All Chapters of Forbidden Never Felt This Good: Chapter 121 - Chapter 130

0121 ~ Joan ~ As I sat down in my brother's office, the suffocating silence of the room wrapped around my throat like a tight coil. I leaned my head back against the leather chair, my hands trembling as the sheer gravity of my actions finally settled into my chest. I realized how badly I had fucked up."What were you thinking, Joan?!" Théo roared, slamming his palms onto the mahogany desk with a force that made the crystal decanters rattle. The veins on his neck were bulging, his dark eyes burning with an unhinged, violent rage I had rarely seen in him before. "Blasting a bomb?! At Vittorio's event?! Do you want to get us killed?! What if you were caught?!"I opened my mouth to speak, to defend myself, but he paced around the desk like a caged predator, completely cutting me off before a single sound could leave my lips."I took you there with a plan!" he shouted, his voice echoing off the high stone walls of his private study. "The entire plan was for you to enter, stir up trouble,

0123 ~ Luca ~ She looked tense. The sudden shift in her posture, the sharp way her breath caught in her throat, I could see the walls going back up behind her dark, beautiful eyes.I wanted to use that exact moment to tell her the truth. To confess to her. To tell her everything about Joan, about the scheming, and about Isabella, my sweet four-year-old daughter hiding in the shadows of my past. I didn't know what the outcome would be, whether it would shatter her trust or tear us apart, but I knew in my soul that the truth was better than a lie.Yet, looking at her flushed, peaceful face, I hesitated. It felt like I was actively disturbing her peace. Vittorio had sent her to Quincy for a reason, to heal, to escape the blood and smoke of the mafia, and to gain her spark again. Dropping a massive, life-altering bomb on her right now would destroy every ounce of serenity she had reclaimed over the last six days.I swallowed the heavy truth back down into my chest and changed the topic

0125 ~ Luca ~ The quietness and warmth of the kitchen was a stark contrast to the cold, calculating world I belonged to.The warmth especially.I sat on a wooden stool by the counter, holding the mug of warm milk Mrs. Santoro had pressed into my hands. "It will help with your cough," she had said with a gentle, knowing smirk.I offered her a soft, appreciative smile and took a quiet sip. "Thank you, ma'am."Truthfully, I was always a bit awkward around her. I didn't know how to act in the presence of a mother. I had spent my entire life around gunfire, tactical maps, and lethal men; I had never experienced a mother’s touch.The only two women who held any real place in my heart were Aria and my little girl, Isabella. Being cared for by a woman who had no idea how many men I had buried felt strange, almost surreal.Mrs. Santoro leaned against the edge of the island, wrapping her hands around her own teacup. She looked at me with those soft, intelligent eyes, eyes that carried the exac

0127 ~ Aria ~ Exhaustion won the battle the second the private jet leveled out above the clouds.After Luca and I spoke for a bit, my eyelids grew impossibly heavy, the emotional rollercoaster of the past week finally catching up to me. I curled up into the seat by the window, and surrendered to a deep, dreamless sleep.By the time the plane’s landing gear touched down on the tarmac with a soft rumble, I blinked open my eyes to see Luca already fully ready, standing beside my seat with a gentle, watchful look.We stepped down the air stairs into the cool evening air, where Marco was already waiting beside a convoy of heavily tinted black SUVs, surrounded by a tight tactical security detail.Marco gave me a respectful, small nod before stepping up to Luca, exchanging a sharp fist bump and a quiet, low-voiced update. We slid into the plush leather back seat of the lead SUV, the doors closing with a heavy, armored thud.I leaned my head against the headrest, expecting the familiar turn

0129 ~ Luca ~ She was about to speak, her eyes wide with panic as she stared up at me, but I already knew. Marco had filled me in a bit while we were talking last night. Vittorio had been going around arranging dinners and meeting up with Pierre’s family, and I had expected as much."What is it, baby?" I asked softly, my voice calm and grounded despite the dark edge that usually lingered in my tone. "Is it about the arrangement?"Aria blinked, taken aback."I got to know about it earlier," I admitted, reaching down to gently pry the heavy card from her fingers and setting it on the nightstand. "But I didn't want to bring it up or discuss it while we were at Quincy. I knew you were having a swell time at your mother’s, and you needed that peace. Listen, Aria, I know this might feel like a lot right now, but—"She didn't let me finish. She cut me off completely, her hands coming up to grip the lapels of my shirt, her eyes flashing with an uncompromising, fierce determination."I know w