Semua Bab A Mafia’s Trillionaire for Christmas : Bab 71 - Bab 80

BEST/WORST TUESDAY EVER ~LAUREN’S POV~The elevator dinged, and I stepped out into the hallway, the buzz of the office hitting me like a wave. People were pretending to work, but everyone was distracted, phones half down, ears perked up. It wasn’t every day Rosette and Patrick caused a whole soap opera episode in the middle of a Tuesday.Vanessa spotted me the second I rounded the corner.“There you are,” she said, grabbing her coffee and standing up. “I just saw Rosette and Patrick storm past reception looking like they’d swallowed a beehive. What the hell happened?”I dropped into the chair at her desk. “It’s a long story.”“I’ve got time,” she grinned, sipping her drink. “Spill.”I gave her the highlights, Chloe grilling me, Rosette’s dramatic attempts at sabotage, Patrick being his usual condescending self, and Chloe completely flipping the script on them both.Vanessa blinked. “So... let me get this straight. You walked in there to probably get fired, and somehow walked out wit

DEVOTION.~ALEXANDRO’S POV~Lauren kicked off her shoes, “I still can’t believe you didn’t shoot him,” she said, pulling her hair out of its clip. “Or at least punch him.”I turned to her slowly. “Don’t tempt me. I’m still considering both.”She laughed softly, then walked past me into the kitchen like she’d always belonged here. I followed her, watching how comfortably she moved, how she opened the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water like this was hers.Maybe it was. Maybe that’s what scared me the most. “I want to take a shower,” she said, glancing back at me.“Use mine,” I replied. “You know where it is.”She disappeared down the hall, and I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. I poured myself a glass of whiskey and stared out the window, city lights twinkling like stars below.My mind was still racing. The stolen shipments. Ethan. Julian’s name stayed in the air like smoke I couldn’t shake off.Trouble was circling. And she, Lauren, was standing dead in the center of it

INTERVIEW GONE WRONG~LAUREN’S POV~I blinked, not once, but twice. This was a scandal okay, maybe the biggest.Julian Moretti Blackwood, another top dog in the business world and Castello's biggest rival. Alexandro would freak out if he ever found out.Julian stood behind Heather as if he belonged there, smirking, calm like he was enjoying whatever chaos was going on in my head.He was supposed to be trouble, at least that's what I was told and what I had read.The kind Alexandro did not talk about, except in threats or warnings….always followed by: “If you ever see him, you run”I never dare to ask why I should run, all I know is that I trust him.And now I was standing in a hotel hallway…and Julian was practically naked, wearing nothing but a low-hanging pair of sweatpants and danger-like second skin.My heart stuttered.Vanessa’s grip tightened around her notepad. “Nope,” she muttered under her breath. “Nope. We are not doing this.” Heather leaned her head back toward Julian, giv

SONG PLAY: “28” by Ruthie B (Dawn Lewis)THIN ICE ~LAUREN’S POV~“Can we talk?”I didn’t look up right away. I knew that voice. I could pick it out in a room full of demons. Patrick.Slowly, I lifted my gaze from my laptop, arching one brow with all the grace of a woman who used to care, but now only keeps receipts.Vanessa paused mid-flirt on her call, eyes darting between us with that ‘what-the-hell-is-this’ look. I ignored her.Instead, I flicked my gaze to Luca.He was already moving, jaw set, posture rigid, like he was seconds away from turning Patrick into a lesson. I gave a quick shake of my head.Stand down.But the men Alexandro assigns to me? Yeah. They don’t exactly stand down. They loom. With guns. And bone-melting cheekbones.Patrick raised both hands, surrender style. “I just want to talk, Lauren. That’s it.”I stood up, straightening my skirt and pretending like I hadn’t just fantasized about drop-kicking him into next week.“I hope it’s something worth hearing,” I sna

SONG PLAYED: “Who Do You Want” by Ex habit.THE MONSTER YOU MADE.~ALEXANDRO’S POV~I made my way to the bar like a man with all the time in the world and none of the patience.The crystal decanter waited, filled with the kind of aged scotch that bit like betrayal and soothed like a lover’s lie. My fingers wrapped around the neck of the bottle. I poured two glasses like I had a goddamn degree in it.Behind me, Mario sank into the couch with the dramatic flair of a man who survived everything but therapy. Julio stood by the door like a statue carved from loyalty and nightmares.“Drink?” I offered, holding up the bottle.Mario flashed me a smirk that said fuck it and leaned back like he owned the room. “Pour away, Prince of Pain.”I chuckled under my breath. The bastard was insufferable. Still, I liked him better than most people I did not fantasize about strangling.I walked over with the glasses and handed him one. “Here, asshole.”He took it, eyes twinkling with mischief. A cigar al