Dangerous Secrets: My Mafia Stepbrother

Isabella’s heart raced, and she couldn’t help but feel a sense of fear, fearing what was about to happen next.From NôvelDrama.Org.

Emanuele noticed them and immediately turned his gaze in their direction, but his focus was mainly on Isabella. His sharp eyes resembled that of a fierce beast, radiating an oppressive aura that made Isabella’s whole body tense.

Even though Clark and Emanuele belonged to the same social circle, Clark appeared gentle and sophisticated, like a true gentleman. But Emanuele? He seemed like a monster to her. Isabella had witnessed intense scenes in the hospital, dealing with bloody emergencies, but none of those had instilled the fear she felt in Emanuele’s presence.

“Emanuele, what a coincidence, are you here to watch a movie too?” Clark greeted Emanuele warmly, assuming it was purely coincidental.

“Clark, I’m here to pick up my sister. Sophia mentioned that we’re having dinner together tonight,” Emanuele replied, casually discarding his cigarette butt on the ground, pressing it out with his foot. It seemed to be one of his last acts of courtesy.

“Oh, really? That’s unfortunate,” Clark said with a tinge of disappointment. He looked at Isabella and asked, “Isabella, are you going home for dinner with your mother?”

“I…” Isabella shot a glare at Emanuele. Her mother was on her honeymoon with Leo; there was no dinner to attend. But under Emanuele’s intimidating gaze, it felt as if her neck would be snapped if she didn’t comply.

Isabella meekly responded, “Yes, my mom called a few times while I was watching the movie. She probably wants me to come home for dinner.”

“Let’s go, Isabella,” Emanuele said curtly, opening the passenger door for her.

Isabella glanced back at Clark. “I guess I should go.”

“Alright, I hope next time we can have a complete date,” Clark said, though he was somewhat disappointed. He then turned to Emanuele and added, “Drive safely.”

He wished he could have been the one to drive Isabella home; that would have been so much better.

Once they were inside the car, Emanuele’s demeanor changed dramatically from the friendly face he’d shown to Clark. His expression turned icy.

Not a word was spoken as Emanuele drove off, taking Isabella away from the movie theater. The atmosphere in the SUV was tense, and Isabella couldn’t help but notice that Emanuele, being the head of the Chicago Mafia, never traveled alone. She noticed that there were cars following them from the front and the back, clearly driven by his bodyguards.

Emanuele, fueled by anger, pressed harder on the gas pedal, accelerating to nearly 200 miles per hour. The scenery outside became a blur, and fear gripped Isabella so tightly that she had to grab onto the handle for support.

“Emanuele, can you slow down a bit?” Isabella nervously spoke up.

But Emanuele showed no intention of slowing down; in fact, he seemed to be speeding up.

“Are you out of your mind?” Isabella couldn’t help but mutter.

Emanuele glanced at Isabella and couldn’t help but smile, a smile tainted with a hint of bloodlust.

“Yes, I am. I must be out of my mind to come to the movies looking for you,” he spat out menacingly.

He didn’t even understand why he had done it. After finding out that Isabella was on a date with Clark, he had desperately tried calling her. When Isabella didn’t pick up, he immediately had his assistant find out her location. Seeing Isabella and Clark emerge from the theater, he felt a blazing anger ignite within him, as if it could burn both of them to ashes.

He had smoked nearly ten cigarettes, and watching Isabella and Clark walk out of the theater so affectionately had fueled a raging fire in his chest. It felt like it was about to burst out of him, incinerating both the man and the woman in front of him.

He had gone mad. He genuinely didn’t know what he was doing.

Emanuele’s inexplicable outburst left Isabella both fearful and bewildered. She couldn’t make sense of his sudden anger.

Soon, the car arrived at the Lombardi mansion. In the parking lot, Emanuele parked the car, and Isabella, sensing an opportunity to escape Emanuele’s presence, unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the car door to get out.

However, she realized that the car door had been locked by Emanuele, and her attempts to push it open were in vain.

“Emanuele, I need to get out of the car,” Isabella said, her voice trembling.

Emanuele didn’t respond to her but instead lit a cigarette, inhaling slowly. The smoke began to fill the car, making Isabella feel increasingly uncomfortable. She hadn’t noticed before, but it seemed that Emanuele had a penchant for smoking.

After finishing his cigarette, Emanuele finally calmed down a bit. However, the smell of smoke lingered in the car, making Isabella cough involuntarily.

As she coughed a couple of times, she suddenly felt her body becoming lighter. She realized that Emanuele had lifted her into his lap.

While the SUV was spacious, having two people in the same seat made it feel cramped. Isabella felt like she was squeezed against him, her cheek resting on his chest. She could feel his warmth and the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. It was nothing like what she had expected; his heartbeat was strong and had a distinct rhythm, showing the incredible vitality within him. She had believed him to be heartless, but this suggested otherwise.

“Isabella, your behavior today has made me very angry,” Emanuele said in a cold, icy tone, his voice as cold as the surface of a frozen lake.

Oh, dear! Isabella thought. She had been obedient enough, so why was he angry? Why was this man’s mood so unpredictable and inconsistent?

“What do you want from me? I’ve followed your instructions, and you’re still angry? I’m the one who’s truly upset here!” Isabella exclaimed, trying to free herself from Emanuele’s embrace, but his grip was strong, and she couldn’t break free.

“I told you, you can only get married. No dating. You didn’t listen,” Emanuele murmured, his hand gently caressing Isabella’s cheek. Looking at her tender, eggshell-like face in contrast to his calloused hand, he couldn’t help but marvel at the difference.

A woman like her was meant to be cherished.

“Only get married?” Isabella gasped. She couldn’t believe it. “Emanuele, you’re going too far! I’ve followed your orders and interacted with the people you wanted me to. How does my dating affect you? Why are you stopping me from dating?”

Emanuele suddenly found himself at a loss for words, unable to respond to Isabella’s question. Indeed, why did he care if she dated someone else? Why did he feel so anxious and angry when he saw her being affectionate with other men? He couldn’t stand seeing her with anyone else. If possible, that person should never even look at her.

These thoughts seemed absurd to him, and he couldn’t understand why he was thinking this way.

“Emanuele, I don’t understand why you don’t want me to date Clark. I can’t just marry him right away, kiss him, embrace him, sleep with him, and have his children, can I?” Isabella was getting frustrated as she recounted the ridiculous expectations placed upon her.

Little did she know that her words were continually provoking Emanuele. Frustrated, he lowered his head and kissed Isabella’s lips.