LOGINLeonardo
The door to my office burst open and in came my men, ready for my order. I had given them a clear instruction that if we were not done at a certain time, they should barge in. Olivia's jaw looked like it would drop to the floor while her old man paled on the chair. Either way, I would be getting what I wanted, I always did. I stood up and walked to the liquor cabinet and poured myself a strong drink. I looked at my watch, two minutes had passed and I was getting impatient. The girl needed to know who she was dealing with. "Little girl, I have no time to waste, make up your mind or this will be the last time you see him...alive." I didn't need to mince my words, if she was as clever as she looked, she knew I was not playing around. Many men have died for far lesser crimes. Olivia bit her lower lip and twisted her fingers together. She would make a perfect addition to the list of women that were currently at my disposal. I had been looking for something new, something fresh for a long time now, with the work I had to do running my businesses that covered most of the city, I had very little time to go women hunting. Although many would be willing to do just about anything as long as they would be associated with the De Luca name, no one had tickled my fancy in a very long time, none of the women had that fire I saw in Olivia. Olivia had just the right amount of fire and ice in her, I had almost given up on finding her type of breed until Henry, the man who was sitting next to her sweating bullets, dropped her on my lap. And, I was not about to let her go. Henry was a man given to many passions, but one of them was the reason my casino business was booming regardless of the recession that everyone was facing. Gambling, the game of chance. Olivia cleared her throat, about damn time. I gestured for the men to step outside the door. I was after all a gentleman, willing to give the girl some privacy. I was not a good man by any definition and I embraced that, but, chivalry was still a thing in my world. "Please go on, we don't have time to play about." I walked around to my desk and sat face-to-face with her. She only stared at me. "I don't have time for these games you seem to want to play, give me an answer, and we can end this today." I knew what I had given her was hardly a proposal, I wanted her body in exchange for what Henry owed me, but I gave her enough time to make her believe that she had a choice in the matter. "What about my father?" she asked, her voice rough for lack of use. "Henry will be safe if that is what you're worried about, as soon as you agree to our deal and my terms, he will leave this place unharmed." Henry seemed to look alive at the mention of his name. Bloody bastard, he only cared about saving his ass. I walked to my desk and opened the drawer, pulled out a file with a contract in it. "What's this?" she asked as soon I pushed the document to her. "It's everything we discussed when you were brought to me, that If you agree to be my pet for a year, then you and your father will be free," I said softly, already feeling my veins fill with desire. "What you told me." She murmured to herself. "But like any good arrangement to work, there are rules, and they are stipulated in this contract." She only stared at the document. This girl was either too dumb to know what her attitude was going to get her, or she just didn't care. But she cared about her father, and that was more than enough ammunition for me to use. "Damn it!" I hit my fist on the desk, and she jumped in shock. "I gave you a fucken whole week to think about this, my patience is wearing thin." I had stretched it as far as it would go. Only if she knew that it wasn't her who had been sitting at that chair, challenging me by not adhering to my timeline. She would be in a ditch somewhere, feeding the birds and worms. She pulled the document and paged through it with trembling fingers. Good. Now we were getting somewhere. "Enjoying yourself over there?" I asked, counting in my head. A trick my sister had taught me, but one that didn't work half of the time. "Is that why you locked me up like an animal in a stinking basement, so I can enjoy myself?" There was that fiery tongue. Not many people would be as bold to answer me back unless they were my mother or sister, but Olivia either of them. "Is that a yes or a no?" I asked, as much as I liked her untamed temper, there were other places where I knew her tongue would do an excellent service. "Why do you even need me to agree to this, it's not like you have a shortage of women around you." I heard the amusement in her voice, or was it a mockery? I couldn't tell the difference. "I think this will make you think faster." I dialed a number on my phone and one of my men picked it up on the first ring. "Come and take him away." The door opened and Vito went for Henry and grabbed him by the shoulders, as his pleas filled the office I got up from my chair. "Papa-" She tried to pull him, but Vito nudged her away and she fell back to her chair. "I think you have wasted enough of my time for today," I glanced at my watch. "Have a nice life." I walked around my desk, towards the door, but in an instant, she was standing between me and the door. Her face was a shade of red. "Yes," she whispered, and I felt my heart rate go up at that three-letter word. "Im afraid I didn't get that, You will have to speak louder than that," I said, although I had heard her perfectly. She cleared her throat and spoke again. "I said Yes I will do it." If looks could kill, I would have been dead on the floor but I had more important matters to deal with at the moment. "Then I'll place the call." I picked up my phone again and spoke to my men. This was just a game, I had better use for Henry, but she didn't need to know all that. Henry was probably downstairs shitting his pants while my men played bingo in the next room. When I replaced the receiver, I noticed that she was playing with her hands. "There is nothing to be nervous about, it's a win-win-win. But first, you need to sign this contract." She pulled the document and flipped through the pages without giving it much thought. "Where do I sign?" She asked. I loved it when a good plan came together. "Oh. Aren't we eager?" She gave me another fuck-you look, but I didn't care, she had agreed to be my pet and that was all I was going to focus on. I didn't build the most feared Mafia family business in the city by caring about how others looked at me.Olivia Cici finished his juice and placed the glass on the island. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a brother to annoy.""Try not to get yourself thrown out." "Please. I'm the only person in this house who can get away with annoying him." He disappeared through the kitchen door, leaving me alone with my thoughts. I wasn't sure what worried me more: Leonardo's sudden withdrawal from the world or the fact that everyone seemed to be tiptoeing around him as though he were made of glass. I understood that he was going through a difficult time, but Leonardo had never been a man who accepted defeat easily. He had built an empire from the ground up, made powerful enemies and brought some of the most dangerous men in the country to their knees. And now he couldn't even bring himself to look at a business report. I picked up the glass Cici had left behind and placed it in the sink before making my way upstairs
OliviaOne week passed since Leonardo was confined to a chair, even though his doctors were hopeful that the diagnosis was not permanent. But it didn't seem like Leonardo had taken it well.Before, during the few days after the accident, he had been all jolly and spoke freely about his shattered legs, but now it felt like the reality of his immobility had finally sunk in.Now, all he did was sit next to the window and look outside at the garden. He barely ate or said anything. The only time he seemed to come around was when CiCi came to talk to him. Other than that, he just stared into space."It's a beautiful day for a stroll outside," I said, and he turned his manual wheelchair and stared at me.His electric chair had come in a few days ago, top-of-the-range, made of titanium steel, and promised easy access and use, but Leonardo was still using the manual one, which had come in on the second day after the accident.The staring was unnerving, with the lost look he seemed to have thes
LeonardoThe push towards my mother's living room felt endless, with my mother trailing behind us.The suspense broke as the chair was wheeled into the living room. With my hand already inside the light blanket that Cici had draped on top of me, feeling for my gun. "Henry?" I said as soon as I saw the man seated on one of my mothers posh Chair.What the heck was this and how did my mother even know Henry enough for him to be sitting here.Henry stood up and his eyes darted towards my mother, who came from behind me and Cici, her hands twisted together."Boys, listen I can explain, it's not what this looks like." She said. I took my hand out from underneath the blanket because as far as I knew, Henry was not a threat but an interesting riddle. "What does it look like?" Cici asked as he moved from behind me and into the center of the room.I sat transfixed at the scene in front of me, and I was glad that Cici was taking over with the questioning as I didn't have the energy for it."B
Leonardo The door closed behind Olivia, and the room changed. CiCi stopped chewing. I watched the door for another second before looking back at him. “Close it properly.” I said He got up, pushed the door firmly shut, then returned to his chair. And for once, he didn’t make a joke. “What aren’t you telling me?” he asked. I leaned back on my pillows, studying him. “A lot.” He waited and I looked down at my legs. “Too much has happened in too short a time. Things that should connect don’t. People know things they shouldn’t know. And every answer I get seems to lead to another question.” CiCi’s expression lost its usual lightness. “What exactly happened brother?” I told him about Henry. About the visit. The things Henry had said. The things he had refused to say, and the way the pieces had started moving almost immediately afterwards. Then I told him about the attack. “And I asked Luther to find the person who had been following us from the airport.” Ci
OliviaThe mansion felt wrong without Leonardo in it. Although we were not on what I would call good terms but something felt off about his absence today. I was in the library trying to take my mind off things when Rosa appeared at the door.“Mrs. De Luca.” She said and I instantly looked up. There was something in her posture that I couldn't quiet figure out that made my heart to start beating fast.''What is it Rosa, speak." I said.“Mr. De Luca has been injured.” At the words I felt my whole being tremble. My chair scraped against the floor as I stood. “What happened?”“There was an attack on their way back from the airport.”“And, where is he now?” “In the East wing, they've made a makeshift hospital for him there-” Before she could finish her sentence, I was already reaching for my coat, ready to go out. Leonardo and I might have been at odds with each other but he was still my husband and legally so.Luther was waiting outside the bedroom door when I arrived in the east wing.
Leonardo The drive from the airport was quiet, with Luther behind the wheel, one hand resting loosely on the steering wheel while the other stayed near the gearshift. I sat in the passenger seat, staring through the window. Henry's words wouldn't leave me alone. 'She's innocent.' I hadn't believed that before I went to see him. But the fear in his eyes had told me something else. Someone had been watching Olivia, someone Henry was still afraid of. “Take the next turn,” I said. Luther nodded and a few seconds passed, then I noticed the black SUV behind us. It had been there since the highway. “Luther.” He glanced at the rearview mirror. “I see it.” “It's been following us.”“I know.” He didn't sound concerned and that was when another vehicle pulled out from a side road ahead. Luther's hand tightened around the steering wheel. “Hold on.” The first gunshot shattered the windshield, Luther swerved. Another burst of gunfire tore through the car. The vehicle behind us acce







