Claimed By The Mafia Don (Ariella and Asher) novel Chapter 416

ASHER

I kissed the top of her head.

"I know, my queen."

She stayed quiet after a while and just held on to me. Then after a few moments, she pulled back and wiped at her face quickly, looking embarrassed.

" Gosh, I've been crying a lot lately."

I looked down at her.

"You don't have to be embarrassed by your feelings."

She stared at me.

"You went through a lot in five years, Ariella. You were alone in the world with no one to help and pregnant with our boy. Then you came back and found out your father is gone and your mother is angry at you right now."

" You're trying to adjust to a whole new life and carry all of that at the same time. And that's a lot for one person." I brushed my thumb over her cheek. "So if you want to cry for the next week, the next month, or the next year, then cry to your heart's content."

She gave me a small smile.

"The next year?"

"The next ten years if needed."

She let out a tiny laugh through her tears.

"That sounds exhausting."

"I'll suffer through it."

She looked up at me for a few seconds. Really looked at me. Then her fingers slowly touched my face.

"You've been taking care of me a lot."

I frowned.

"That's my job."

"No," she said quietly, shaking her head. "No, Asher. You really have."

She looked down.

"And I know I haven't been easy...."

I immediately tilted her chin up.

"Don't do that."

She blinked.

"Don't apologise for hurting."

"I hate feeling like this..... And if it's so much for me, it must be even worse for you."

"Don't. You and I are for life for tears of joy or sadness."

She leaned forward and kissed me softly. Not desperately and not playfully. Just softly with gratitude and love. When she pulled back, she rested her forehead against mine.

"I think..." she whispered, "I still want to go today."

I sighed quietly. Of course, she did because Ariella had always been stubborn when she put her mind to doing something.

I looked down at her for a few seconds before nodding.

"Okay."

Her eyes widened slightly.

"Okay?"

"Okay, Mr. I'm never letting young. Let me go upstairs and change."

"Okay, I'll wait for you downstairs."

"Thank you," she said before walking away.

I pulled her back. "You don't ever have to thank me, sweetheart. I will always be here for you."

I smiled lightly.

"It's kind of my job."

She walked back into my arms and kissed me before walking out.

I sat there just watching her walk away before taking a deep breath..... Because I had a problem.

I lied to Ariella about the way her father died.

And I'm sure if she goes to visit her mother, her mother won't shut up about it. She'll tell her everything. And with the way Ariella felt so defeated right now... If she found out the truth about how her father died..... It's going to get even worse.

Fuck!

I don't think there is anything I can tell her mother to make her stay quiet about her father's death. I know that her mother will twist the knife as deeply as she can if she knew Ariella had no idea how her father died.

What the hell was I going to do to stop this from happening? I could easily dispose of the problem but I can't hurt Ariella like that. That would be the ultimate betrayal. Shit.

A few minutes later Ariella walked down the stairs all in black and walked out the door in silence. Soon we were in the car heading toward the famiglia's cemetery. We arrived and parked as the guards toward the front and the back cars got out and started scanning the perimeter.

I looked toward Ariella when they gave me the signal that it was clear. But she didn't make a move. She was frozen in place, almost in terror. She was holding her hands together and they were trembling, kind of shaking.

I quickly took her hand and held it firmly.

"Ariella, are you okay?"