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75. A photo evidence

Author: Gladys Writes
last update Last Updated: 2025-06-26 22:56:48
Adrian’s POV

Leonardo stood by the window like a permanent fixture, hands clasped behind his back as though he were observing a painting, not a hospital room.

I didn’t say a word. I just stared out the opposite window, pretending to admire the gray sweep of the clouds over the city skyline. In truth, I was counting the seconds, listening to the machines beeping beside me, feeling the dull, dragging ache in my gut. I didn’t acknowledge him. Not even when he shifted his weight or cleared his throat. He had been here over an hour. Not once had he asked how I was.

Typical.

Finally, I glanced at him.

That was all it took.

“Are you now besties with Nikolai Volkov?” he asked with disdain.

I took in a slow breath, biting down the urge to answer with all the venom I had. Instead, I said-

“Thanks for checking up on me, Father. You can leave if you have nothing else to say.”

His eyes darkened, and for a second, his arm lifted just enough that I flinched. My body remembered far more than it sho
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  • Becoming the Forbidden Possession of the Mafia Boss   186

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    Adrian’s POVMy foot was killing me by the time Nikolai got back. I’d been pacing the study for an hour, ignoring the doctor’s orders about staying off it. The bandage felt too tight, my shoe pinched wrong, and every step sent sharp little reminders that I’d been shot less than two days ago.Diego had called thirty minutes earlier. “Boss wants you to know he’s on his way back. Says you need to talk about your wife.”Your wife. Like Isabelle was some stranger I’d picked up at a bar instead of someone I’d been married to for three years. Though honestly, sometimes it felt that way. We lived in the same house, shared the same last name, and were about to have a kid together. But we didn’t share a bed, didn’t share secrets, and definitely didn’t share the kind of intimacy that made a marriage real.The study door opened and Nikolai walked in looking like he’d aged five years in two hours. Whatever Leonardo had said to him wasn’t good news.“How’d it go?”“About as well as expected.” He d

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  • Becoming the Forbidden Possession of the Mafia Boss   181

    Nikolai’s POVThe call came through while I was reviewing security footage from last night. Adrian’s name lit up my screen, and I answered before the second ring.“Where are you?” I asked instead of hello.“Driving back.” His voice sounded flat, scraped clean of emotion. “The Moretti estate was a dead end. Literally.”I waited, letting the silence stretch until he was ready to fill it. The security monitors in front of me showed the estate’s perimeter, guards making their rounds like everything was normal. Like we hadn’t just covered up a murder less than twenty-four hours ago.“Derek showed up with a gun,” Adrian finally said. “Drunk off his ass, screaming about how I killed Francisco.”My hand tightened around the phone. “Did he shoot?”“Leonardo talked him down.” A pause, then a bitter laugh. “My father saved my life and still wouldn’t let me through the gates. Security protocols, apparently. I’m too much of a Mancini now to be trusted as a Moretti.”The pain in his voice made some

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