Vengeful - Paperback

One Single Gunshot Changed My Fate Forever.

An assassination brought my family to its knees. Now it's up to me to avenge the murder.

An eye for an eye...that's my MO.

I have one job to do, and it may be my last.

Find my father's killer and make him pay...before he finds me.

But there's one problem - one incredibly sexy obstacle I never saw coming.

Tali Severinov.

I've met my match with this woman. She's beautiful, deadly, and more ruthless than I'd ever imagined.

Think with my head? Never. At least, not with the one attached to my neck.

She thinks I'm the enemy.
Little does she know I'm about to become her savior.

VENGEFUL is the third book in the dark Russian mafia series, SEVERINOV BRATVA, by USA Today Bestselling author Kristen Luciani. It is a standalone dark enemies-to-lovers mafia romance, complete with suspense, HEA, and no cheating.

“Daddy’s dead.”
I let out a deep sigh, pressing my fingertips to my temples as I stare up at the early morning sky. The horizon is smeared with streaks of gold, orange, and yellow, the sun just poking above the clouds. Aside from the haunting memory of my sister Gianna’s tearful voice, the only other sound that consumes my conscious is the crashing surf on the shore of Plage des Fourmis Beach in Monaco.
It’s been six weeks, and I berate myself every day for not being able to stop the attack.
I should have been there with them.
I could have saved him.
But my father was on borrowed time, and in this life, it doesn’t take long for the other shoe to drop. There are too many enemies lurking in the shadows, poised to attack in the name of jealousy, power, and revenge.
And years back, when my grieving father opened the fucking door and invited the enemy in for espresso and cannoli, I knew I’d eventually be the one to grab the reins and make sure the rest of my family didn’t suffer the same fate.
It was only a matter of time before I’d have to step into position, avenge his murder, and secure the livelihood of the Marcone name.
I just never expected that our lives would ultimately be shattered by our own blood.
White-capped crests gather speed and force as they crash over the sand, and I draw in a deep breath, letting the salty sea air fill my lungs.
It’s calm here. Peaceful. So different from what I’m used to back home in Sicily where danger looms on a daily basis.
A place where death isn’t a fear, it’s a reality.
And a definite possibility when your family has commanded control of all sea ports spanning the entire coastline of Europe and most of Asia. And we’re talking hostile takeover shit. Our shipping company didn’t grow to become the largest in the world because my father was a savvy businessman who understood contracts and legalities and regulations.
He only knew his own brand of ruthless negotiation.
It’s either mine…
Or it’s mine.
It was like an iron fist, one that would come crashing down on the head of anyone who dared oppose him or worse, decline an offer to ‘work with him.’
I grit my teeth.
And my family calls me the loose cannon.
I guess the grape doesn’t fall far from the vine.
I drag myself to my feet, my sneakers making deep indentations in the packed sand as I lunge from side to side, stretching out my quads. Running along the shore of the Mediterranean is the closest I come to the water.
I never let it touch me, not since it almost sucked the life out of me when I was younger.
But yet, it’s the one place where I feel the most at peace.
And in my line of work, since peace usually accompanies death, it’s damn poetic.
I slip my AirPods into my ears, pushing my sunglasses farther up my nose and pulling the brim of my baseball cap down low over my face.
Because you just never know who’s watching.
The same people who targeted Dad and his hot-headed business partner, Daniel Tava, are coming for the rest of us. That’s how it works with Cosa Nostra. You eliminate the enemy and then you incinerate everything that they leave behind.
And everyone.
That’s why my brother Diego and I came to Monaco posing as hoteliers. After Tava was killed here in a suspicious hit-and-run, we knew the enemy was closing in fast, itching to take over everything he and my father built.
Our only option is to find them before they find us.
I turn up the volume of my music and take off like a thoroughbred out of the gate, as if I can evade the threat of demise that’s been hot on my heels for as long as I can remember.
It would be nice, but completely and utterly impossible at the same time.
I let the angry lyrics of the song blaring in my ears mute the toxic thoughts exploding between my temples like bullets.
My feet pound the sand, my calf muscles tight with every step I take. Sand kicks up all around me, gritty against my damp skin, but it only drives me harder.
I pick up speed, my legs pumping faster and faster. Running helps me escape, if only from myself. My breaths are short and sharp, in through my nose, out through my mouth. Rage builds deep inside of me, coursing through my veins as I push myself forward. Wind whips around me, and for a fleeting second, I’m free of it all.
Sweat drizzles down the side of my face, my chest and back pebbled with perspiration. I pull off my cap to swipe at my forehead, knocking out an AirPod. I grunt, lunging forward to grab it before it hits the sand. My hand juts out, the little white earpiece slipping right through my damn fingers as a crushing force takes my body airborne for what seems like hours before my back crashes onto the sand with a hard thud.
And I only have a split second to choke out a yelp before something lands on top of me.
Something slick.
Something smooth.
Something that suddenly has my cock rock-hard beneath these flimsy Under Armour shorts.
I open my eyes a crack, squinting in the sun since my sunglasses flew off my face mid-flight. Piercing blue eyes narrow at me, full pink lips twisted into a grimace, tanned skin flushed and glowing.
“What the hell are you doing here?” My assailant hisses, her teeth clenched. “This is private property!”
I force my eyes away from her perfect tits, the ones bulging out of her sports bra and pressed tight against me. “What did you say?”
“I said,” she seethes. “You shouldn’t be here. This beach belongs to me.”
I grin as her face becomes more and more pinched. “I don’t see any names written on the sand.”
“This beach is part of my resort.” She glares at me, her chest heaving, hands still pressed into the sand, flanking me on both sides.
Interesting. I didn’t expect my ‘competition,’ the owner of the hotel next door, to be female, much less have a porn star body and the tongue of a viper.
“Then your resort must be in pretty bad shape since there isn’t a single person out here other than us. Maybe you need to work on your people skills.” I smirk as her nostrils flare. There’s fire raging deep in this woman, and I don’t think I’m gonna need to press too many more buttons before it unleashes all over me.
And that really has my cock twitching.
She gasps and recoils. “Are you seriously—?”
I nod, bringing myself onto my elbows. “I’m a guy, and you’re half-naked. And sweaty.” I flash a mischievous smile. “I only have so much self-control, sweetheart.”
“You’re a disgusting pig!”
“And yet, you’re still on top of me.” I fold my arms behind my head. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m not complaining. In fact, I’m happy to stay here all day long and let you yell at me, as long as you don’t get dressed.”
Her eyes widen and she lets out a gasp that makes me think she’d pummel me with a piece of driftwood if there was one within reach.
Thank fuck there isn’t.
She leans back on her heels, still straddling me. “You’re trespassing,” she says in a terse voice. “If you don’t leave now…”
“What? You’re gonna have me arrested? Do you really want to do that? Because it doesn’t look like you’re that eager to get away from me right now. Admit it. You like what you see.”
“What I see is an arrogant asshole with no regard for rules or decency.” Her eyes blaze with anger, sparks flying from the depths and singeing my skin. Desire courses through me, my palms itching to slide over the luscious curves of her hips and ass.
“I have complete regard for decency. If I didn’t, I’d have already told you to switch positions with me.”
Her mouth drops open, and I let out a chuckle. “Not into that, huh?”
“I have a boyfriend,” she rasps.
I lean up on my elbows, drawing myself up toward her. “So you have a boyfriend, and you’re still here, sitting on top of me, a half-naked and clearly aroused stranger. Tell me, gorgeous. Is he the one you’re running from?”
The woman lets out a choked cry as she loses her balance and tumbles backward, her long blonde ponytail whipping against her shoulder.
“Looks like I struck a nerve,” I say. “Are you trying to escape from what you settled for because you’re afraid that you can’t find something better?”
“Who the hell are you to analyze me like that?”
This part is gonna be fun.
“I just figured we should get to know each other a little better, now that I’ve taken over Villa d’Este.” My lips curl upward as the shocked expression settles into her features. “I’m your new neighbor, Cristian Marcone.”