All Chapters of Claimed by the Italian Mafia King: Chapter 41 - Chapter 48

TESSA Even over lunch, my thoughts kept drifting back to Leonardo. His face, his body, his voice whenever he was being flirty and teasing me. He looked shut off from the world, like he had built a wall nobody could scale through around himself. One second he'd be looking at me like a desert he can't wait to have and the next he's walking out on me as if I was too insignificant, just like this morning. But sitting here with Alex, listening to his jokes and his flirtatious words felt easy. It didn't feel like I was walking on eggshells around him unlike a certain someone. Lunch with them was like a breath of fresh air. We ate while having fun and light conversations. This was my third encounter with the both of them but it felt like we knew each other from years back with how easy going the conversations were. “And that's how he ended up getting dumped by his first love,” Camilla said as she spilled the tea on Alex's first relationship. “Oh my God. That's terrible,” I said,

LEONARDO “Then tell me!” Tell me what it means! Because I’m losing my mind trying to figure you out—” “It’s not that simple,” I hissed, running my fingers through my hair, irritation bubbling up within me. I wanted her. For fuck’s sake I did! I wanted every inch of her, for every breath she took to be mine. I wanted to be her peace and solace, but in a world like this, it was beyond impossible. No matter how much I desired her, I couldn't afford to show any weakness. Like vipers, humans prey on weaknesses. People like me don't get to have hearts. The last thing I wanted was to bring my guard down, to be vulnerable around her. I'd sworn never to repeat my father's mistakes. Never to put trust on the line. If I let her in… she’d see everything. The blood, the scars, the rot underneath. She’d see the man who had to bury his emotions to survive. And if she saw that, she’d run. They always do. “Then make it simple! I deserve to know if we… if any of this even means anything to

TESSA It has been two unbearable weeks since I received the news that during the surgery, he went into a cardiac arrest and that landed him in a coma. Two weeks and the only proof that Leonardo was still alive came from a machine. Two weeks of listening to the steady beeping of the machine and praying it wouldn't be the last sound tying him to this world. I stared at his pale face, tubes connected to his mouth and my chest tightened so painfully I could barely breathe. It felt like someone had pierced a dagger through my heart and kept twisting. The doctors were not sure about the outcome of the surgery. Everything went well but suddenly towards the end there was a slight complication and since then he has been in this state. Not moving, not blinking, not even saying a word. Countless times I'd spoken to him, begging him to wake up, to come back to me but each time, I was met with silence. I held his cold palms in mine, raising them up to my cheeks as my vision blurred again.

TESSA I hummed softly, stirring as fingers brushed through my hair. My eyes blinked open, adjusting to the light. A dull ache shot through my neck from sleeping in such an awkward position, and I winced as I tried to lift my head. “Watching you sleep just became my favorite thing to do,” a deep, familiar voice murmured. I lifted my gaze to meet his. His eyes, those deep green eyes I thought I might never see open again, stared back at me. In that moment, every fear I’d carried for days washed out of my chest like someone had finally let me breathe again. “You’re awake…” I whispered, my voice catching as I wiped a tiny line of drool from the corner of my mouth. Heat rushed to my cheeks. “How—how are you feeling?” He tried to push himself up and immediately hissed in pain. “Easy,” I said quickly, placing my hand gently on his chest to stop him. “Don’t try to move yet.” Leonardo let out a low groan. “Hurts like hell,” he exhaled roughly. “How long…have I been out?” His brows kni