Chapter 3 - The Offer I Couldn't Refuse
“You’re out of your mind,” I whispered, trying to jerk my chin away from his grip, though my limbs felt heavy and unresponsive under his gaze. “You don't own me. One night doesn't give you the right to track me down, break into my apartment, and—and interrogate me!”
Alessandro’s thumb traced my cheekbone, his touch agonizingly gentle for a man whose name made hardened criminals flee the state.
“One night created a consequence, Elizabeth,” he said, his voice dropping into a low, rumbling cadence that vibrated straight through my chest. He held up the test box slightly. “You thought you could disappear back into the shadows and carry my child alone? In a city where my family dictates the rules of gravity?”
“I wasn't going to carry it here,” I lied desperately, my voice shaking. “I was leaving. I have money saved. I’m going back to Ohio.”
A dark, dangerous smile touched the corners of his mouth—not a warm smile, but the look of a predator who had just watched his prey run into a dead end.
“Ohio,” he repeated smoothly. “A charming place. But unfortunately, your travel plans have just been canceled.”
Before I could dart past him toward the hallway, a heavy thud echoed from the front room of the apartment.
“Emma? Hey, Em, I left my keys—!”
Liam’s voice cut off abruptly.
My blood ran cold. Liam was back. He must have realized his keys were missing from the kitchen hook.
“Liam, no!” I gasped, shoving against Alessandro’s chest with all my might, but trying to move him was like pushing against a marble pillar.
Heavy boots approached the bathroom doorway. Liam appeared around the frame, his face flushed, holding a wrench he must have grabbed from his truck. When his eyes landed on Alessandro Vitali—the custom Italian suit, the heavy overcoat, the unmistakable aura of untouchable violence—Liam’s face drained of every drop of color.
“Get the hell away from her,” Liam snarled, stepping forward despite the clear imbalance of power, his grip tightening white-knuckled around the wrench. “I don't care who you are. Step away from her right now or I’ll cave your skull in.”
I held my breath, terrified that Alessandro’s bodyguards would swarm the hallway and put a bullet through Liam’s chest before he could take another step.
Instead, Alessandro didn't even flinch. He didn't raise his voice or reach for a weapon. He simply looked at Liam the way a lion looks at a stray dog barking at its heels—with mild, detached pity.
“Put the wrench down, son,” Alessandro said calmly. “Unless you want to spend the next twenty years digging limestone out of a quarry.”
“Liam, don't!” I cried out, stepping between them, my hands flat against Alessandro’s chest. The fabric of his shirt was warm, expensive, and terrifyingly solid. I looked up at him, panic overriding my fear. “Please. Leave him out of this. He’s my friend. He didn't know anything about... about any of this. If you hurt him, I swear to God I will find a way to end this pregnancy before I let you touch this child.”
The moment the words left my mouth, the temperature in the room plummeted.
Alessandro’s amber eyes flared with a sudden, savage intensity. His fingers clamped around my upper arms, lifting me slightly off the floor with effortless strength as he pulled me flush against his chest.
“Don't you ever say that again,” he snarled, his voice a lethal whisper that made Liam step back in horror. “That child is mine. You are mine. You think you can bargain with me using my own blood?”
“Alessandro, stop!” I sobbed, the sheer terror and exhaustion finally breaking my defenses. “You’re terrifying me!”
He froze.
The feral anger in his eyes flickered, replaced by a dark, conflicted storm. He looked down at my tear-stained face, his grip on my arms slackening until his hands were just holding me steady.
May you like
“Pack your things,” Alessandro commanded, his voice tight and controlled once more. He turned his gaze toward Liam, who was trembling with a mixture of rage and sheer helplessness. “And you—pack a bag for her too, or watch her walk out of here into a cage from which she will never return. A car is waiting downstairs. We have thirty minutes before my patience runs out.”
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