เข้าสู่ระบบ"You think Lorenzo will involve her?""Eventually. Isabella's been out of the loop since Dimitri broke the engagement, but she's still family. Still has access to information. And Lorenzo's going to need her soon, Antonio Valentino is positioning for something big, and the Russos will need every advantage." Dante turned back. "When that happens, when Isabella becomes useful to her father again, we'll be listening to every word.""And Dimitri? When do we move against him directly?""When we have leverage. Right now, he's fortified. Protected. Expecting us to come at him." Dante's eyes were hard. "But when he thinks the threat has passed, when he relaxes his guard, that's when we strike. Not at him. At everything around him. His operations. His people. His woman.""Eve Thorne.""Exactly. Dimitri Valentino's greatest weakness is that he loves someone who doesn't belong in our world. Someone soft. Vulnerable. Easy to hurt." Dante's smile was predatory. "And when I'm ready, when I've gathe
POV: DANTEDante sat in the study of his Naples villa, listening to his second-in-command deliver the weekly report.Luca Moretti....forty-two years old, ex-military, loyal to the Romano family for twenty years, stood at attention on the other side of the mahogany desk, tablet in hand."The New York surveillance shows no movement from Valentino," Luca said. "He's been at his penthouse for six days straight. Either he's injured worse than we thought, or he's planning something.""Both," Dante said, swirling the whiskey in his glass. "Dimitri Valentino doesn't stay still unless he has to. Which means he's healing. And while he heals, he's strategizing.""Do we move against him while he's vulnerable?""No. Too obvious. Too expected." Dante took a sip. "Dimitri's expecting retaliation. He's fortified his territory, tripled security on his woman, positioned soldiers everywhere. If we come at him head-on, we lose.""Then what's the play?""Patience. We wait for him to make the first move. T
But they had a plan.A good plan."I'll start implementation tonight," Mike said, standing. "Get surveillance in place, reach out to potential inside man, start tracking Romano movements in New York.""Good. And Mike...." Dimitri stood carefully. "Thank you. For coming. For helping with this.""You're my brother. Of course I'm helping." Mike paused at the door. "But Dimitri? Tell Eve. Soon. Before she finds out some other way. Because if she discovers you've been lying again after she gave you another chance....""I know. I will. Two weeks.""Two weeks," Mike agreed.Then he left.Dimitri sat back down, pulled out his phone, and composed a careful message to Enzo:Your intel was useful. I'm interested in maintaining that information exchange. My people in New York for your people in Italy. Mutually beneficial. Let me know.He hit send before he could second-guess it.Building an alliance with Enzo was risky.But fighting a war on two fronts...his father and the Romanos.....was riskier
"That's... actually impressive. And terrifying.""Exactly. Which means we're not dealing with a hot-headed revenge seeker. We're dealing with someone patient. Strategic. Someone who plans ten moves ahead."Mike studied the limited information on the screen. "What does Enzo think he'll do?""Find my weaknesses. Exploit them. Hit where it hurts most." Dimitri met Mike's eyes. "Which means Eve is a target."Mike's jaw tightened. "She doesn't know about this yet.""No. And I need to keep it that way." Dimitri saw Mike's expression shift. "I know what you're going to say.....""That you promised her no more secrets? That she made you swear to tell her about threats before they escalate? That lying to her again is going to blow up in your face?""All of that. Yes." Dimitri ran a hand through his hair, winced when the movement pulled his shoulder. "But Mike, if I tell her that a ghost mafia boss is planning to destroy me and might target her to do it, she's going to either panic or do someth
"Your sources talk too much.""Are you hurt or not?"Dimitri considered lying. Considered telling Enzo to mind his own business.But Enzo had called to check on him.That meant something."I'm fine," Dimitri said. "Two bullets. Both removed. I'm healing."Enzo exhaled...relief, maybe. "Does father know?""About the ambush?" Dimitri's jaw tightened. "I don't know. Maybe. It happened in his territory. Someone probably told him.""And he hasn't called?""No.""Then he doesn't know yet. Or if he does, he's deciding how to handle it." Enzo paused. "The fact that he hasn't reached out means you still have time to control the narrative. Tell him your version before someone else does.""Maybe I don't want to tell him at all.""Dimitri....""He doesn't need to know everything I do. I'm not a child reporting to my father anymore." Dimitri's voice was hard. "I handled the situation. The Romanos attacked me. I defended myself. End of story.""Except it's not the end. Not for the Romanos."Dimitri
POV: ENZOEnzo's phone rang at 11 AM Rome time.Unknown number. Encrypted.One of his intelligence contacts.He answered immediately. "Talk.""We have a situation." The voice on the other end was clipped, professional. Vitale, one of Enzo's best sources in Rome, a man who traded information for money and had ears everywhere. "Your brother was in Rome last week."Enzo went very still. "I know. Business trip.""Business that ended in fifteen dead Romanos in a Trastevere alley."Fuck."What happened?" Enzo asked, already knowing he wasn't going to like the answer."Dimitri was recruiting someone, we don't know who, that part's locked down tight. But the Romanos got wind of it. Salvatore Romano himself led an ambush. Fifteen men. They caught Dimitri and his team leaving a safe house.""And?""And all fifteen Romanos are dead. Sal included. Your brother put a bullet between his eyes before killing the rest." Vitale paused. "It was a massacre, Enzo. Bodies everywhere. Blood all over the cob
She had. She really had."When?" she asked. "When do you think... when would you want...?""To marry you?" He smiled. "When the six months are up. When you've had time to truly know what you're choosing. When there's no doubt in either of our minds that this is forever."Four and a half months.Fou
The arousal was shameful and involuntary and made absolutely no logical sense, and it was there regardless, coiled low in her stomach alongside the shock, the two things existing in completely contradictory parallel the way they had since the warehouse.She heard the shower run.She heard it stop.
POV: EVEThree days after Mike left, Eve had started to believe things might actually be okay.Not perfect. Not simple. But okay.Mike had stayed for dinner that first night....had eaten Dimitri's pasta in near silence, had answered Eve's careful questions about London in short sentences, had looke
POV: EVEShe'd moved to the living room by the time the afternoon light started going golden, tucking herself into the corner of the large grey sofa with a different contract....one she was actually managing to read this time and a second coffee that had gone cold twenty minutes ago.Dimitri was in







