Sold to the Capo-Chapter 84: A PROMISE TO BE BACK

ADRIANA’S POV

I spent the rest of the day wandering the mansion, trying to memorize the feel of the place before I left but even as I walked around, talking to people, Valentina’s words echoed in my head like a haunting melody. "If you don’t say it now, you’ll end up regretting it..." She wasn’t wrong.

But how could I? How could I tell Vincenzo how I felt when I wasn’t even sure of his feelings? For the time I had spent in this house, I had seen glimpses of affection and protectiveness. But then there were the walls he put up, the distance he maintained, and the way he seemed determined to send me away.

I liked him that way; I had grown to no matter how much I denied it, but I knew it would never work out. He was a mafia don and who was I? The daughter of his family’s debtor who couldn’t protect herself till he came along to teach her how to. Did I even have a place in his life?

The hours ticked by painfully slow, and soon it was evening; Vincenzo hadn’t come home, but I had spied him a few times, leaving the mansion in his car in a hurry. I had already packed my belongings—not that I had much to begin with. The suitcase sat by the door of my room and as I looked at it, I was brutally reminded that I didn’t have that much time before I would have to leave this place.

I paced back and forth, chewing on my bottom lip as I wrestled with my thoughts. Should I tell him? Should I just let it go and leave without complicating things?

Eventually, the decision was made for me. A knock on the door startled me, and I turned to see Vincenzo standing there, his face unreadable.

When did he get here?

"Adriana," he said softly, his voice carrying an unusual weight. "Are you done packing?" He asked even as his eyes strayed to the suitcase packed by the door.

No "Tesoro"...just "Adriana"... The realization hit me that I had grown used to the term of endearment.

I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat as he stepped into the room and closed the door behind him.

He leaned against the wall, crossing his arms as he looked at me. "I wanted to check on you before everything... before you leave. It’s almost time for dinner"

There it was again—before you leave. The words hit me like a punch to the gut every time.

"I’m fine," I replied, though my voice sounded anything but convincing. "Just... trying to process everything."

He nodded, his eyes scanning the room before settling on me. "I know this isn’t easy for you. It wasn’t an easy decision for me either."

I frowned. "Then why make it? You keep saying it’s for my safety, but have you ever stopped to ask what I want?"

The words spilled out before I could stop them, and I immediately regretted it. His jaw tightened, and for a moment, I thought he might lash out.

Instead, he sighed, running a hand through his dark hair. "Because what you want doesn’t matter if it puts you in danger. Adriana, I can’t... I won’t risk losing you."

His lips curved into a faint, humorless smile. "I know you’re not weak but I have explained tirelessly that this isn’t something that you can handle. You’re strong. But that doesn’t mean I can stand by and watch you get hurt—or worse—because of me."

There was a tense silence, and I wondered if this was the right time to tell him about it, but before I could make a decision, his voice cut through the haze.

"I have gotten everything ready already. Here’s what’s gonna happen" He suddenly said, still leaning against the door.

My ears perked up and I listened attentively to what he had to say.

"You remember the Gamma Haven I talked about?" he suddenly said.

I nodded to acknowledge what he had said.

"Yeah?"

"I’m gonna be keeping you there." He dropped the bombshell, and initially, I didn’t know what to say as it wasn’t something I had been expecting, but I knew that I could only just go with the flow.

"Okay, I originally thought you’d just take me to a new country, a new identity, and all that shit so the people my father owes won’t be able to find me," I said.

He shook his head, a soft smile on his face that didn’t mirror the blank look on mine. "I’ve paid all your debts, Tesoro..." he revealed.

That word. That name. I looked away, ignoring the way my chest tightened at his words.

"You did?" My voice cracked.

He nodded slightly. "I’m keeping you in Gamma Haven for a while because I need you to lay low for me. Just for a few weeks, there are people to protect you then after that you’ll be taken to a new place... after the clash is over, you can now go to the new place...if we don’t survive it"

His words hit me hard and I looked down at my hands, fiddling with my nails. "What if you win?"

A pause.

"Then you come back" His voice was firm.

I finally looked back up at him, my tone almost pleading. "You don’t have to do this. You could always just leave"

He let out a bitter chuckle. "Running isn’t in this family; I may not like my position, but I sure as hell will not run in battle. It’s not what I was taught and it’s not one of my morals" 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Why was he so stubborn?

"I should go make dinner" I suddenly said. Not now. It wasn’t the right time for me to tell him.

He looked like he was about to say more, but then, instead, he nodded and looked away, pushing himself off the door. "Sure thing, I’ll join you for dinner. If you need me, I’ll be in my study"

I had thought about all the negative stuff. What if he rejected me? Well, I wouldn’t be here for a while anyway. I was going to do everything without a care in the world but even the mere thought of telling him what I wanted to scared the hell out of me. How would I explain that I liked the man who had terrified me years ago?

Pushing those thoughts aside, I went downstairs to make dinner and a few hours later, I had set the table. I wasn’t usually the one making dinner but this time, I wanted to do it all.

One last time.

He came downstairs when I went to knock on his study and throughout the dinner, he avoided my gaze. That should have been my cue to not bring up anything after dinner but I had gone too far to back out now.

"What time do I leave?" I asked him.

He stopped eating and looked up at me finally but that only lasted for a second before he looked back down at his almost empty plate. "I’m supposed to leave for a shipment by 1am when the ship arrives so I’ll take you with me. I’ve made plans with a private pilot to take you to the location, you’ll be received by Salvatore on that end..."

"Salvatore?" I raised a brow.

He gave a slight smile. "Yes, the Haven is in Salvatore’s care"

I decided not to argue, and I nodded, waiting for him to continue.

"I can’t use my own plane as my father may be informed about it and the last thing I need is another interrogation. The man is probably biding time for when he wants to strike"

"I should have spoken to Henry yesterday. He wasn’t in the mansion all day" I pointed out, immediately noticing the way that his hands around his fork tightened.

"He’s been busy with work. We got our men taken to jail, and it’s hard to get them out because of the charges against them, so he’s been busy." His tone was hard like he knew something I didn’t.

I didn’t say anything again as I calmly ate my dinner.

After dinner, I noticed that he was already rushing to get up so he could go up the stairs again and lock himself up in his study.

It was now or never.

"Vincenzo," I began, my voice trembling slightly. "There’s something I need to tell you before I leave."

His eyes locked onto mine, and for a moment, I thought I saw something flicker in them—hope, fear, uncertainty.

"I..." I hesitated, my courage faltering under his intense gaze. But then I thought of Valentina’s words, of the regret I would feel if I didn’t say it.

"I care about you," I finally admitted, my voice barely above a whisper. "More than I should. And I know it’s probably stupid and reckless, but I needed you to know."

His expression shifted, a mix of surprise and something I couldn’t quite place. He didn’t say anything at first, and the silence stretched on painfully.

I felt so stupid and tears pricked my eyes. I had known this was a bad idea but this...silence hurt a lot.

Suddenly I heard the sound of his chair scraping against the floor as he stood up abruptly, an expressionless look on his face as he rounded the table to come to me.

My lips were slightly parted as I stood up, watching him approach.

As soon as he got to me, his eyes blazing, I opened my mouth to speak. "Vincㅡ" That was as far as I got before he cupped my face and pulled me closer, his lips smashing against mine.

My eyes fluttered shut and instinctively, I grabbed his clothes, fisting it in my hands as his lips moved against mine hungrily.

His other hand found its way to my hips, grabbing the flesh tightly, his tongue slipping past my lips to deepen the kiss.

My heart was pounding in my chest as several emotions warred within me.

Suddenly he pulled away to take a gasp of air, his head resting against mine while I tried to come down from my high.

What the hell just happened?

"Let me make you a promise, Tesoro" His voice was husky, his breathing shallowed.

I didn’t need to answer, I just held his shirt tightly in my fist, waiting for him to continue.

"I will be back for you and we can finish this... not now... I want to have something to look forward to. I promise" He whispered.

"You better stay alive" I muttered.

He chuckled slightly, his hand still on my hips. "Don’t worry, I’m one lucky man"

I just hoped he remained lucky for this.