All Chapters of Half a Lifetime Later—My Mafia Princess is Finally Mine: Chapter 191 - Chapter 200

Alessia ─ ∘❉∘ ─ The dining room felt less like a family gathering and more like a summit between three nuclear powers. The air was so thick with testosterone and ego that I felt like I could barely breathe, but I didn't care. I was glowing. The kids had finally been whisked away to the nursery, it was a difficult mission that involved Cristiano trying to ride one of the household staff like a horse, and now, the adults—if I can call them that—were left to face each other. At the head of the table sat Rino, and I sat right beside him, my hand resting on his thigh under the table. I could feel the corded muscle of his leg vibrating with tension, I was basically acting as his human blood pressure cuff. Across from us, the table wasn't just set for lunch, it was split down the middle like a front-line battle trench. On the left, the Capones. Vincenzo looked bored, but his fingers were tapping a slow, rhythmic beat on the wood that sounded like a countdown. Adriano was leaning

Rino ─𖤝─ I sat behind my desk, leaning back in my chair. I had one hand resting on the desk, right next to a heavy crystal ashtray, and the other was out of sight, leveled under the table. Across from me sat Mannino and he was breathing too fast. His three guys were lined up behind him, hands hovering near their jackets, eyes darting around the room like cornered rats. My men, Remo and a few of my best shooters were leaning against the bookshelves. "The numbers don't add up, Rino," Mannino said, as he tossed a folder onto my desk, "My guys moved the product. We took the risk at the docks. Forty percent isn't enough." I didn't touch the folder. I didn't even look at it. I just kept my eyes locked on his until he started to fidget. "Forty percent was the deal we made three months ago," I said, "The deal you shook on. The deal that kept your family from going under when the feds were breathing down your neck." "Things change," one of Mannino’s guys snapped, stepping for

Alessia ─ ∘❉∘ ─ I walked back into the main hall, my legs feeling a little heavy. I found my seat next to Rino and sat down. I felt a warm, strong hand slide over mine. I didn't even have to look to know it was Rino. He squeezed my fingers, his thumb rubbing over my knuckles in that way that always calmed me down. I leaned my head against his shoulder, letting his strength soak into me. Salvatore was standing at the altar. He looked like a man who had finally found a reason to breathe. But standing right next to him were his six sons. They looked like a wall of dark shadows. All of them were dressed in black suits, their faces hard and cold. They weren't smiling. They looked pissed, like they were at a funeral instead of a wedding. They stood there, their eyes locked on the floor or the back of the room. It was clear they didn't want to be there. Usually, the sight of those six angry men would have worried me, but with Rino holding me, I felt like I could handle anything. I

Rino ─𖤝─ I stepped out and walked around the hood, my eyes locked on her. I didn't need to look at the building to know where we were, I’d seen this skyscraper in my dreams and my regrets for two decades years. Alessia stepped out of the car, her heels clicking on the concrete, and for a second, she looked like that eighteen-year-old girl again. Then she looked up. I watched the color drain from her face. Her eyes widened, reflecting the glow of the lobby, and she took an involuntary step back until she hit the side of the car. She recognized it. Every floor, every window, every mistake we’d made up there. I closed the distance between us, towering over her until she was trapped between the cold matte metal of the car and the heat of my body. "What?" I asked. "I haven't been here since—" She stopped, her throat working as she swallowed hard. She couldn't even finish the sentence. I nodded, watching the way her pulse jumped in her neck. "I know. But things are differen

Alessia ─ ∘❉∘ ─ The smell of the hospital room was making me sick, bleach, latex, and that sharp, metallic scent of blood. Every time the monitor spiked with a loud beep-beep-beep, my own heart jumped into my throat. I was standing just beside the edge of the bed, gripping Claire’s hand so hard I thought our bones might fuse together. She was a mess. Her hair was matted to her forehead with sweat, and her face was a shade of purple I didn’t know humans could turn. "I'm going to kill him," Claire hissed, her voice cracking as another contraction hit. Her fingers dug into my palm like talons. "Alessia, I swear to God, I am going to find Vincenzo and I am going to castrate him with a dull knife!" "Just breathe, Claire. Deep breaths," I whispered, but my own voice was shaking. I looked down at Claire’s stomach, then down at my own. I watched the way Claire’s muscles rippled under her skin, the way her body was literally tearing itself apart to let this life out. A wave of dizziness