Long Live the King (An Italian Mafia Romance Duet #2) Read Free Page B

illuminate my path as I walk towards the elevators with gold doors.
    “Good evening, Ms. Sullivan,” Natasha shouts from behind the counter just as I press the button to bring the elevator to me.
    “Hey, Natasha,” I reply with a forced smile. I’m here so often, most the River City staff greets me like we’re best friends now. It always makes me feel good, and I need that on a day like today, especially since I haven’t vented to Ally yet.
    The elevator reaches me and I take the long trip up to the penthouse on the top floor. When Dominic took over business at River City after his father died, one of the first things he did was move into the penthouse, and he’s been living here ever since.
    The bell dings, the golden doors part, and the first thing I see is Dominic standing in front of me with his hands in the pockets of gray pants, and the top half of the buttons on his white shirt undone, exposing his chiseled chest. His hairless face is perfectly smooth, and his smile is as flawless as it is wide. His wavy black hair is slicked back and perfectly styled. He’s breathtaking. And just like that, everything I went through today is made easier.
    “Hey, baby,” he greets, his voice deep and soothing, like the first sip of the perfect cup of coffee.
    I respond by stepping off the elevator and into his arms. We embrace, and I burrow my face into his chest as I wrap my arms around his waist. He smells how you’d imagine heaven would smell after you just left hell, and I breathe it in with a full breath as he wraps his arms around my shoulders. The thick muscles in his arms feel like a hefty blanket being draped over me, protecting me from the cold and any harm. We stand there for a second, enjoying the moment as if a day apart has been far too long, before finally pulling apart enough to kiss. The lips everyone used to say were too big for his face now fit perfectly with mine, and I have to force myself to give him some space.
    “Hey, babe,” I finally reply. “How was your day?”
    “My day? My day was interesting,” he answers with a grin. “Security caught a couple of stronzos counting cards in the casino.”
    I wince at the thought of what probably happened to them, which Dominic notices.
    “We didn’t break their legs or anything,” he says with a chuckle.
    “No? What then? I know you didn’t let them get away with that.”
    “Oh, fuhgeddaboutit,” he replies, as if to say of course not . “They can still walk. They just have less digits to play cards with now.”
    “Oh gosh, Dominic,” I say, wincing again.
    “What? I said they could still walk.”
    “You’re a mess,” I reply, shaking my head as I give him another kiss.
    You may be asking yourself why an Air Force brat like me would stay with a mob boss like Dominic. I get it, and my answer is simple—I love him with everything that makes me human. He’s everything to me, and any woman who’s ever been in love with their soulmate knows what I’m talking about. I know the things that Dominic does because he tells me. He doesn’t try to hide it from me or act as if he’s a normal guy working a nine to five every day, and that makes me love him even more. He doesn’t keep secrets the way men usually do with the women they claim they love. So when Dominic tells me he had some guy’s fingers cut off for counting cards in his casino, I know it’s the truth, and I’m thankful he told me. I know cutting off fingers is a part of the life he’s always lived since before we even met, so I don’t judge him for it. As long as he loves me the way he always has, I don’t focus too much on the details that don’t really involve me. Others may fear Dominic, but I know I don’t have to. He’d cut off his own fingers before he’d ever let anything happen to me. I have a rich, gorgeous, powerful man who everyone knows is not to be fucked with. What more could a girl ask for?
    “Alright, enough stalling,” Dominic says, interrupting my train