Claimed By The Mafia Don (Ariella and Asher) novel Chapter 270

ASHER

I had hoped that giving my brother power would make him see me, really see me.

I thought it would bring us closer, maybe even make him turn away from this ridiculous plan he had with Dinara. I believed, foolishly, that if he felt valued, if he held something of his own, he would let go of this betrayal brewing between them.

But that night, the very same night I gave him the position at the docks, Dominic gave Dinara his answer.... He was all in.

He hadn’t even touched the job, hadn’t even had the chance to fully stand in his new position, and still, he was ready to destroy me. They sat together and planned everything, down to the date.

I was gutted. I had hoped for better from Dominic. He never seemed that interested in power before, not truly. He had always been the one chasing approval, not titles. And I just knew this had to be Dinara’s trick, her manipulation twisting its way into his mind until he couldn’t tell where her voice ended and his own thoughts began.

But the truth didn’t change what he had done. He had made his decision. But still, I hoped.

Right up until the very day they had chosen for their ridiculous plan, I hoped. I held onto that final sliver of hope that Dominic would change his mind, that he would come to me at the last second, look me in the eye, and tell me he couldn’t do it... But deep down, I knew.

The morning of the day they had chosen felt different. It wasn’t louder or quieter than any other morning. The house still held the same hum of life, the same faint footsteps on the stairs, the same muted voices drifting through the halls. But something about it felt… heavier.

Maybe it was me.

I sat in the kitchen long before anyone else was awake, nursing a cup of coffee that had long gone cold. I watched the sun climb over the horizon through the window, painting the counters in gold, and waited.

Waited for Dominic. Waited for some sign that he had changed his mind. I wanted to see hesitation in his eyes, wanted him to look at me like a brother, not an obstacle. I wanted him to falter, to choose me over her.

When I heard his footsteps on the stairs, I froze, heart thudding like it always did these days. The door opened and Dominic appeared, half buttoning his shirt, his hair still damp from the shower. He looked surprised to find me sitting there.

“You’re up early,” he said.

“So are you.”

We stared at each other for a long moment, an unspoken war raging in the silence. I searched his face, looking for anything, any crack, any sign that he wasn’t going to go through with it.

But he just nodded, poured himself coffee, and started talking about the docks, about the men, about business as if nothing else existed. As if tonight wasn’t the night he planned to kill me.

I kept my face neutral, my voice calm, but inside, something twisted tighter and tighter. I had hoped.....I had hoped right until this moment.

But Dominic wasn’t backing down. And that meant neither could I.

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