Dangerously In Love: Mafia In Love Series, Book One

by Christine Black

  "Who's blowing up your phone, Ria?" She questioned. I looked at it and his name popped up: Niko. Now was not a good time. "Is that the guy from the party?" She whispered.

  "Yes." I whispered coldly.

  "Why are you ignoring him?"

  "I'll tell you when we get back." As I said that we pulled into the parking garage. We got back to the condo and father was there when we walked in the door. He was sitting on the couch in an all black suit. He stood up and turned around as we approached him.

  "Girls, go upstairs to the library or something." My father spoke quietly but it was an order. Anna didn't listen but instead she ran to father and he picked her up. She hugged him tightly and kissed his cheek.

  "Mama would want us happy. She's not hurting. I loves you papa." He hugged her tightly and held her close.

  "Go with Maria and Isabelle, piccolo amore." He kissed her hair and set her on the ground. She ran over to me and we walked upstairs to the library as father ordered. I locked the door behind us.

  "Now, what did you need to tell me?" Belle put a hand on her hip as she sat on the couch. I sat next to her as Anna went to her little book corner and started to read.

  "Niko and I had sex." I whispered.

  "What? You waited a month and half to tell me that?!" She tried to keep her voice down. Anna shushed her and we chuckled.

  "That's not all..." I trailed off.

  "Tell me everything!"

  "That wasn't just any party. Did you know that the Demitry Elana is seeing is Demitry Romanov?"

  "No!" She gasped.

  "Niko is a nickname. His full name is Nikolay Alexander Romanov. I slept with the Russian mafia boss, Belle." Her eyes got big.

  "Are you kidding me? You're lying. You couldn't have!"

  "There's more..."

  "You haven't been seeing him in secret have you?" She grabbed my wrists.

  "No. It's worse than that."

  "What could be worse than that? Marco found out that you slept with someone?"

  "No..."

  "Then what is it, Ria?!" She started to freak out.

  I lowered my head as tears formed in my eyes, "I'm pregnant with his child."

  Belle gripped my wrists tightly, "You are royally screwed, Ria. What if Marco finds out? What if your father finds out? Ria, you have to get rid of the baby or get Marco to sleep with you and then tell him you're pregnant with his kid. Those are your only choices." My phone started buzzing. I looked at the screen, it was a text from Paolo.

  Paolo: Your father found out who killed your mother. There was a leak of intel from our side. He said that it's someone close to him.

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  Later that night, we had a small ceremony at the main estate with the immediate family. Our priest officiated the service and we placed mama's urn in her library above the fireplace. Her urn was gold with black inscriptions etched around the top with flowers etched in around the middle and bottom. Her favorite flowers...lilies and roses.

  We had a meal as a family. My grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, my siblings, my father, and I all sat around a large table in the dining room as the maids and butlers served food. We had all of mama's favorites. Caprese Salad, followed by Minestrone, for the main course we had Chicken alla Boscaiola, and for dessert we had Panna Cotta with chocolate almond biscotti.

  We finished the meal and I escaped to mama's library with Belle and Paolo. I hadn't played the violin since mama had gotten sick. My father stopped me as I closed the door, "Where is Marco, Maria?"

  "I asked him earlier and all I got was what he told Paolo. He got called away for club checks and family business."

  "What're you talking about? I didn't send him any business. I told him that he needed to be with you. Where is he?"

  "I don't know father. When you find him tell him not to bother speaking to me until he learns respect for our family." He looked at me shocked.

  "You have your mother's strength."

  "I got my ferocity from my father. He taught me that family comes first above everything." I half smiled at him and he pulled me into his arms.

  "I love you, Maria Anna. No matter what, mia figlia forte." He kissed my forehead and smiled.

  "I'm going to start playing the violin again, would you like to listen?" I offered quietly, not trying to push our moment away.

  "I'd like to, figlia, but I'm going to track down Marco and make sure he understands that this has been his last strike against you and the family. If it happens again then I'll kill him myself." He winked at me and smiled. I gave him another quick hug and went into the library, shutting the door.

  I smiled and walked over to where my mama kept her violin and picked it up. I began to play the first song she ever taught me...Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto.

  Chapter Ten

  Nikolay

  I paced around my office waiting for Demitry. He was supposed to have confirmed that the woman was dead and found. I knew she was dead because I was the one that shot her but I still needed confirmation of her identity. I was more of an act now and ask questions later kind of guy. Sometimes that was my greatest fault. My mother burst into my office. "Tell me that you didn't kill her!" She screamed at me.

  "You know I'm not going to discuss business with you, mother." I remained calm. I got that from my father.

  "Tell me that you didn't put a bullet between the eyes of the Italian boss' wife!" She continued to scream.

  "No, I didn't kill his wife." I would have lost Maria forever and that would ruin me. Demitry came in and saw our mother. "Was it done correctly?" I asked him. I saw him fidget. This was bad.

  "The intel we received was incorrect, Niko. Whoever the person was that gave the intel to us either set us up or intended on starting an even bigger war."

  "Are you telling me...that I..." I sat in my chair and my head started to spin. Maria was going to find out. I was going to lose her forever.

  "You killed the wife of the Italian boss. Even though it was bad intel you still killed her, Nikolay." My mother started to cry. I was now the biggest target for the Italians. They would retaliate and it would be devastating.

  "Leave me. Both of you." They got up and quietly left my office. I locked the door behind them and threw the glass of water that was sitting on the corner of my desk at the wall. The glass shattered and I fell to the floor. I ruined everything. I should have checked before I even shot her.

  I couldn't imagine the pain she was going through right now. The way she was must have been the product of her mother. If she had been raised by her father she wouldn't have been the sweet and beautiful angel that I knew. I sat there like that for another couple of minutes and found myself silently crying. I couldn't stand the pain that I had to have inflicted on Maria, unwillingly.

  I got up and walked out of my office and to my room. Demitry was standing in front of my door. "We're going out tonight. I need something to get my mind off of what I've done. Call Elana and she can be your date."

  "What about Ria?" He should have known better but he asked anyway.

  I turned, faced him, and grabbed him by the throat. "I don't owe her anything. We fucked once. She had made it perfectly clear that she has a life and intends to live it. She made her choice. I've made mine. No woman will ever sit by my side unless she can make me forget who I am and what I've done." I released him and he looked at me terrified.

  "You have become our father, brother."

  I ignored his snide comment. "You and I are going out. Invite your men." I walked into my room and sat on the bed. I had to get Maria out of my head. I was going to go out and dance with beautiful women and drink. I was going to forget that I ever thought of being able to have a future with her. I was going to forget her. It was time I returned to my reputation.

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  We got to the club and we went into the VIP room. There were some absolutely gorgeous girls working tonight. I spotted Demitry with E
lana. She was glaring at me. I guess Demitry told her about me wanting to forget Maria. I walked towards them.

  "Elana." Demitry looked sad.

  "She doesn't deserve what you're doing." She walked away from both of us.

  "Maria is a Italian. I can't be with her. She's made it clear what her choice is. I'm going to make my own choice. I'm not going to pine after her or want her. She's an Italian. There is no more Maria and I. There never will be." I stared at Demitry and he walked away after Elana.

  I ordered four or five shots of tequila and drank them all one after the other. I was feeling buzzed and decided to find a pretty girl to make mine for the night.

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  I had been dancing with different women all night. One little thing in the back of my head was continuously nagging me as I looked at these women. The purpose of tonight was to forget her. The only damn thing I could think about was how each of these women weren't her! I ordered four more shots of tequila and downed them quickly. I pulled out my phone and called Maria. She didn't have a choice. I was going to tell her that I want her. I want her to mine in every way.

  It rang twice and went to voicemail. I called her again, same outcome. I dialed it five or six more times and each time it went to voicemail. I dialed one last time and she finally answered.

  "Do you realize what time it is, you idiot!" She yelled at me.

  "I...I'm ss-sorry." My words slurred together.

  "Are you drunk calling me?! Are you serious?!" She was pissed.

  "I..need you...Riaaaaa. I do...don't want any..one..b-b-but you." I tried to not slur and that didn't work out very well.

  "Elana said you were at the club. Go home. Sleep it off. We really need to talk tomorrow. I don't want you hungover when I have this conversation with you. Please do this for me." Her voice was so innocent and sad.

  "I'll go home...now, promise." I wanted to go home and for her to be there. I wanted to go home to her.

  "I don't want anything to happen to you, Niko. Have Demitry take you home, please. Elana says the two of you have been acting depressed all day. I don't want you to hurt yourself or pick a fight with someone. Elana said she would let me know when Demitry got you home so don't worry about texting or calling when you get home. Get some sleep, drink some orange juice in the morning and take some Advil. Call me when you wake up. If I don't answer, I'll call you back." She sounded so very sad and disappointed.

  "I will, Ria." I hung up after a few moments of silence and went to find Demitry. Did she know? Is that why she wanted to talk to me? To tell me that she hates me? Or was it something else entirely?

  Chapter Eleven

  Maria

  It had been a long night after Niko called me. I knew that he wouldn't have called me unless he had been as drunk as he was. He didn't want to be with me. He was lying to himself. Elana had been texting me all night about everything. She was really worried about Demitry as well as Niko. She hadn't said why they were upset and honestly it wasn't any of my business. Niko was his own person and I had no control over him or his actions.

  I had fallen asleep on the couch and woke up as Anna had crawled into my arms a couple hours after Niko had called. Anna fell right to sleep and it was nice to know that I would always have this sweet girl to tell stories of our mama to. I felt a few tears escape my eyes and I quickly wiped them off. I saw Paolo come through the living room and he sat at my feet.

  "You'll be an amazing mother, Ria." He whispered.

  "I'm sure I'll make mistakes a lot of the time." I laughed softly.

  "But Belle and I will be right here to help you and so will your father." He started to rub my feet. It's like he knew that something was going to hurt before it even did.

  "Famiglia is forever, I know. I'm so worried about Father." I sighed and kissed Anna's head softly.

  "He's an amazingly strong man, amore. As long as he has you, Anna, and your brothers, he'll be fine." Paolo smiled and continued to rub my feet until I had fallen asleep again.

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  I woke up to some noise in the kitchen. Anna was sitting on the end of the couch drinking something in her sippy cup and watching a Barbie movie. I sat up and she looked over at me, smiling. She wouldn't ever go through the things that I've gone through, over my dead body. I had a couple of missed calls on my cell phone from Marco and one from Elana. Belle came over and placed a small plate on the coffee table for Anna, it had scrambled eggs and pancakes on it. Those were Anna's favorite breakfast foods.

  "Hey sleepy head, Marco called Paolo and told him that he was on his..."

  "NO!" I shouted at her before she could even finish her sentence. She stared at me and Paolo walked over.

  "What's wrong, Ria?" Paolo knelt in front of me. I started to cry and Paolo pulled me into his arms. I was so scared that he was going to find out and then tell my father and that would just kill me. I felt sick to my stomach suddenly. I got up and pushed past everyone, running to the bathroom. It felt miserable... morning sickness was going to kill me.

  Someone knocked gently on the bathroom door after about fifteen minutes of me being as sick as can be. I got up and washed my face, gargling water a couple of times before I left. I opened the door and Belle was standing there with a glass of sprite. I slightly smiled at her and took the glass. Paolo handed me my phone. "It rang a couple of times but you were busy so I hit the ignore button for you." I looked at the screen. A missed call from Niko.

  "Where is everybody?" Marco was here. I didn't want to see him or talk to him. He lied to me about where he was going and wasn't there for me when I needed him at mama's funeral. I started to walk to my room. I picked up Anna and took her with me. Paolo walked towards Marco. Louis appeared out of thin air and followed behind Paolo. I hope they ripped him a new one. I texted father and told him that Marco showed up here right after that my phone started to ring.

  "Did he just get there?" I sat Anna on the bed and sighed.

  "Yes. I didn't bother even talking to him. He lied to me and broke the number one rule that we all have about family coming first." Anna tugged at my shirt and pulled me into the bed. I laid down and held her close in my free arm.

  "Good...now plea-..." the phone went silent and I heard something crash in the background.

  "Father?" He didn't answer. "Papa!" I got up and ran into the living room. I found Paolo immediately and he knew something was wrong. Marco was sitting on the couch and stood up as soon as he saw me. I grabbed my coat. "Belle, Anna is in my room please watch her while Paolo and I go see my father." She nodded and gave me a huge hug. Paolo grabbed the keys and without even looking or saying one word to Marco, I left.

  ✽✽✽

  The car ride seemed to take forever. My brothers were standing outside when I got there. "Where is Papa?!" I screamed at them as soon as I got out of the car. They both stopped talking and looked confused.

  "He's inside, Ria. Calm down, what's wrong?" Pierre put a hand on my shoulder and tried to calm me but I pushed it off and ran inside. I ran up the stairs and into his office. I screamed in fear as I saw his body lying on the floor and I heard a large amount of footsteps running up the stairs. His head was bleeding and he was barely breathing. I dialed 9-1-1 in a panic.

  "9-1-1, what's your emergency?"

  "My father has fallen and passed out. He's barely breathing and he's bleeding from the back of his head." I tried not to cry but it wasn't going to happen. The flood gates opened and I couldn't hold them back. Everyone was soon in the office and my brothers knelt next to me, holding me.

  A few minutes later the ambulance arrived and both Pierre and Xavier went with father to the hospital. I was told to stay here but that wasn't going to happen. Paolo and I were in the car following the ambulance. I was panicking and didn't realize I had dialed Niko's number until he answered.

  "Maria? What's wrong?" I tried not to cry so I could at least tell him what was wrong but I couldn't. Even if he cared about me, i
t didn't matter. He was still the Russian boss and if I gave him information about my father being in the hospital he would use it against us. I couldn't tell him, I just couldn't.

  "I have to take care of some things today and it may be a while so I'll let you know when I can meet with you to talk to you. It really is important but this stuff is my first priority. I hope you can understand." I tried to sound calm but I was still crying. First my mama was killed and then my papa fell and could die too. This was all too much to handle.

  "Of course. If there's anything I can do, please tell me. I'll let you go. I really want to talk to you too." I heard the line go silent, he had hung up. We got to the hospital shortly after the call ended. I ran inside after we parked the car. My brothers were standing there waiting for me in the lobby. "Is he going to be okay? What's wrong with him?" I started to panic again.

  Pierre stepped up and wrapped his arms around me, "They don't know. They are doing everything they can. They rushed him into emergency surgery after the bleeding from his head wouldn't stop. We just have to wait." He kissed my forehead and I sobbed into his chest. Pierre was never close to father but my brothers were my best friends. Xavier was on the phone and kept looking over his shoulder at me as he talked.

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  It had been five hours after we had gotten to the hospital. I had called Belle and asked her to have Louis bring her and Anna to the hospital but to tell Marco to stay away, father's orders. My father didn't directly order it but I knew he would have allowed me to say it. A doctor finally came up to us and didn't have the most promising look on his face.

  "Salvatore family?" He looked at each one of us as we stood up. Anna moved a bit as she had fallen asleep in my lap and when I stood up I shifted her around but she didn't wake up. "We finally stopped the bleeding. We have major concerns for his health. Did your father say anything about not feeling well? To any of you?"