LOGINThey were in Donna Marta's study room. The tension in there was scary, mostly coming from Rico. Calla held her breath, waiting for someone to say something. Anyone.Rico stood near the center of the room, his expression was unreadable. He refused to sit. Calla remained a few steps away, she stayed quiet and still, sensing this was not a moment to interrupt.Rico had agreed to speak with his mother, only if Calla was with him. A warm smile appeared on her face when he asked her. She didn't hesitate, knowing he needed her for support.He might be strong and fearless to those outside, but he's still very much human. Someone who feels physical and emotional pain.Donna Marta sat in her chair, one hand resting on the armrest, the other clutching her shawl tightly around her shoulders. For once, the woman who always carried herself with confidence looked smaller.“Why?” Rico was the first to speak. The single word cut through the room.Donna Marta lifted her eyes slowly. “Why what?”Rico h
Rico watched as his mother placed food into his plate. Not once, but many times, she had a wide smile on her face as she did."I know how much you love creamy Spaghetti alla Carbonara. So I had the chef make it for you," Donna Marta said, twirling the fork into the bowl of spaghetti, and putting it into his plate.She didn't look at Rico. Didn't sense the shift in his expression. All that mattered to her at that moment was making sure Rico was cared for. Had her attention."You were such a glutton when you were much younger," she continued, adding more spaghetti into the plate, laughing lightly. "We had to hire Nonna Luisa when you were a teenager to cook a meal specially for you."Rico's jaw hardened more, his shoulder tensing. He didn't know his fist was clenched tightly, until he felt a soft hand over his.His gaze pulled away from his plate, blinking multiple times as they dropped to the Calla's hands on his fist. He paused, then turned to her.Calla had a look so soft it slowly m
Calla had said those three words. Hearing it come out of her mouth felt strange in a good way though.She held her breath, watching Rico to see his reaction.Rico just stared at her. Like he was holding onto the words carefully, afraid they might disappear if he blinked wrong.Then the corner of his mouth lifted slightly, something lighter passing through his tired expression.For a moment, nothing else happened. Not because there was nothing to say, but because neither of them rushed to fill the silence.Calla raised her hand after long minutes of staring at each other, her fingers brushed lightly through his hair again, more absent this time, like she didn’t even notice she was doing it anymore.“Are you tired?” she asked softly.“Mm," he murmured."Then you should sleep." She attempted to stand up from his lap, but he held her firm.“I’d rather stare at you," he uttered with a teasing smile.“You’re concussed,” she muttered, rolling her eyes, but there was no real firmness in it an
Once they were inside their room, Calla closed the door behind her and suddenly threw her arms around him. This time, it was tighter, filled with all the pent-up emotions she had been holding back downstairs.He sucked in a deep breath at the impact, but he still held her.She quickly pulled away when she heard him groan in pain.Her eyes moved over his face, taking in the split lip, the blood near his brow, the bruises already darkening his skin. Then her gaze dropped to his shoulder, where his shirt was torn and blood still slipped slowly from the wound.She gasped and stepped back to give him space.But he clearly didn’t like that. A low growl rumbled in his chest as he reached for her, trying to pull her back into his arms.She stayed where she was. "You’re hurt,” she said, shaking her head as she caught his hand. “I’ll have someone call for a doctor—”Rico immediately caught her by her waist before she could leave. “I didn’t complain when you hugged me downstairs, did I?” he said
Calla paced around the living room, gnawing on her fingernails, her other hand resting on her waist. Her nerves were off the roof."Still nothing?" She asked Donna Marta, who was on her phone.It was already midnight, and they knew this was the coronation night. As women weren't allowed in, Donna Marta has been trying to get the latest updates on the ceremony. Consigliere Dario purposely chose not to attend. According to him, he would never partake in such a gathering of lies, disguised as their Quintara tradition.Donna Marta had no other option but to seek information from other council members who still supported her. And right now, the only one who was responding had suddenly stopped. The last message he sent didn't make any sense. It was as if he typed it with trembling hands, the letters jumbled and uneven."We really need to get some sleep," Sophia said, legs folded as she sat on the couch, watching Calla through half-lidded eyes."No!" Calla said almost immediately, startli
The sound from the gunshot filled the wide hall, bouncing off the walls, echoing loudly.The moment Rico saw the movement, his eyes sharpened. He moved fast, dropping low and shifting behind one of the heavy chairs as the bullet tore past where his chest had been a second earlier.That single gunshot shattered whatever order remained, and the hall exploded into chaos.Marco’s men opened fire at once.Ezio reacted instantly, grabbing the nearest table and flipping it onto its side with a violent shove. Plates and bottles crashed everywhere as he dropped behind it for cover.Bullets slammed into the wood. Ezio leaned out and returned fire, his face hard and focused.Bruno fired from near the side entrance, taking down one guard before the man even finished raising his rifle.Valentina rolled behind a pillar, then calmly aimed and shot one of Marco’s captains in the shoulder, sending him crashing backward into a table.Costa charged through the smoke and confusion like a bull, firing twi
Calla eased gently onto the bed, careful not to disturb Rico who looked like he was deep in sleep. His breathing was even and his lashes stayed flat underneath his eyes.He had fucked and left her brutally sore and drained. She didn't know what came over him in the shower. One minute, he was soft a
“And because I sleep better when I hold you,” he added. Calla’s breath hitched.For a second, she thought she’d imagined it, that her mind was playing tricks on her. But no, he’d said it.Her lips parted, yet no words came out. Her chest tightened, her heart thudding painfully against her ribs. She
Maybe she heard wrong. Perhaps the hangover from last night had fried her brain. Maybe she drank too much with Luxe at the bar, and now she was hearing things. Maybe she’d passed out somewhere, and this was just one of those twisted dreams her mind liked to play on her.Yeah, that had to be it.A n
The drive to the port was quiet. The only sounds were the low hum of the engine and the ticking of Rico’s watch. His jaw was tight the whole ride. The call had been short and sharp—another shipment hit. The first happened weeks ago when he was with Calla. He got that call and had to leave.This bei







