Chapter: Chapter 103Five Years LaterIvy“Again!” I shouted as I paced around the group training in hand-to-hand combat. I couldn’t even help the smile that crossed my face as I took in the groups, made of both men and women, as they threw punches, and kicks, and fought to take their partners down.“They look good,” my dad said, stopping me from continuing my pacing. “I think you’re possibly the best Capo we’ve ever had.”I shook my head. There was no way that was possible. He had been amazing and everyone knew that. I work hard to be half as great as he was. “I had a great teacher,” I tell him, bumping his shoulder with mine. “Aren't you supposed to be leaving for Italy?”“Heading to the airport,” he nodded, “wanted to say goodbye and remind you to…”“Call you if I need anything,” I finished for him. He always said the same thing. Even five years after I became Capo, I was still his little girl. “The only thing I need is for you and Mom to enjoy your trip and tell Aunt Lidia that I said hi and send her
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2023-12-18
Chapter: Chapter 102IvyI watched Max walk out of my office door and then looked at Cristo. Did he really believe that Max was going to go kill people like my Uncle Dom? That his loyalty would ever waver? I had truly thought Orland was a complete moron giving out his whole plan and what not to Max and Nico, but his cousin here, was proving to be equally or maybe even more stupid.“You won’t get away with this,” I said then rolled my eyes and my cliche words. Max better hurry up and get me out of here away from this guy, his stupidity might be rubbing off on me.Cristo chuckles with a shake of his head as he stocks toward me. “You think I haven’t thought this all the way through?” No, I don’t, but I don’t say that I just stare at him. “Wow! You don’t think that I know that deep down that husband of yours won’t do whatever he has to in order to save you? Or is it that you don’t believe he loves you?” I continue to stare at him as he rubs a finger over his chin. I know it’s important to just keep him distra
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2023-12-04
Chapter: Chapter 101Max“That’s it for me today,” I told Giuseppe, the guy I was helping today. I had spent the last two months helping the men that Dominico said needed more training.“It’s only eleven,” Giuseppe looked at his watch.I nod as I pack up my rifle, “My wife finally has time for a small vacation. We are heading out in a few hours. I’ll be gone until Monday. Dominico will be around if you need anything, but I told him everyone should just get an extra day off this week.” I picked up my gun case and headed for the door.“Have fun,” he hollered after me. I raised my hand and waved but didn’t slow down. I’m on my way to take my wife on a fucking honeymoon. I thought the day would never come.As soon as I pulled up to our house though, I know something is wrong. Ivy said she would be outside with our bags so we could go straight to the plane and be gone. Our bags are where they’re supposed to be. Ivy isn’t.Getting out of the car and walking to the door, I take in what I see. The front door is o
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2023-11-30
Chapter: Chapter 100IvyI woke up with Max’s heavy arm over me. I wasn’t uncomfortable though. If anything, it was the most comfortable I had ever been. I moved a little, slowly, trying not to wake him up, but get closer to him at the same time. I knew that I should get up. I had work to do, but I didn’t want the moment to end.Married. We were married and I was busy. He had been hurt and I had focused on him. But since he had felt better, I had been focused on only work. I was a horrible wife. I smiled and thought about all the things I’d let him do to me the night before. Okay, maybe I wasn’t that horrible.“You’re thinking pretty hard over there,” Max’s voice made me jump a little. He chuckled and I swatted at his arm that lay across me. He moved, sitting up against the headboard. He brought me with him and my head went to his bare chest. All of him was bare. All of me was bare. “What’s wrong?” He kissed the top of my head.I shook me head and peered up at him through my lashes. “Nothing.”“Don’t lie
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2023-11-17
Chapter: Chapter 99MaxFor the second time today, Ivy has made me hard with her leadership. I never would have guessed that something like a woman… My woman… being in charge would make me so fucking horny. I hadn’t felt that way since I was a teenager. Ivy was the one to help me out then too.The problem right now though is that she is on a mission. She has been on the phone calling everyone she can think of to set up meetings and get things in order for when these women are ready to start training. She thinks the idea is a great one. Honestly, I do too. I love that she is able to defend herself even though I plan on her never having to actually do that.“Sorry, Max,” she said as she hung up her phone. She had taken over her father’s office and I couldn’t even say that I hated the way she looked behind the desk. “Are you feeling okay? Do you need to lay down? I lost my head earlier letting you lift me and…”I hold my hand up and lean as far forward as I can in the chair I’ve been sitting in since we cam
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2023-11-06
Chapter: Chapter 98IvyMax slammed my back into our bedroom door. My legs wrapped around his waist and my arms around his neck made it so that he couldn’t see a damn thing. That and our tongues battling each other for dominance.“Door,” he pulled away from me just long enough to groan the word. I reached behind me searching for the handle. “Hurry up. Your dad will probably try to kill me if he catches us like this.”“Don’t want that,” I said before biting his lip. He chuckled as he readjusted me in his arms. I finally found the handle as his hands found my ass and squeezed tight making me squeal.“Shh, Wife.” Max growled as he walked into the room and kicked the door shut. I raised an eyebrow when it slammed making much more noise than I had. “Yeah. Yeah,” he threw me on the bed.I bounced, laughed and smiling wide up at him. I looked over all of him. His perfect chiseled jaw, his perfect tanned skin, his perfect blue eyes. Okay, he was perfect. He was also going to give me the best looking kids ever. H
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2023-10-26
The Chosen Bride
When Isabella Romano's flawless younger sister calls off her engagement just days before the wedding, the Romano family is thrown into chaos. But there's a twist: the groom, the powerful and enigmatic Aristide Moretti, isn’t heartbroken—in fact, he's relieved.
To save their families’ reputation and the alliance between them, Isabella steps in as the new bride. Shy, bookish, and always in the shadow of her sister’s beauty, Isabella has secretly loved Aristide for years. She never imagined she'd be the one walking down the aisle to him.
What she doesn’t know is that Aristide has always preferred Isabella. He sees her kindness, her strength, and her quiet fire—and he’s more than ready to claim her as his own.
But can Isabella believe she’s truly wanted? Or will insecurities, secrets, and her sister changing her mind, threaten their chance at happiness?
A heartwarming, slow-burn romance about love in unexpected places, second choices that turn out to be first picks, and the courage it takes to believe you’re worthy of being loved.
Baca
Chapter: Chapter 100BellaSunlight spilled over the Hudson Valley estate, gilding the perfectly manicured lawns and the flower-laden aisle that led to the small, elegant ceremony we had gathered for today. The air smelled faintly of jasmine and roses, drifting through the open windows of the main hall where we’d spent so many sleepless nights planning, fighting, and surviving. I stood near the entrance, Viviana tucked snugly in my arms, her dark eyes blinking sleepily at the commotion. She was eight months old now—curious, strong, and impossibly beautiful, her tiny fingers curling around mine.The last year had been surreal. Every day since the end of Chiper’s war, since we had finally closed the chapter on that endless darkness, had felt like a gift we were learning to unwrap carefully. The estate had changed hands in a way it never had before. Aristide and I had moved into the main part of the house, the one that had once belonged to his father, Matteo, and to Elena. Elena and Enzo now lived in Aristid
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-22
Chapter: Chapter 99AristideThe island rose out of the mist like a jagged crown, dark and silent. My boots hit the gravel dock with a quiet thud, but my mind was already elsewhere, calculating, predicting. Every step was precise, every command measured. This was the last time. I could feel it in my bones.Enzo was beside me, eyes scanning the shadows of the warehouse that loomed ahead. “Only a few of his men here,” he murmured. “The rest—gone, scattered.”I nodded. That made sense. Cipher had fled from the last confrontation. He wasn’t stupid; he knew when he was outmatched. But arrogance and fear made him dangerous. Even with fewer men, we couldn’t underestimate him.Marco’s hand brushed against mine briefly—a silent acknowledgment. The three of us moved forward, weapons ready, the moonlight casting long, jagged shadows across the dock.The warehouse doors were closed, but the boards had been kicked in, signs of recent movement. I could smell it: dust, smoke, and the faint metallic tang of blood.“Stay
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-22
Chapter: Chapter 98AristideThe damp corridor air clung to my skin as the metal door sealed shut behind us, locking away what remained of that cramped safe room—Bella’s fear, Elena’s steadiness, the exhaustion etched into all their faces. The relief of having Bella back in my arms was still fresh and raw, like a wound that hadn’t finished bleeding. But the moment had already passed. I couldn’t afford to hold onto it.Not yet.“Move,” I said quietly to the men. My voice came out harder than I intended, but nobody challenged it. Boots shuffled on uneven stone as we climbed the narrow steps leading up into the alley behind the safehouse.Enzo kept glancing over his shoulder toward Elena. I caught the look—half worry, half something else he wasn’t bothering to hide right now. She caught him staring and shot him a glare sharp enough to carve glass. It should’ve made me smile.Instead, all I could think about was Cipher’s face when he realized he’d been misinformed. The flicker of confusion. The drop of his s
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-22
Chapter: Chapter 97BellaThe world blurred into movement and adrenaline.Elena didn’t waste a second the moment we slipped out of Cipher’s collapsing perimeter. She dragged me down a narrow corridor, her grip iron around my wrist, her eyes sharp and calculating even as the floor shook with distant explosions.“This way,” she hissed.I didn’t ask. There wasn’t time.We hit the exit door shoulder-first, bursting into the sharp, cold night air. The docks stretched out in a maze of shadows and rusted rails. Water slapped against wood. Voices shouted in the distance—Cipher’s men scattering, regrouping, hunting.My heart thundered so hard it made my stomach twist. The baby squirmed, sensing my fear.“Elena—where—”“Quiet.” She pressed two fingers to her lips, then pointed. “We go down.”Down?But I trusted her, and trust was the only currency that mattered right now.We slipped between two massive shipping crates, then crouched beside a drainage grate. Elena hooked her fingers under its rusted edge and pulled
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-18
Chapter: Chapter 96AristideFor a split second, Cipher froze.Not a full-body stillness—just a micro-hesitation. A blink too slow. A breath caught where it didn’t belong.But for a man like him, who choreographed every word, every smirk, every false note of confidence, even that fraction of a pause was enough.He’d been misinformed.And he had just realized it.“My men assured me—” he tried again, tone sharpening.“I know what they assured you,” I cut in. “But your assurances don’t match reality.”The last of his smile bled away.There it was.Panic, raw and thin and pulsing under his skin like a fever.He tried, with pathetic determination, to collect himself. Straightened his jacket. Re-squared his shoulders. A leader repositioning himself on a crumbling throne.“You think you caught me off balance?” Cipher said. “You haven’t. My network is bigger than you ever imagined.”“I don’t need to imagine,” I answered. “I’m dismantling it.”Enzo stepped slightly forward behind me, silent, steadying.Marco adju
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-18
Chapter: Chapter 95AristideThe highway blurred past us like a smear of wet charcoal, rainwater still streaming in little rivers along the asphalt. My grip on the wheel tightened with every mile. The comms had gone dark ten minutes ago—no feed, no chatter, no confirmation from the teams or from Elena.Nothing.Blind.And I hated blind more than anything.Enzo sat beside me, watching the road with a tension I recognized too well. He kept his voice level, controlled. “They’ll be fine.”I didn’t answer.“Aristide,” he said again, sharper. “Elena is with her. There’s no safer place for Bella to be. You know that.”My jaw clenched. “I know Elena can handle a firefight. I know Bella can too. But we have no eyes, no ears—”“That doesn’t mean something happened,” he interrupted. “It only means the signal’s down. We knew Cipher would jam us if we got close.”I inhaled through my nose, trying to force logic into place, but the image in my mind—Bella somewhere in the dark, pregnant, exposed—kept burning through re
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-18
Masuk
