Forced To Be The Mafia King's Bride novel Chapter 16

Gia’s POV

“Gia? You’ve been in there for over thirty minutes. Is everything alright?”

Grace’s voice filtered through the bathroom door, snapping me out of the thoughts swirling in my head.

I rose from the water quickly, my thighs clenching, trying to suppress the ache stirred by the vivid flashes of Dante that refused to fade.

“I’ll be out now!” I called, forcing a lightness into my voice that I didn’t feel.

I was trembling, and it wasn’t from the bathwater, it had gone cold a while ago.

It was from what my mind refused to let go.

Quickly, I washed the last of the soap from my skin and muttered under my breath, “No. I can’t have any kind of physical feelings for that monster. Never.”

When I stepped out, Grace was waiting. She helped me dry off and handed me a soft, beautiful yellow dress with a high slit.

I paused. “How did you even know my size?”

Grace offered a soft smile, her hands clasped in front of her. “It’s all thanks to Don Dante,” she said smoothly. “He was... very specific about what he wanted you to wear.”

Heat crept up my neck as I turned back to the dress. Of course he was.

I slipped into it slowly, fingers skimming the soft fabric as I pulled it up over my hips and shoulders.

The material hugged my curves like it had been sewn for me, but it wasn’t too revealing. Elegant, tasteful… far too fancy to be worn just to lounge around a house.

Grace gave an approving nod. “Perfect. Now come, Gia. We must leave.”

I sighed under my breath. “Fine,” I muttered, following her as we made our way downstairs.

I took it one step at a time. The house felt... off. Like some kind of old fortress you’d see in one of those moody, dark movies, not horror exactly, but definitely the kind where you don’t know what’s coming next.

The walls were tall and heavy-looking, like they’d been standing for centuries, keeping secrets no one was allowed to know. A few guards were stationed at different spots, just standing there like statues.

One of them looked at me, just a glance, and then looked away quickly, like I was trouble, or like he wasn’t allowed to look at me.

Before I could think too much, Grace tugged at my hand. “Let’s go,” she said, not giving me a second to breathe.

When we reached the bottom, one of the bodyguards stepped forward, opened the giant double doors, and moved aside like this was all totally normal. Like I was supposed to be here.

I walked into the same huge living area from last night. The air was warmer in here, but it didn’t help the nerves building in my gut.

Dante was already seated at the long dining table, posture relaxed, like a king who expected everyone else to serve or kneel. The table was ridiculous. A full spread. Fruits, eggs, meats, fresh bread… all steaming like they’d been placed there just seconds ago.

I glanced around, thinking maybe someone else was coming. But nope. Just us.

His eyes landed on me.

“Welcome, Gia,” he said, voice shockingly smooth, like honey, like this was some kind of royal invite. He nodded toward a chair across from him.

I gave a dry snort. “Sorry, this whole grand breakfast setup... it’s just for us?”

He didn’t look amused. In fact, he rose to his full height, ignoring the jab like it didn’t matter. But his face was tighter now.

“Sit,” he commanded, no warmth in it.

I crossed my arms. “You can drop the gentleman act. We both know you’re not…”

He closed the distance between us immediately, then leaned just enough to let his voice drop low.

“Finish it,” he warned, his eyes fixed on mine.

My throat dried instantly. His eyes weren’t just cold, they were intimidating. The kind of look that made you forget how to breathe, let alone speak.

Verify captcha to read the contentVerify