Semua Bab Bound by His Desire: The Mafia King’s Mistress & Secret Heir: Bab 31 - Bab 40

The sky was painted in shades of orange and rose, the last threads of sunlight spilling across the grass. The laughter that had filled the yard all afternoon began to fade into softer tones—contented sighs, small chuckles, and the occasional tired giggle from Draco, who was visibly slowing down.The game had stretched longer than any of them expected. Even Nico, usually tireless in his teasing, had finally collapsed onto the lawn, one arm draped dramatically over his face.“I’m retiring from sports,” he muttered. “Tell the press I went out undefeated.”Lorenzo smirked from his seat on the porch steps. “You were beaten by a five-year-old.”Nico cracked open one eye. “Semantics.”Elena laughed quietly, her hand still wrapped around a lukewarm cup of coffee. The mug had gone untouched for nearly an hour, but she didn’t care. The sound of Draco’s laughter had been worth more than warmth.In the yard, Damien stood motionless for a moment, ball in hand, watching Draco as if memorizing every

The house had fallen into that strange, delicate quiet that followed laughter.A stillness too complete. Too careful.The empty wine glasses sat abandoned on the counter, candlelight flickering low, almost guttering out. Somewhere down the hall, a door clicked softly as the night settled in around them.Elena stood by the window, arms folded loosely, staring out into the darkness beyond the trees. The moonlight painted the forest silver, but even that light seemed subdued—muted beneath the weight of the night.Something felt wrong.She couldn’t explain it.Maybe it was the way the wind had shifted, whispering against the glass like a warning. Or maybe it was the quiet itself—the heavy, unnatural kind that didn’t bring peace but expectation.Her breath fogged faintly against the windowpane. “Do you ever feel,” she murmured, “like the quiet’s just… waiting for something to happen?”Lorenzo looked up from where he sat slouched in a chair, his expression unreadable. He toyed idly with the

The world outside was still half-asleep.Rain whispered against the windows, sliding down in silver ribbons that caught the first hesitant light of dawn. The air was cool and clean, scented faintly with pine and damp earth. Somewhere beyond the fog-draped hills, birds began to stir—but here, in the secluded safe house, everything felt suspended in time, caught between peace and unease.Damien sat at the worn oak table in the kitchen, shoulders slightly hunched, a mug of black coffee steaming between his hands. The dark liquid mirrored his reflection—a ghost of a man carved from silence and shadows. He hadn’t slept. He rarely did these days.The sleeves of his white shirt were rolled to the elbows, the fabric slightly creased. Scars—some faint, others pale and jagged—mapped his forearms, silent reminders of the years he’d spent bleeding for power, vengeance, and survival. The pistol resting beside the coffee wasn’t new either; its metallic gleam caught the soft light each time he moved

The hallway felt colder than it had moments ago.Elena leaned her back against the wall just outside Draco’s room, the wood pressing lightly between her shoulder blades. The faint hum of the safe house surrounded her—distant footsteps somewhere downstairs, a door opening and closing, the soft rattle of wind against the windows—but all of it sounded muffled, as if she were underwater.She closed her eyes.Her heart still hadn’t slowed from what she had just witnessed.Damien’s voice—low, steady, instinctively protective—echoed in her mind with cruel clarity.Always, kid.It wasn’t the promise itself that shattered her composure. It was how natural it had sounded. How effortless. How deeply it had come from a place he didn’t even realize existed.Her fingers curled slightly against her arms, nails pressing into the thin cotton of the borrowed shirt she still wore. His shirt. The scen

Elena tilted her head back, letting the stars fill her vision.They were sharper out here, away from city lights—cold pinpricks scattered across an endless dark. She used to make wishes on nights like this. Silly, half-hearted things she never expected the universe to answer. Safety. Love. A life that didn’t feel like borrowed time.Her breath fogged faintly as she spoke.“Do you ever wonder what life would be like,” she asked quietly, “if we weren’t in this world?”The question wasn’t sudden. It had been circling inside her all night, pressing against her ribs until it needed air.Beside her, Nico let out a low, almost amused chuckle. He lifted the cigarette back to his lips, took a slow drag, then exhaled deliberately. The smoke unraveled as it rose, thinning and disappearing into the sky like it had never existed at all.“I don’t let myself think about things I can’t have,” he said.Not bitter. Not defensive. Just… practiced.Elena nodded slowly, absorbing that. The words landed he