over me, cursing me in Italian because she hasn’t seen me in donkey’s years and she thought God would come before I made my next visit.

By the time she finishes with me she has Charlotte laughing and all the other maids have come out to greet us.

It’s nice seeing them and this is the first time I’ve been here where the place has that homely feel my grandmother used to talk about.

I remember summers spent here with my grandfather who’d tell me his old war stories.

Ma tells me all the time that I look a lot like him.

Rosa makes a feast which we dive into after Charlotte and I explore the grounds.

By the time the sun starts setting, I fully believe that this is our life and we could be just like this forever.

Charlotte and I sit by the lake talking and she tells me about her plans for her class.

What I want to hear though is her reading a poem to me.

“You’re giving me that look again.” She smiles sweetly. She loosened her hair from the ponytail earlier so now it’s flowing in the wind.

“I just like looking at you.”

“I like looking at you too, but you look like you’re worrying.” Concern floods her eyes.

I don’t bother to tell her that I’m always worrying.

“I’m just trying to remember you reading poems to me, we should have brought a book.”

She laughs. “They’re here.” She taps her temple. “All my favorites are stored here.”

“Yeah?”

She nods and shuffles in my lap to face me. “All your favorites too. You love In Memoriam, same as me, because of the sentiment. Shall I read it to you?”

“I would love that.”

“Be near me when my light is low, when the blood creeps, and the nerves prick and tingle; and the heart is sick…” she smiles sweetly at me, rests her head on my chest and continues. She recites the whole thing and her voice is like music to me, balm on my tired soul, balm on the guilt I’ve carried for not being able to protect her when she needed me and now.

She lifts her head when she finishes and looks at me.

The sun has set and there’s a peacefulness that has settled between us, different to anything I’ve ever felt with anyone.

She stands up and reaches her hands out to me.

“Make love to me, Gabriel Giordano,” she whispers.

I stand and take her hands, feeling the warmth from her daintiness.

“Absolutely.” There is no other answer and I know exactly how to make love to her.

We’ve only done that once before and it was the very first time.

I pick her up and carry her inside, into the grand room where I’ll make her mine.

Our lips find each other and as my mouth covers hers it’s like I can’t get enough. I can’t get enough of her. But I tame the wildness down that wants to unleash my inner beast, so she can feel how much I love her.

I kiss the clothes off her and in seconds we lie naked on the bed, skin to skin with me buried deep inside her.

Our lips never drift far from each other. She runs her fingers through my hair and the caress makes me forget. I forget and I’m just with her. I block out everything that’s happening and make love to her.

And she does to me.

It’s pure bliss that I allow myself to savor. It’s goodness I’ve wanted and want forever.

It’s her.

Passion claims us and we climax together the way we normally do, but this time my skin is alive with heat flickering over and inside me.

She reaches for me and cups my face.

Her hair cascades down her elegant shoulders and she smiles down at me like the goddess she is.

“I love you Gabriel.” She breathes and something comes alive within me.

I haven’t heard those words in ten years.

Never thought I’d hear them again.

“I love you too.” I tell her. I mean it. I love her and I plan to do everything that means.

Including dying for her if that’s what I need to do to protect her.