007: Broken Fire

ALESSANDRO’S POV

I strode down the dimly lit west wing corridor, my footsteps echoing against the marble like distant gunshots. The meeting with my capos had stretched well into the night, leaving a sour taste in my mouth that no amount of whiskey could wash away.

“Don, the evidence is clear, Valentino Rossi gave the order. Your father’s death was not an accident. It was a hit, planned and paid for,” Rocco’s voice kept ringing in my head, sharp and insistent.

The words burned like acid. Of course I had suspected that my father’s death wasn’t an accident like they made it look, but I never expected the Rossi family to have a hand in his death. My father had trusted the Rossi family once. That trust cost him his life. Now I would take everything from them in return starting from their two daughters.

Vaelina would become my wife, a shiny leash around her father’s neck. And Adriana? She would be my mistress, the perfect weapon to twist the knife deeper. Two daughters from the same enemy house, both under my roof and under my control. The symmetry satisfied the darkest part of me.

I had not planned to walk this way tonight. Business had kept me occupied, not her. Yet my feet carried me toward her suite anyway, pulled by a force I refused to name.

Raised voices drifted from around the corner. Vaelina’s tone sliced through the air, sweet poison wrapped in silk.

“Well, well, well,” she purred. “I almost didn’t recognize you. Five years ago you left this city wearing diamonds. Now look at you. Homeless, jobless and sleeping in my fiancée’s house.”

I stopped in the shadows, my shoulder against the cool wall, and listened. Let them tear into each other. I wanted to see what remained of the woman who once set my blood on fire.

Adriana’s reply came steadier than I expected, though I caught the slight tremble beneath it. “Five years, Vaelina. Five years and not a single word between us. And this is how you greet your older sister? With insults? At least show some respect.”

Vaelina laughed, that cold brittle sound I had grown used to. “Respect? You, the disgraced daughter of the Rossi family, dare speak to me about respect? Have you forgotten that Father disowned you? That automatically makes you an outsider to the Rossi family. I told you sis, you will always be beneath me.”

I shifted forward quietly and watched from the edge of the open doorway. Adriana stood just inside the room, her back straight but shoulders tense. Her damp hair still clung to her neck, and her dress outlined every curve. She looked exhausted, yet sparks flickered in those hazel eyes. Good. A completely broken toy held no interest.

“Father must have disowned me, but that does not take out the fact that I’m still the heir to the Rossi family,” Adriana shot back, her voice gaining strength. “Do not forget, dear little sister, that my mother is the founder of the Rossi family. Anyways, it’s no surprise that you still feel threatened by my presence. I see you’ve decided to chase after what was mine.”

“Shut your mouth you bitch,” Vaelina hissed. She stepped closer, her silk robe whispering around her legs. “You do not wield any power anymore. You are nothing but a used-up whore who—”

Her hand flew up fast, aiming straight for Adriana’s face.

I moved without thinking. My fingers locked around Vaelina’s wrist in a crushing grip. She gasped sharply, her eyes widening in shock. Adriana’s head snapped toward me, surprise flashing raw across her features.

“How dare you?” I growled low, tightening my hold until Vaelina winced in pain.

The anger pulsing through me had nothing to do with chivalry. It came from somewhere deeper. Why the hell was Adriana not fighting harder? Where was the woman who once challenged me at every turn?

Vaelina’s mouth opened and closed. “Alessandro, baby, she provoked me. I only came to say hello to my sister. I did not expect her to be so vile, throwing the past in my face like that. She started it. You saw how she spoke to me.”

I stared down at her without loosening my grip. Her pulse hammered under my fingers. “I saw everything, Vaelina. Let me make something very clear to you, no one touches Adriana Rosalina Rossi except me. The next time you raise your hands against her again, I will forget the arrangement I have with your father. Do you understand me?”

Her emerald eyes filled with tears, but jealousy burned hot behind them. She tried to twist free. I held tighter, letting the pain sink deep.

“Get out,” I ordered coldly. “Now.”

Vaelina yanked her wrist away the second I released her. She shot Adriana one last hateful glare, her lips pressed thin, then stormed down the hallway. Her heels clicked furiously against the marble until the sound disappeared around the corner.

Silence fell heavy between us. I stepped fully into the room and closed the door behind me with a soft click. Adriana backed up slowly. I followed, matching every step. She retreated until her back met the wall. I kept advancing until only inches separated us. The scent of rain still clung to her skin, mixed with something warmer and distinctly her. My blood heated despite every reason it should not.

“Where is your fighting spirit, Adriana?” I asked, my voice rough and low. I braced one hand against the wall beside her head, caging her in. “The woman I knew would have clawed Vaelina’s eyes out without hesitation. This version of you looks pathetic. Did Roman fuck the fire out of you, or did you do that to yourself the day you left me?”

She swallowed hard. Her gaze dropped to my mouth for a split second before she forced it back up. “I was trying to be respectful. To your fiancée.”

The word fiancée sounded like a curse on her tongue. It stirred something dark and possessive in my chest. I leaned in closer. Our bodies nearly touched. Her breath brushed warm against my jaw. Those full lips parted slightly, soft and inviting, exactly as they had been that last night five years ago when she took my dick in her mouth and gulped on it like there was no tomorrow. Turned out there was certainly no tomorrow.

Heat surged through my veins. I could pin her right here. Rip her dress apart and remind her exactly who owned her body now. Make her tremble and beg until the hatred between us burns into something else.

My head dipped lower. Her eyes fluttered half-closed. She leaned in too, just a fraction, anticipation rolling off her in waves. Her chest rose and fell faster. I could feel the heat radiating from her skin. My free hand hovered near her waist, fingers itching to grip her hips and pull her against me. For one dangerous heartbeat, the years melted away. I wanted to taste her again. I needed to know if those lips still felt the same, if she would still melt under my touch like she once had.

Then reality crashed back hard. This was the woman who had destroyed me. The daughter of the man who ordered my father’s death. I pulled back sharply, disgust curling my lip even as my body protested.

“Don’t flatter yourself, Adriana.” My voice came out cold enough to freeze blood. “I’d rather take a bullet to my dick than let myself kiss your lips.”

Her face crumpled. Pain flashed raw and deep in her hazel eyes, cutting through the desire that had been there only seconds before. I turned away before the sight could dig any deeper into my chest. I walked out without another word, shoulders tight and fists clenched at my sides.