Chapter 3 The Mafia's bride

Chapter Three

Enzo

I can't get her out of my fucking head.

That confident woman with the smart mouth has been on my mind ever since she walked into my parking garage and started lecturing me like I was some criminal who needed to be taught a lesson.

Which, technically, I am.

But that's not the point.

The point is that nobody talks to me the way she did.

People lower their eyes when I walk into a room. Men who are twice her size and have killed for less than a favor from me think carefully before speaking out of turn. Even those who hate me know better than to stand in front of me and threaten to call the police.

Yet she had looked straight at me without backing down.

I should have been annoyed.

Instead, I'm curious.

Who the hell is she?

I stand in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows of my office, looking down at the city below. The streets are still busy despite the late hour, and the lights from the buildings stretch across the skyline.

Normally, looking at this view is enough to clear my head.

Tonight, it isn't working.

The office door opens behind me.

“Boss, here's the background check you asked me to run on the lady from the parking garage.”

Dante's voice pulls me from my thoughts and I turn away from the window.

He stands near my desk with a tablet in his hand, his usual calm expression in place.

I walk toward him and hold out my hand. “What did you find on her?”

Dante passes me the tablet.

“Her name is Alessia Bianchi. Twenty-six years old. Orphaned five years ago after both of her parents died in what was officially ruled an accident.”

I look at the photograph on the screen.

The picture doesn't quite capture the woman I met tonight. In this one, she's dressed in a sharp black suit with her long brown hair falling over one shoulder. Her brown eyes stare into the camera with the same confidence I remember, though the photograph doesn't show just how much attitude sits behind them.

I scroll down.

“She's a millionaire and the current CEO of Bianchi Logistics,” Dante continues. “She took over the company after her parents died and has managed to keep it profitable despite some serious problems within the company.”

“What kind of problems?”

“Her board.”

I look up.

Dante continues. “Several board members have been accused of misusing company funds and making decisions that benefit their own businesses. Alessia has been trying to remove them, but they've been fighting back. They've been quietly sabotaging some of her deals and are apparently working toward forcing her out.”

I glance back at the tablet.

Interesting.

“Anything else?”

“She's considered one of the youngest influential female CEOs in the city. She's unmarried, no children, no criminal record, no known connections to any rival syndicate.” He pauses. “She keeps a pretty clean profile.”

I almost smile. “Except for interrupting a Mafia interrogation.”

Dante's mouth twitches. “Except for that.”

I hand the tablet back to him and walk toward the window again, thinking about what Dante just told me.

It's interesting how similar our problems are.

My grandfather has spent the last year reminding me that being feared isn't the same as being capable of leading.

The old man is technically still the head of the syndicate, and according to him, I'm not ready to take his place.

According to him, I'm too reckless and too willing to make decisions without considering the consequences.

Never mind that most of those decisions he calls reckless have worked.

I've expanded our territory, dealt with threats before they became serious problems, and kept the syndicate running without giving him a reason to question my loyalty. None of that seems to matter to him.

He wants me married.

Apparently, having a wife will convince the older men in the syndicate that I'm capable of becoming responsible enough to lead.

It's ridiculous, but refusing him isn't as simple as saying no. If I want his full support when he eventually hands the syndicate over to me, I need to give him a reason to believe I can handle the position.

And now there's this darling, Alessia.

A wealthy CEO with a respectable name, a powerful company, and enough confidence to tell a Mafia Don that he doesn't scare her.

I lean against the edge of my desk.

Maybe I've been looking at this the wrong way.

The women I've met so far have either wanted my money, my name, or the protection that comes with both. Alessia already has money and a name of her own. She doesn't need me to make her important.

And after tonight, I doubt she'd have any interest in pretending to be impressed by me.

That could make her exactly what I need.

More importantly, I might be able to give her something she needs too.

My reputation alone could put an end to the board's little game.

I straighten and turn away from the window. “Dante.”

“Yes, Boss?”

“I need you to contact my lawyer for me.”

He raises an eyebrow. “For what?”

“I want him to prepare something.”

Dante studies me for a moment. “Are you going to sue her for interfering with your business?”

I almost laugh. “No.”

He waits for an explanation.

I take the tablet from him again and glance at Alessia's photograph. The woman who called me a criminal might hate the idea, but I already know she won't be able to ignore my offer.

“We're doing something quite different.”

Dante looks at me, clearly confused.

I sit down and lean back in my chair, already imagining the look on Alessia's face when I make her an offer she can't ignore.

“She walked into my world tonight without an invitation.” I pause, remembering those fearless brown eyes. “Now I'm going to invite her into it properly.”

Dante stares at me.

I set the tablet down and smile.

“Your Don has found his bride.”