Author’s Note & Chapter 1

Hi!!! Just wanted to pop in and say thank you for taking the time to read my work. This is the final book in my Unspoken Trilogy. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!!

Book 1 - Unspoken Promises

Book 2 - Unspoken Truths

Book 3 - Unspoken Desires

If you’re starting this novel without reading the previous books - you may get a little lost with all the characters and the fast paced events.

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Chapter 1

1 year later - Sareena & Sophia’s 20th Birthdays

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Damian

I pull up to the Morelli house a little before 6 p.m. It’s the first time I am getting to see the house that will be ours. Sareena’s and mine.

The house and this property, used to hold so many deadly secrets and horrors. Haunted by things I don’t like remembering.

Now, it’s something else entirely. It’s new, it’s different, and most importantly, it’s ours.

I kill the engine and sit there a second, just taking it all in.

The wreckage from the blast is all gone; removed, cleaned up. The house rebuilt from scratch. Sareena and Gino made sure nothing remained from the old place. Just clean lines, new walls, and something that gives us hope.

She’s kept me off the property for months. Strict orders from the boss. She wanted it to be a surprise. Gino’s men handled the structure. She picked out everything else: the furniture, the lighting, the little touches that make a house feel like a home. More than just wood and stone.

I step out of the car and fix my collar. Tonight’s only about two things: touring what she built for us, and celebrating her twentieth birthday.

It’s been a year and a half since we got back from Vegas. A year and a half since the chaos died and finally gave us room to breathe.

It’s been difficult, but worth it. She still has the occasional nightmares, and still sees her therapist weekly, but I’ll help her with anything she needs.

Sareena and I are solid again. We’re officially engaged and getting married right after she turns twenty-one. Still a year away.

Sometimes I lie awake beside her, staring at the ceiling while her body’s tucked against mine. I still can’t believe she’s really here and this isn’t just a dream. That she came back to me. That I get to be with her.

I’m working with Gino again, something I never thought I’d do. But this time, it’s different. No hidden favors. No debts. No secret contracts. Just something real. Something we’re building instead of tearing down.

Matthew’s been gone for months, tracking Svetlana Bocharov through Eastern Europe and Russia. It’s turned into his obsession.

She’s been leaving dangerous traps behind like breadcrumbs, but he keeps going. He still checks in every day like clockwork. Says he’s fine. But I still worry. He’s the closest thing I’ve got to a brother.

As I reach the front door, my chest tightens. It’s cracked open. I step inside slowly, my hand resting lightly on my gun. Moving slowly.

Then I smell it. Roses. She’s planning something.

There’s a trail of red rose petals leading down the hall. I follow it, already smiling. My body relaxing.

She’s in the dining room. Barefoot. Wearing a cute little white dress. Sitting on a blanket surrounded by flickering candles, and a picnic laid out in front of her.

She looks up and smiles. And just like that, the tension in my chest completely dissipates.

I stalk toward her, drop to my knees, and pull her into my arms. Our kiss is deep. Hungry, like we’ve both been holding back too long and don’t want to anymore.

She tastes like strawberries, vanilla and whatever this new life promises.

Without realizing, we’re on the floor, tangled up in each other. Her hands in my hair, and my body already reacting to the feel of her. She pulls me in, and I let her.

As always, she pulls back before things get too crazy. Still breathing hard but her eyes are lit up with something dangerous.

“I have something for you,” she says.

I raise an eyebrow. “Pretty sure you were giving me almost everything I have ever wanted.”

She stands and disappears into the hallway. I stay on the floor, trying not to think about the pain I’m feeling in my pants.

She comes back with a small box. I take it, looking up at her. “It’s your birthday, and I am getting the presents?”

I open it, and stop breathing. It’s her purity ring. The one she’s worn ever since her first communion. The one I used to trace with my fingers when I thought I’d never be enough to replace it.

“Sareena…” I say, but my throat’s tight.

She steps back, undoes the top button of her dress. Then the next and lets the whole thing fall to the ground.

“I want this,” she whispers. “I want you. Don’t make me wait any longer.” She says, standing in front of me wearing only her white G-string.

And just like that, the world goes quiet.

This isn’t just about sex. It’s about love, desire and need. About all the nights we thought we’d never get here. It’s about every promise we made and every fight we walked through to get to this moment.

I stand and lift her in my arms. Her legs wrap around me like it’s second nature.

“Where’s the bedroom?” I ask, my voice low and rough.

She kisses my jaw, her breath warm at my ear. “Our room,” she says. “I’ll show you.”

Sareena

Damian kicks the bedroom door open, and the soft glow of candlelight spills across his face.

He’s holding me in his arms, my legs wrapped tightly around his waist, my fingers tangled in his hair, as his mouth crashes into mine. Hungry and desperate.

The scent of melted wax and flame wraps around us like silk and smoke. He pauses just long enough to glance at the flickering light.

“You planned everything, didn’t you, baby?” he murmurs against my lips, voice thick with heat.

I smile against his mouth, pulling him closer. “Maybe.”

His lips are back on mine. Warm, insistent and devouring. His grip is firm, grounding me, and we’re both breathless from how fast it’s all happening. But God, I don’t want to slow down.

He takes a few more steps and presses me against the wall. His body grinds into mine, hard and deliberate. I feel him; thick and ready, right against my center.

He’s about to carry me to the bed, ready to lay me down, when my phone vibrates in my hand.

Shit. I’d completely forgotten. I’m on call tonight for the Clinic. No one usually calls after hours, but I keep the phone close just in case.

“Ignore it,” Damian growls, deepening the next kiss.

“I can’t, honey. It could be an emergency,” I say, reluctantly untangling myself from his embrace.

I glance down at the screen and laugh. “It’s Matthew,” I say, looking up at Damian’s flushed, frustrated face.

Before I can answer, Damian grabs the phone from my hand with a muttered curse, his jaw tight as he sets me down gently on the floor.

His hand lingers at my waist like he doesn’t want to let go, but he does. Slowly.

He presses the phone to his ear, voice sharp. “What the hell do you want, Matt?”

There’s a beat of silence. Damian’s expression shifts, the fire in his eyes cooling into something darker. More tense and alert.

“You’ve been calling for how long?” he mutters.

I step closer, watching his whole posture change. Shoulders squaring. Brows pulling low.

“What do you mean it involves both of them?” he growls, pacing away from me.

A knot tightens in my stomach. Them? Me and Sophia?

Damian’s hand curls around the phone like he’s barely keeping himself in check.

He listens, silent for a long stretch. His jaw keeps working, like he’s clenching back a dozen things he wants to say.

“Svetlana, the Bratva, and the Camorra?” he finally says, low and deadly. “That’s not a partnership, Matt. That’s a fucking nightmare.”

My breath catches. His next words come slower, heavier. “And you’re sure the girls are connected to this?”

A pause.

Then, “She left Lithuania four days ago? And she’s back here? Are you sure?”

Another pause.

“Fine. You do your part. I’ll do mine.”

He lowers the phone, but doesn’t hang up. Just presses it to his chest and exhales sharply, like he’s trying not to explode.

“What happened?” I ask quietly.

He finally looks at me, really looks at me and I see it in his eyes. The shift. The storm rolling in.

“You’re not safe,” he says. “Neither is Sophia.”

I blink. “What?”

“It’s Svetlana,” he cuts in. “She’s back. Matt’s been tracking her for months and just confirmed she just landed stateside. There’s a deal in motion between her, the Bratva, and a Camorra-linked trader. It’s big. He doesn’t know all the details yet, but it involves you and your sister.”

My heart stutters. “But… how?”

He shakes his head once, sharp. “We don’t know. Matt just found all the plans in their hideout. Everything abandoned when they had to run. Whatever the plan is, it’s already moving.”

He finally brings the phone back to his ear. “I’ll handle it. I’ll keep her safe.”

A pause.

“No. I’ll tell them. Even him.”

His eyes flicker with barely masked disgust, and I already know who “him” is. Matteo.