Claimed By The Mafia Don (Ariella and Asher) novel Chapter 341

ASHER

I kissed Ariella's forehead repeatedly, over and over again, until she finally slowly lifted her head.

There were tears in her eyes. She didn’t have to say anything when our eyes met.... I knew exactly how she felt. I wiped the tears from her eyes gently and kissed both of her eyes. Then her nose. Then I lightly kissed her lips.

“It’s okay,” I told her softly.

“I know,” she said, giving me a small chuckle even though there were still tears in her eyes.

But I could see it. The relief in her gaze and her hold. The moment she realised I was really here. That I was alive. That I was safe.

And at that moment, as I watched her, I promised myself something. Whoever was behind this… I was going to deal with them swiftly.

And I would never let anyone make her go through all this anxiety and fear again. Not the nervousness and heartache she had been living with these past few days.

It would never happen again. I promised myself that. And I promised her too… even though I didn’t say it out loud.

*****

ARIELLA

He was back.

My husband was back.

The father of my child was back.

The love of my life was back home. I had been so scared. Terrified that something was going to happen to him. When the car door opened, for a second I thought I would see bruises… cuts… blood… something that would confirm every horrible thought that had been running through my head all evening.

I had been obsessively watching my phone. Terrified that I was going to get that call. The call that… No.

I wasn’t even going to finish that thought.

But now he was here and standing in front of me. I was in his arms. For now, everything was okay. I knew that it wasn’t really all okay. I knew the world we lived in didn’t work that way. But for this moment… for right now… It was.

“Hello, Ariella.”

Luca’s voice came from behind us.

I turned toward him, a little startled. I hadn’t even realised he was in the car. My entire focus had been on Asher.

I had wanted to step away to greet him properly, but Asher pulled me back toward him, his arm tightening slightly around my waist and pulling me closer to his side.

I laughed softly at that before looking back at Luca.

“Hey, Luca. How are you? It’s been a few days since I last saw you.”

He laughed.

“Yeah. I thought I’d come back and see little Leon. I kind of miss the little guy.”

“That’s great because he misses you too,” I said warmly. “He’s inside. We were just about to have dinner. Why don’t you stay and have dinner with us?”

“It’s not funny,” he repeated.

This time, I couldn’t hold it back, and a full chuckle escaped me. When my laughter finally died down, I noticed he was looking at me. Just watching me. There was something in his expression… something calm and certain… something that made me feel like everything really would be okay.

He took my hand then, and together we walked up the stairs and into the house. We went straight to our bedroom so he could take a quick shower and change. While he was doing that, I told him I would go downstairs and make sure everything was ready for dinner.

He kissed me before I left the room. When I walked downstairs, I could already hear voices coming from the game room. I followed the noise and stepped inside. Leon and Luca were sitting in front of the television, both of them holding Xbox controllers and completely immersed in the game.

“You can’t beat me!” Leon shouted confidently. “I have more stamina than you!”

“I’ll show you stamina,” Luca shot back. “You just wait.”

They kept throwing words and challenges back and forth, completely absorbed in their competition. I smiled. The room felt alive. But then my eyes drifted toward the back of the room. Maria was sitting there.

Her entire attention was on Luca But at the same time… she didn’t seem present at all. It was almost like her mind wasn’t in the room anymore. Like she was somewhere else entirely.

And as I stood there watching her quietly… I stayed quiet for a moment, watching her. I wondered what she was thinking before I finally announced my presence in the room.

The gasps of the game were so loud, and the bodyguards had left the moment Asher and Luca came into the house earlier, but now the room was filled with the sounds of Leon and Luca competing.

“Who’s winning?” I asked.

Leon immediately turned toward me.

“I am winning, Mom!” he said proudly. “And Uncle Luca is losing so badly.”