•TALON•"She agrees to shopping together." Billie spoke. We were walking in the garden, waiting for Gianni and Kinley to return."I told you she would be easy to manipulate. She's just too busy trying to be nice." I shook my head at the thought."Did you have something to do with what happened to Luca?" She asked me with a raised brow.I smirked, "He was a problem, he was getting a little too cocky. He needed to be taken down a notch.""You could have killed him, Talon!""Well, if he doesn't take the warning, next time I will." I could see the look in her eyes. She was scared of me. I smiled, a rush of excitement running through my veins at the thought. A strong and powerful woman like Billie being scared of me excited me, it turned me on.I stepped forward, grabbing her wrist and pulling her closer to me, "What's wrong? Do I scare you?"She held my gaze, "No. I fear no man... It's more like disgust.""You're a terrible liar, Billie."She pulled her hand free from my grasp and pit s

•KINLEY•I was seated at the dinner table with Gianni and Talon. I wanted to speak to Gianni alone about Billie moving in, but it seemed Talon was trying to push the topic. It seemed to me that he was trying to create tension between the two of us."So, does Billie still want to move in?" He asked.Gianni sighed and shoved a forkful of sinner into his mouth."She does. I asked her to have a look at the cottage today. It might be a good fit for her." Gianni looked over at me, "You had her look at the cottage?"I nodded, "Yes. I figured that the cottage would be better than having her in the house with us."Gianni placed his fork down, "You want her to move in?""It would be easier if she was here for you to be part of the pregnancy and the child's life instead of going between places.""There will need to be rules in place so she doesn't think she can just take over." Gianni said.I rolled my eyes, "Gianni, come on. She's a human being carrying your child. How about we treat her as su

•KINLEY•I was feeling oddly needy tonight. Gianni was beside me in the VIP lounge of yet another club, speaking to large men in suits about all sorts of things that I would rather not have heard about.I was extremely bored and craving attention. Gianni kept a firm hand on my thigh, but the girls who had come in with the other men seemed to be having a great time. They were drinking and laughing together while they danced.And here I was, glued to Gianni's side. I finished my drink and leaned into Gianni, "I'm going to get another drink." He frowned at me, but I got up and walked out, knowing it would annoy him. I went over to the bar and ordered myself another drinking, turning to watch the rest of the club dancing to the music.A firm hand clamped down on my wrist and I turned into the face of Agent King."Get your hand off of me. Or so help me, I will make sure every mafia member in this club knows who you are."He smirked but let go of my wrist, "We need to talk, Kinley. I want

•KINLEY•Gianni was busy in his study with a meeting, the last before our week long trip to Italy, while I packed a few things for the trip. Billie sat beside the suitcase on the bed, chewing at her thumbnail. "Please stop worrying about me, I'm going to be fine. You go and enjoy yourself."I had voiced my concerns over leaving her alone a few times. Although Gianni had assured me that Luca would be back in time to watch over her, and this did ease my mind a bit, I was still concerned for obvious reasons."I know," I paused, "Billie, can I ask you a question?""Yes." Although she said yes, I could tell she was a bit hesitant."Has Talon done anything to you? I noticed you are a bit hostile when he is around."She sighed, "No. He's just a bit obsessed with you. And I find it weird. I thought he genuinely cared about you, but now I think it's a dangerous obsession he has."Her words worried me more than I cared to admit, "Do you think I n

•KINLEY•Walking back into the mansion after a week in Italy felt strange. Especially since I was now married to him.I had done a great job of avoiding all messages and phone calls while we were away, but today I would have no option but to face everyone.I knew Talon was going to be the worst, or so I had thought.When we walked in I was met with an older Italian woman sitting in the living room. Her make up was perfectly done and her gold jewelery stood out against her high necked emerald dress. Gianni's body language immediately became guarded."Tia Lola, what brings you here?"She pursed her lips and looked at me, "Is what I read in the papers true?""Yes. This is my wife, Kinley. Kinley, my loving aunt Lola." I didn't miss the sarcasm dripping off his voice. I wondered why he had previously told me that Giovanni was his only family.She pinched at the bridge of her nose, "How long have the two of you known each other?""That doesn't really matter. What is the nature of this vi