로그인Rafael I scanned through the files. Each file carried the name of every capo by its borders. The vibration of my phone in my pocket startled me. It was Alex. Bile rose to my throat, and my hands shook. My hand never shakes. I swiped right and held the phone to my ear. "We'll be at the manor shortly; don't make me wait. I have too much work, so be there." I didn't say a word as he hung up. Shit, shit, shit. I paced around the secret room, rubbing the back of my neck furiously. Fuck, fuck. Taking out my phone, I started taking pictures of all the documents and their contents. The sheets of paper on the table, every picture of everyone on the board, every writing on that board, and every face marked with an X. I slid back out and shut the door, the regulator light going red at the click. Just as I twisted the key and locked the Don's office, a voice rang through the house. "Where's Enzo?" He walked hastily into the house past me and into his office. "Not here yet," I sai
Rafael I sat gazing over documents like I'd been doing for the past three days. Except this time, I was barely grasping the numbers and letters that filled the papers. Three days I had worked, relying on only caffeine and sheer fucking luck. I shook my leg, waiting for the next round of complaints from my secretary. I found it quite surprising that just as the Don leaves for Nevada with his lackey, my company gets all kinds of complaints. The press release I made less than 12 hours ago on the position of the company in light of the leaking of highly confidential information still sat on my mind. The same information that caused the FBI to initiate a raid of the headquarters. It was a big blow to our reputation, and now investors were pulling out. A few were wise to hold on to us. We were suffering a loss. Great as it was, I didn't think it was something we wouldn't be able to come back from. There had been no other arbitrary complaints of leaked client information or any new with
ELENA I paced around in my room, tapping the marker over my left palm. My hand must have been numb from the endless tapping, because later, it felt weird when I held my fork to eat. I had called Rafael about an hour ago. I had shamelessly called him and yelled at him to come to the manor. What was I even thinking? I didn't even know where I got such guts from. I mean I was still upset with him, wasn't I? Who was I kidding? He wasn't going to come. Who was I to boss that macho man around? A knock came on my door. I swallowed hard, eyeing the doorknob. Taking a deep breath, I twisted the knob and as soon as the door opened, Rafael slid in. "What's wrong?" Concern was etched all over his face, his brows furrowed. He was slightly panting like he ran all the way here. Wasn't he upset that I had yelled at him? scratch that, strands of his hair were glued to the sweat on his forehead and he somehow looked hotter. He reached out to hold my hand. "I'm sorry for yelling a
ELENA I pulled the door open. The road to the kitchen couldn't have been more blocked. Closing it shut, barely avoiding the sound of the click, I breathed heavily against the door. On the other side of the door, across the room, the Don stood with a man. Talking. I saw the Don's face—how had he managed to look even older than he actually was? I peeled the door open an inch to look. The man he was talking to had his back to me, his shoulders broad and wide. He was quite tall. The back of his head was coated with strands of grey hair, some black at the ends. The Don started coughing violently and the other man patted him on his shoulders. Was that his brother? He seemed concerned. Oh, he killed his brother, damn. So who is that? After what seemed like a while, the Don hurried into his study. I stood perfectly still, watching from the sliver of space I had opened in my room door. If he caught me, I'd be dead meat. I was about to close my door when he came back out, this t
RAFAEL My heart seemed to stop beating in my chest. My mother? I turned around, staring at him. He was cool, detached even, like he had not dropped the most explosive bomb on me. How did he know my mom? I don't remember her. Why don't I remember her, and why does he? I finally found my voice. "What do you know about her?" The only hint of vulnerability in my voice. He caught on to it and I knew he would latch on to it. "Oh, a lot, but that's a story for another day." I balled my hands into fists. I didn't want to look interested. But I was. Giving him a weak spot to exploit was something I could not afford. "I've never seen a man that loved to bluff like you," I retorted in a breath. I had released my body from the stiff hold that his words had held me. "Oh, I don't bluff, boy, and you know it." He lifted himself to now face me. "And I couldn't care less." I stepped forward, invading every bit of his personal space. "If I knew the type of weapon you'd turn out to b
ELENA I watched him lock the door after chasing Celine. I was going to get back at her for this betrayal. "What do you want?" I asked, walking to my bed, unsure of what to say to him. My anger was still simmering slowly but I didn't want to throttle him anymore or hit him or cry and slap him and all the messy things I wanted to do. "I want you." He walked towards me slowly, like he was walking to a wounded animal, scared that it would run away. "I don't want you," I lied, just like the Don had lied to him, if I believed his story, emphasis on 'if'. "I don't think so." He was now in front of me. "You wouldn't know what I think." I scoffed as he squatted to my eye level. Damn, this man was tall. He let his hand graze my cheek as he pulled my flushed face back to look at him. "I do." His voice was low. "I know you, Elena." He breathed my name out like he was holding on to it for his dear life. His hand traced my cheek down to my neck, his face inching closer. I knew what he was
ElenaI tossed and turned in my bed. I had woken up since five a.m. and couldn't get any more sleep. At least a little bit of sleep before... A knock came on my door."Ughhhh, he's here again."I sluggishly opened the door to find him staring at me, already in his gym wear."Alright fine, I'm comin
Elena I sat quietly in the car, my eyes feeling heavy from waking up early. He had called me last night to tell me that I would be having lessons somewhere else. Had asked if I was comfortable staying in one house with him for a few days. I had agreed. After all, I felt the safest when I was aroun
ELENA "No way. Absolutely no way," I faltered, staring at the nameplate on the desk. "This is your company? But the CEO was always anonymous. And it's been you all this time?" My skin tingled with excitement, and I couldn't stop the smile that curved up my lips. "Yeah, I'm quite the humble boss,
ElenaA soft knock on my door pulled me from my reverie.I had been sitting in bed all day, had barely touched my breakfast, and my heart felt empty—numb.“Come in.” I knew it wasn’t the Don. Celine told me that he had gone on a trip this morning.So it either had to be her or Rafael. Besides, the







