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137

Penulis: Gladys Writes
last update Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-08-26 23:57:46

Adrian’s POV

I stared at Gabriel, certain I had misheard him.

“I’m sorry, what did you just say?”

Gabriel’s weathered face remained impassive, but there was something calculating in his dark eyes. The same eyes Isabelle had inherited, though hers held warmth where his held only cold ambition.

“You heard me correctly, Adrian. I’m naming you as my successor to lead the Mancini Group.”

The room felt like it was spinning. Leonardo sat in his leather chair, looking smug, as if this had been his plan all along. The police officers had left hours ago, their threat about Nikolai hanging in the air like smoke. Now this.

“But Gabriel,” I managed, my voice sounding strange to my own ears, “you have other nephews. Male heirs who have been in the business longer than-”

“None of them are marrying my daughter,” he cut me off smoothly. “None of them are about to give me a grandchild. And none of them have the particular… skills I believe you possess.”

I glanced at Nikolai, who stood near the window w
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  • Becoming the Forbidden Possession of the Mafia Boss   143

    Adrian’s POVThe hospital corridors felt endless as we walked through them. Isabelle hadn’t let go of my hand since we’d left the mansion, her fingers intertwined with mine in a grip that was equal parts excitement and nervousness.Gregory walked a few steps behind us, and I wonder if he would report to Nikolai. “Room 304,” Isabelle said, checking the number on the door as we approached. “This is it.”She paused for a moment, her free hand smoothing down her dress. I could see the mix of emotions playing across her face. Isabelle knocked softly before pushing open the door. The room was bright and clean, filled with afternoon sunlight streaming through large windows. And there, sitting up in the hospital bed with a radiant smile on her face, was our surrogate.She was younger than I’d expected, probably in her early twenties, with warm brown eyes and an infectious enthusiasm that immediately filled the room. When she saw us, her face lit up even more.“Mr. and Mrs. Mancini,” she s

  • Becoming the Forbidden Possession of the Mafia Boss   142

    Adrian’s POVI quietly stepped backwards, making sure not to make a sound. I was doomed today. Isabelle have cursed my day. I let my hips do the movement as I bent my head forward. I still couldn’t see properly. So I went back up and walked down the stairway as though I had just gotten up.I did that in other to find a good spot to watch them from. And I did. I watched from my position on the stairs as Nikolai’s entire body went rigid, his jaw tightening so hard I could see the muscle jumping beneath his skin. The casual mask he’d been wearing slipped for just a moment.“A date,” he repeated, his voice carefully neutral, but I knew him well enough to hear the edge beneath the calm.Isabelle didn’t seem to notice the sudden shift in atmosphere. She was practically glowing with excitement about our planned outing, completely oblivious to Nikolai’s brewing storm.“Yes,” she said brightly, adjusting the strap of her purse. “We’re going to spend the day together. Get to know each oth

  • Becoming the Forbidden Possession of the Mafia Boss   141

    Adrian’s POVTwo days had passed since my confession to Nikolai, and those three words still hung between us like an unfinished conversation. He hadn’t said them back,not yet, but the way he’d kissed me afterward, desperate and consuming, had been answer enough for now.I hadn’t seen Isabelle during those two days. She’d been making daily trips to the hospital, checking on the surrogate, monitoring the pregnancy that would soon bind us together as parents. While Isabelle was busy, Nikolai and I had managed to steal a few moments together, but he never said those words back, could it be that he wasn’t sure yet?….I was still in bed when I heard the soft knock on my bedroom door. The sound was tentative, almost apologetic, so different from Nikolai’s confident rap or the servants’ efficient tapping.“Come in,” I called, sitting up and running a hand through my disheveled hair.The door opened to reveal Isabelle, looking fresh and composed despite the early hour. She wore a simple crea

  • Becoming the Forbidden Possession of the Mafia Boss   140

    Adrian’s POVStanding in that bathroom, pressed against the cold wall, I listened to every word Isabelle said. Her voice carried through the air each sentence cutting deeper into the fragile peace Nikolai and I had built.“I think Adrian is seeing someone.”The words echoed in my head as I tried to process how she could have figured it out. I have been so careful. But somehow, Isabelle had sensed it.Part of me felt guilty for not being honest with her from the beginning. When she’d confessed she was a lesbian before our wedding, I should have told her I was gay too. We could have understood each other, could have built our arrangement on complete honesty instead of half-truths and careful omissions.But now, listening to the confusion and hurt in her voice, I realized my silence had created something worse than deception. It had created doubt.I pressed my ear closer to the door, straining to hear Nikolai’s response. His voice was carefully controlled, giving nothing away, but I cou

  • Becoming the Forbidden Possession of the Mafia Boss   139

    Nikolai’s POV“Don’t you suspect Adrian is cheating on me?” she asked again, her voice softer now but somehow more urgent.Of course I knew. I was living proof of it. But telling Isabelle that her husband was gay, that he was in love with her uncle, even though she and Adrian had an agreement, I still don’t think that it was my secret to reveal. Even though their arrangement was supposed to be clear, even though they both knew this wasn’t a real marriage, the truth would still shatter something in her.I forced a smile, “Why are you bothered if he is? Aren’t you two in agreement about how this marriage works?”The question hit its mark. Isabelle’s expression shifted, and suddenly I saw something I’d never seen before-genuine sadness. Her perfectly composed mask slipped, revealing the lonely young woman beneath all the charade.“I know we have our arrangement,” she said quietly, her voice barely above a whisper. “But why do I feel like he’s cheating on me?”The raw vulnerability in he

  • Becoming the Forbidden Possession of the Mafia Boss   138

    Nikolai’s POVI was halfway down the stairs when I heard the voices coming from the kitchen. Adrian’s voice, tight with anger, cut through the hollow night. Then Stacy’s voice, pleading, desperate. The words were muffled, but the emotion behind them was crystal clear.I stopped, my hand gripping the polished banister. I shouldn’t listen. This was between Adrian and his mother, a conversation years in the making. But something in Adrian’s tone made me pause, made my chest tighten with worry.“You ceased being my mother the moment you ran off and left me alone…”The raw pain in Adrian’s voice, the years of abandonment and betrayal packed into every syllable. I’d known about Stacy faking her death, about the way she’d abandoned Adrian when he needed her most. But hearing the aftermath of that betrayal, the way it had carved itself into Adrian’s soul, made my hands clench into fists.“You should have just remained dead.”The silence that followed was deafening. Even from my position on t

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