The morning sun streamed through the windows as I sat in the garden, my hand resting absently on my stomach. Six weeks had passed since the night I'd finally surrendered to Eric, since I'd begged him to take me. Six weeks of falling deeper into this complicated, dangerous, wonderful man.
Today, my stomach churned with a different kind of anxiety.
My father was coming to visit. And he wasn't coming alone.
"He's brought someone with him," Eric said, appearing in the garden doorway, his phone in his hand. "Your best friend. Lucy."
My heart leaped. "Lucy? She's coming?"
"She convinced your father to make this trip. Apparently, she's been talking to you on the phone regularly and decided it was time to see you in person." He smiled slightly. "She sounds formidable."
"That's one word for her." I laughed, the first genuine laugh in days. Lucy and I had been friends since kindergarten. She was the sister I never had, the one person who always told me the truth even when I didn't want to hear it. "She's the one who kept me sane during the whole Daniel nightmare. She never trusted him."
"Then I already like her." Eric offered his hand. "Are you ready?"
"No. But let's do this."
He kissed my forehead. "I'll be right beside you. Always."
We met them in the library. My father stood by the fireplace, looking older than I remembered, his shoulders slumped. But beside him, bouncing on her heels with barely contained energy, was Lucy.
"SERA!"
She launched herself at me before I could speak, wrapping me in a hug so tight I couldn't breathe. "Oh my God, look at you! You look amazing! I've been so worried, and then your father told me everything, and I said, Antonio, we have to go see her right now, and he kept making excuses, and I finally told him that if he didn't take me, I'd drive myself."
"Lucy." I laughed, hugging her back. "Breathe."
She pulled back, her eyes wet with tears. "I missed you so much."
"I missed you, too."
She turned to Eric, and I watched her size him up with the same critical eye she'd used on every boyfriend I'd ever had. He stood quietly, letting her look, his expression calm.
"So you're the infamous Eric Moretti," she said.
"I am."
"Kidnapped my best friend on her wedding day."
"I did."
"Ruined her life?"
"No." His voice was steady. "I hope I've improved it."
Lucy stared at him for a long moment. Then, slowly, she smiled. "Okay. I can work with this." She glanced at me. "He's hot. I'll give you that."
"LUCY!"
"What? I'm just saying." She grinned at Eric. "Take care of her, or I'll find a way to kill you. I don't care how powerful you are."
Eric's lips twitched. "Noted."
My father cleared his throat. "Seraphina, may I speak with you? Alone?"
I glanced at Eric. He nodded, squeezing my hand before stepping out with Lucy, who shot me a thumbs-up behind his back.
My father and I sat across from each other in the library. The silence stretched, heavy with everything unsaid.
"Papa," I began, "I know this is hard."
"Hard?" He shook his head. "Seraphina, I've been a fool. A blind, stubborn fool. Daniel played me, and I let him. I was so desperate to save the company that I didn't see what was right in front of me." He looked at me, his eyes wet. "You tried to tell me something was wrong. I didn't listen."
"It's okay, Papa."
"It's not okay. I pushed you toward a man who would have sold you. Sold you, Seraphina. Like cargo." His voice broke. "And this man, this man who kidnapped you, he's the one who saved you. How do I reconcile that?"
I moved to sit beside him, taking his hand. "I know it's complicated. It took me weeks to understand it myself."
"Explain it to me. Help me understand."
I took a deep breath. "After Eric showed me the contract, after I learned what Daniel had planned, I was devastated. But Eric, he didn't push. He didn't force. He gave me space. He made a promise, Papa. He said he wouldn't touch me, wouldn't have me, unless I begged him for it."
My father's eyebrows shot up. "Begged?"
"He said he doesn't force women. He waits until they choose him. He told me that women always beg him eventually, but he waits until they do." I felt heat rise to my cheeks. "I was so proud, so stubborn. I couldn't just admit what I wanted. So I tried to seduce him instead."
My father's lips twitched despite himself. "And what did he do?"
"Nothing. He noticed everything. I saw it in his eyes, but he never acted. He just waited. It was maddening." I laughed softly. "I'd wear next to nothing, find excuses to touch him, practically throw myself at him. And he'd just smile that slow smile and walk away."
"So how did it finally happen?"
"The night I broke." I smiled at the memory. "I confronted him, accused him of being impossible, and he told me exactly what he'd been telling me all along, that he needed me to ask. Honestly, openly. He needed me to admit that I wanted him, not because I was trapped or scared, but because I truly wanted him."
"And you did?"
"I did. I begged him, Papa. I told him I wanted him, that I was choosing him." Tears pricked my eyes. "And the way he looked at me in that moment, like I was the most precious thing in the world. That's when I knew I was falling. Because he'd waited. He'd respected me. He'd given me the choice when he could have taken everything."
My father was silent for a long moment. Then, slowly, he nodded. "Your mother would have liked him. She always said the best men are the ones who wait to be chosen."
"She was right."
"May I speak with him alone?"
My heart raced. "Papa"
"I won't hurt him, Seraphina. I just need to look him in the eyes."
I found Eric and Lucy in the garden. They were talking quietly, and Lucy was actually laughing at something he'd said.
"What are you two plotting?" I asked suspiciously.
"Nothing," they said in unison, too quickly.
"Uh-huh." I looked at Eric. "My father wants to speak with you. Alone."
His expression didn't change, but I saw his jaw tighten slightly. "Okay."
"Be careful."
"Always." He kissed my forehead and walked inside.
Lucy grabbed my arm the moment he was gone. "Okay, spill. Everything. And I mean everything."
"What do you want to know?"
"Start with the kidnapping and work your way to that little speech you just gave your father about begging. Because I caught the end of that, and I have QUESTIONS."
I laughed despite myself. "You're impossible."
"I'm your best friend. It's my job." She pulled me toward a garden bench. "Now talk."
So I did. I told her everything: the attack, the contract, the kiss in the safe room, the weeks of seduction attempts that went nowhere, the night I finally broke and begged him to take me.
"Oh my God," she breathed when I finished. "He made you BEG?"
"He wanted me to choose him. Really choose him, not just go along because I was trapped." I shook my head. "I've never met anyone like him, Luce. He's dangerous, powerful, and terrifying to the outside world. But with me, he's patient. Gentle. He waits."
Lucy was quiet for a moment, processing. Then she grinned. "So when you finally begged, was it worth it?"
"Lucy!"
"What? I'm your best friend! I need details!"
I felt my cheeks burn. "I'm not telling you that."
"Come on! Was he good? He looks like he'd be good. All that intensity has to translate somewhere."
"LUCY!"
She cackled with laughter. "Fine, fine. Keep your secrets." She squeezed my hand. "But seriously, Sera. I've never seen you like this. You're glowing. You're happy. If this crazy mafia king is the reason, then I'm on board."
"He is. He really is."
An hour later, Eric and my father emerged from the library. My father's arm was around Eric's shoulders, and they were both laughing.
"We're going to rebuild Rossi International together," my father announced. "Legitimate partnerships, full transparency. Eric's going to help me clean up the mess Daniel made."
I stared at Eric. He smiled, that slow, loving smile.
"Your father's a smart man," he said. "He sees the potential."
"Potential?"
"Business potential." He pulled me close, kissing my forehead. "But also other potential. Like Sunday dinners. And holidays. And eventually, grandchildren."
My father beamed. "I've missed too much already. I'm not missing another moment."
Lucy appeared at my elbow. "See? I told you this would work." She whispered loudly, "I totally engineered this whole visit. You're welcome."
That night, we had dinner together, the first real family dinner of my new life. Eric sat at one end of the table, my father at the other, Lucy between them, telling outrageous stories from our childhood. Caterina joined us, charmed by Lucy's irreverent humor. For the first time, I felt like I truly belonged.
Later, after everyone had retired, Lucy found me on the balcony.
"Hey." She leaned against the railing beside me. "You okay?"
"More than okay." I looked at her. "Thank you for bringing him. For making this happen."
"Someone had to knock some sense into your father. Might as well be me." She grinned. "Besides, I had to see this place for myself. It's insane, Sera. You live in a fortress."
"It's home now."
"I know." She was quiet for a moment. "I was so worried about you. When I heard about the kidnapping, I thought I'd lost you."
"Instead, you gained a mafia king as a friend."
She laughed. "He is pretty great, isn't he? In a terrifying, could-kill-you-with-his-pinky kind of way." She nudged me. "So the begging thing. You never did tell me if it was worth it."
"LUCY!"
"What? I'm just saying, a man who waits that long has to have some serious stamina."
I threw a pillow at her, and we both dissolved into laughter.
That night, after Lucy had gone to her room, Eric found me in bed, staring at the ceiling.
"Happy?" he asked, climbing in beside me.
"More than I ever thought possible."
He pulled me close, his lips finding mine in a soft kiss. "Good. Because I intend to keep you that way forever."
"I love you, Eric Moretti."
"I love you too. Now and always."
His kiss deepened, and I melted into him. The night wrapped around us like a blanket, warm and safe, and for the first time in my life, I knew exactly where I belonged.
In the arms of my mafia king.
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