Claimed By The Mafia Don (Ariella and Asher) novel Chapter 3

I shake my head. No.

Again and again, I shake my head, willing this moment to be a nightmare.

But Asher just watches me, his lips curling into a cold, calculated smile. His eyes gleam with amusement as if he’s enjoying the way I’m crumbling before him.

He isn’t speaking. Just watching. Like a predator toying with his prey.

I try to absorb his words, to make sense of them, but they don’t fit. They don’t make sense.

“But you’re married,” I whisper, my voice shaking. “You’ve moved on. What are you saying? I don’t understand.”

He laughs, low and cold, his mockery slicing through me.

“It looks like you got caught up in your feelings, Ariella.” His voice is taunting, cruel.

“I never said I loved you. I never said I was going to marry you. I never even said you had any significance.”

My breath catches.

“What I did say,” he continues, his tone dripping with venom, “is that you my toy. I am going to use you until there’s nothing left. Until you don’t recognize yourself. Until nobody can recognize you.”

He leans forward, his elbows resting on his knees as his dark gaze burns into mine.

“I am going to have fun destroying every piece of you.”

Tears sting my eyes. My throat closes up, but I force myself to speak.

“Please don’t hurt me, Asher,” I beg. “It’s been years. You’ve already moved on. You have a family now. You’re happy. Please… just forget about me. I’m sorry….”

Another cruel laugh.

“Why the hell would I do that?” He tilts his head, his expression dark.

“I, Asher Romano, of the Romano Empire, am a man of my word. I never go back on my word. And five years ago, I promised to make you regret what you did to me.”

His voice drops lower, colder. “And I plan to fulfil that promise., Until the end.”

He leans back again, completely at ease.

“You should know by now, Ariella, I never lose and I never back down. Ever.”

“But I… it’s been years, I thought…”

“Ariella, five years ago, you thought you could make fun of Asher Romano. Five years ago, you thought you could play with my feelings. And that ends today. I came to collect.”

I feel myself choking on my thoughts.

“I thought you had run away for a better life,” he continues mockingly. “I didn’t expect you would be wearing these rags and living on tips. What happened to Princess Ariella? The one who could have anything? The one who thought she could achieve everything? The life outside the family hasn’t been a walk in the park, has it?”

I have nothing to do but cry, letting the tears fall.

He stands up again and walks toward me. Slowly. Purposefully. When he reaches me, he lifts a hand and wipes a tear from my left cheek. I flinch, but I don’t move.

Then, to my horror, he puts it in his mouth and swallows it down.

“I love the taste of your tears,” he murmurs. “There’s going to be a lot of crying for you in the future.”

His voice is calm, almost gentle. That only makes it worse.

“Now that you’re in my hands, the things I could do to you are endless.”

Panic swells inside me. Leon.

I think of my son. My baby. He needs me. I have to survive this.

I force as much strength into my voice as I can. “I do not belong to the Famiglia anymore. I left years ago, and I’m not going back.”

I take a shaky breath, my voice trembling. “What happened was… I didn’t know what I was doing then… I was a teenager. I’m not that person anymore. So please, just let me go.”

Silence.

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