Chapter 5 - The Offer of Steel
My jaw dropped. The air left my lungs entirely. "What... what did you just say?"
Alessandro didn't blink. He stood tall in the dimly lit bedroom, blood dripping slowly from the cut on his cheek onto his torn collar.
"You heard me," he said smoothly. "Taking you into my house was a tactical decision. But keeping you here—keeping you safe—requires legal and absolute authority. As long as you are Grace Miller, the widow of a gambling deadbeat, you are vulnerable to every court order, every corrupt cop, and every rival family looking for leverage."
He took a step toward me, his shadow enveloping me. "But as Grace Moretti? As my wife? You become untouchable. The entire global network of the Moretti organization will stand between you and any threat in this world."
I stared at him, my brain spinning out of control. "A marriage? Alessandro, we met eleven days ago! I clean your bathrooms! I don't belong in your world!"
"You threw yourself in front of a gun for your child today, Grace," Alessandro said softly, his dark eyes locking onto mine with hypnotic intensity. "You didn't run when the bullets started flying. You stayed. You protected what was yours. You belong in this world more than half the men who work for me."
"And what about us?" I whispered, my heart racing, feeling the magnetic, dangerous pull of his presence. "A fake marriage? A business transaction?"
Alessandro reached out, his warm, heavy hand coming up to rest gently against the side of my neck, his thumb tracing the rapid pulse beating beneath my skin.
"It will be legally binding," Alessandro murmured, his voice dropping into a low, sensual pitch that made shivering heat blossom in my stomach. "Publicly, you will be the queen of the Moretti family. Privately... we will build whatever you want us to be. But I promise you one thing, Grace: I will never force myself upon you. You will have your own rooms, your own security, and complete freedom."
"And Lily?" I choked out, looking at my daughter, who had crawled onto the plush velvet armchair, hugging her teddy bear.
"Lily will be my daughter in the eyes of the law," Alessandro declared fiercely. "She will have access to the best schools, the best doctors, and an empire to inherit if she chooses. No one will ever threaten her again. No one will ever make her feel scared."
I looked at this terrifying, powerful man. He offered safety in a world made of wolves. I had spent years being pushed around by life, abandoned by a coward of a husband, starving to pay rent, crying myself to sleep in a cold apartment.
And here was a king, offering me a throne to protect my child.
"What do I have to do?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
"Just say yes," Alessandro said gently.
Before I could answer, the door of the suite opened. Marco stepped inside, a heavy bandage wrapped around his thigh, leaning heavily on a wooden cane.
"Boss," Marco grunted. "The clean-up team is handling the mansion. But we secured the location of Dmitri Sokolov’s private estate in Long Island. He’s packing his bags to flee back to Moscow."
Alessandro slowly retracted his hand from my neck. The soft, gentle husband-to-be vanished, replaced instantly by the lethal crime lord.
"Prepare the strike team," Alessandro ordered Marco cold-bloodedly. "I’m going personally."
"Alessandro, wait!" I stepped forward, grabbing his forearm. My fingers dug into his muscular bicep. "It's dangerous! He just tried to kill you!"
Alessandro looked down at my hand on his arm, a subtle warmth flickering in his eyes. He raised his hand, gently resting his fingers over mine.
"I’ve survived thirty-eight years of men trying to kill me, Grace," he said quietly. "Sokolov made the mistake of bringing war to my home. Now, I bring hell to his."
He turned to Marco. "Ensure Grace and Lily are moved to the subterranean bunker until I return. If I am not back by sunrise... activate the emergency protocol and get them out of the country."
"Understood, boss," Marco nodded.
May you like
Alessandro looked at me one last time, his thumb brushing against my knuckles. "Wait for me, Grace. When I come back... give me your answer."
He turned and walked out into the blood-stained hallway, leaving me standing in the quiet room, holding my breath as the dark lord of New York rode out to war.
