Cold-Hearted

By Eliana Salome

She never should have stepped out of line, because now, I see her, and like everything else in my life, I won’t be satisfied until she’s mine in every way.

Gabriella

My future had always been set.
Like a road paved by skilled builders, without bends or intersections, I walked the path my parents laid for me.
My marriage to the future of The Outfit was all that mattered.
I didn’t have a choice. 
Belonging to the world’s largest criminal organization wasn’t easy but belonging to him was. 
With Jacob, I’d got lucky and as a mafia princess, I couldn’t have asked for more. 
Jacob was beautiful and kind and the road to him was bright with sunlight and sweet with the fragrance of flowers.
Until it wasn’t.
Until it became dark with shadows. 
Until the day he broke my heart.
He was a dream that turned into a nightmare.
And now, I’d do anything to get away.

Jacob

She was a job like any other job. 
Marry her.
Have an heir.
And in between all that, keep the world under my heel by any means necessary. 
I’d count myself lucky if I wasn’t covered in blood on our wedding day.
As a girl, Gabrielle was as bright eyed and bushy tailed.
That was until I took off the rose-colored glasses, broke them, and revealed who I truly was.
Now, the woman is as vicious as a cobra, but when she forgets her place, like a benevolent king, I remind her.
Her resistance goads me. 
Her words bite.
She never counted on me biting her back.
And I never counted on her tasting so good...
Rage became foreplay.
Sex became life.
And somehow, my job, she became an obsession.
Gabriella made me lose control. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pretty Booked, LLC
• Release date: Dec 8, 2021
• ISBN: 9781637181829

Book preview

ONE

GABRIELLA

NINE YEARS EARLIER

I was born to be his.

I had been reminded of that so often, it had become a mantra that defined me. My body, my future, my very being – none of it belonged to me. It never had.

I belonged to Jacob Andretti.

And I didn’t mind that so much.

I was twelve and happy with who my parents had determined I would marry. Jacob was my friend and if I had to marry anyone, I’d choose him too. My friend Viola thought he was cute and I agreed.

Pain jerked me from my thoughts.

My great aunts surrounded me like vultures, feasting on youth by pinching my cheeks sore and running their hands through my hair enough time to give me rug burn. They fawned over me, as if we weren’t in the middle of a restaurant where others could see and hear.

Isotta, she gets more beautiful everytime I see her, Aunt Martina sighed as she cupped my face. She smelled like dough, and garlic, and all the best things in life. You should bring her home more often. Home was Italy.

Never to be outdone, Aunt Carterlina said, Gabriella is going to make an outstanding bride. Then she leaned in and whispered, And a fine queen.

We all turned to look at the current queen. My mother. Isotta La Pieski was somber but I could see the pride that shone though her golden eyes, eyes that everyone said I’d inherited. "My princessa is quite the beauty, no?"

Taking their que, Aunt Carterlina and Aunt Martina started all over again with the compliments. They fawned over me and mama. I knew why. For fears, I thought it was love that prompted their adoration but at twelve their fear was evident.

A shout from inside, likely from Uncle Tito, made them scurry back to the kitchens.

Sunlight hit me the moment they were gone. The air carried formed and the salt that drifted from Mediterrian Sea. Uncle Titi’s restaurant was one the white stucco buildings set in the middle of the otherwise colorful town that was built just on the edge of our family property.

And somewhere close to all of this was Jacob.

We did it every year. Every summer our families came to Scily for business and every summer Jacob and I would find a way to get away from everyone else. Expectations didn’t rule us when we were alone. Summers with Jacob were the few times in life where I felt like myself.

I looked out over the ocean that stretched the expanse of our family’s properties and vineyards and felt the sight relax the nervous energy in my belly. The butterflies never failed to reveal my excitement when I was waiting for Jacob at our meeting spot, but the water calmed me. The sea was impossibly blue. My dad always said it was the color blue was named after. And the sky met it at the horizon. Viola described the sight as a lover’s kiss.

A boy moved to stand by the balcony and I looked at him. He turned to me and smiled.

I smiled back.

Turn away, Gabrella, my mother called before I even had the chance to make out the boy’s face. We don’t want to encourage him.

Encourage him? He was just being friendly. I can have friends. Was it wrong to be nice? I stretched the napkin over my lap as a server brought out a plate of bread. He placed it in the center of the slick brownstone table that had been set for two, just me and mama.

I knew better than to look up at the server. Once he was gone, I grabbed my allotted piece and tried to not to think of how the rest would go to waste. Mama didn’t eat bread. The bread was for me, used like a trojan horse when she was gearing up to make a speech.

Gabrella, you are beautiful. Boys will look at you differently than other girls which is why you can never be friends. We must preserve your purity for your destiny. The Andretti will expect a girl without a blemish to her reputation and that is what your father and I will give them. Her tone soured at the mention of the Andretti family but I didn’t bother to think about that. My mind was elsewhere.

It was on my purity. My destiny. My reputation. Something dark pricked at my heart. I wanted to rebel, to argue that I was a person with a mind. It was knowing that somewhere close, right along the beach, Jacob was waiting for me.

As politely as possible, I asked, Why can’t I have friends who are boys? Viola has boy friends.

Viola isn’t like you. She wrapped a manicured hand around her wine glass and brought it to her lips. The world doesn’t wonder how they can use her.

The world? First it had been the family. Now the world needed me to marry Jacob?

She saw the question in my eyes and answered it. Being someone important isn’t easy. Because if things go wrong, you can get hurt. She turned away when a woman approached our table. I recognized her as one of the sister’s of one of the wives of La Famiglia. She’d been around the house a few times. Like Aunt Martina, Aunt Caterlina, and Uncle Tito, the woman and her family were under papa’s protection.

While mama busied herself with another conversation, I looked out at the water and tried to think of a way to escape. How long would Jacob wait for me?

A pleasant scent tickled my nose. It was floral and serene. I turned just in time to watch a woman in a flowy red sundress walk across the balcony. Her heels were silent as she floated by. Heads turned to watch her. I even noticed my bodyguard Lamberto eyeing her from his position by the stairway. He looked spellbound.

There was something about her that was… memorizing.

When she made it to her table another gentleman got up from his table and helped her sit. Her red lips split into a smile. Her eyes were hidden behind a pair of shades and half her face was shadowed by her hat. I watched the gentleman ask her another question but she shook her head and turned away.

When he spoke again she looked at him. The change in her posture was subtle but I saw it and so did it. When she spoke again he backed down and even bowed a little.

Who is she?

Only after the man left did she remove her sun hat and shades.

She was pretty. I wouldn’t call her the most beautiful woman in the world. For one, her nose was a little large and her dark eyes a little small, but there was something striking about her. From the way she held the menu to the slight tilt in her head, she made me feel like I was staring at fine art in motion.

She glanced up suddenly and my heart jumped. She smiled and once again I felt myself smiling back. At first, it was just to be polite but soon it felt like something else.

The way she looked at me made me feel seen. We were communicating with our smiles. Under her gaze, I didn’t feel like Gabriella La Pieski, daughter to Argo La Pieski and one of the most dangerous men in Italy and the US. For a moment, I was just Gabriella.

Mama’s voice changed. Hardened. Something the woman had said upset her but I knew she wasn’t upset with the woman. They were talking about something serious.

That was my que.

I need to go to the powder room. I hated saying that. I didn’t use powders but mama said that’s what it was so I obeyed.

Yes, mama barely glanced at me. She was anxious to finish her conversation.

I got up and sprinted. Halfway down the stairs, I heard her call for Lamberto to follow me.

Time to get lost.

I ran in the opposite direction of the bathroom, turned a corner, and ran into someone. Sorry.

Soft hands grabbed me.

I looked up and met the eyes of the woman in the red dress. I hadn’t seen her leave the balcony. A handsome man in a nice suit stepped out from behind her. He kissed her cheek. I’ll meet you upstairs. She watched him leave before letting her eyes fall down to me. She laughed somewhere deep in her throat. Why the rush? Are you off to meet a boy? Her accent wasn’t Italian but French.

My mouth fell open and my cheeks burned. How does she know?

Her eyes widened. Ah, so it is a young man you are to meet. And does your mother know?

Don’t tell her! I lowered my voice. Please.

She bent her knees and smiled. How could stop young love. Il n'y a qu'un bonheur dans la vie, c'est d'aimer et d'être aimé.

What does that mean?

It means, there is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved. She let me go with a flourish that seemed like magic, she left.

I went outside and looked around. I was close to my family’s estate. Beyond the vineyard, I could see Jacob’s family’s estate but where was he?

Someone covered my eyes from behind. The hands were warm, and I could smell the sand on his skin. He’d been digging for rocks again.

Jacob, I said with a giggle.

Gabriella, he answered with a smile that I could hear in his voice.

My heart skipped a beat when he let go of me and walked around to face me. He was so handsome, even more so than when I’d seen him the year before. Olive skin, dark hair, and those alluring eyes, just as inviting and hypnotizing as the water. The color blue was named after. Right? I shivered a little.

He’d always been cute. Charm had been embedded in his smile since were were young. Every time summer got close, I’d wondered what we’d do once we were alone. Usually, we snuck grapes and played in the water while we laughed and mocked our parents and told each other our worse experiences from the year.

But now… When I looked at him, I didn’t want to talk about our parents. I didn’t want to sneak grapes or play in the water either. Instead, I wanted to do something else, like kiss.

Being alone with him felt different.

Do you want to come to the beach with me? he asked.

I nodded.

I suddenly wanted to be somewhere alone with him. Somewhere beautiful.

As we walked to the beach, I could hear my bodyguard in the back of mind telling me to turn back. I dragged my feet against the stone road, tripped, and caught myself before Jacob could see. My cheeks stung and I was starting to hyperventilate. My anxiety was higher than usual. I didn’t feel like I usually did around him. I didn’t feel like myself. I wasn’t even sure who I was.

So, has your mother finally backed off and let you breath? he asked.

I laughed. No. Like everything else in my life, she still does the breathing for me.

When he laughed back, the nervousness fled. He was still Jacob. I was still me. Being alone was still against the rules but we were breaking them together and would suffer the consequences together, just like we always did.

At the edge of the beach, we took off our sandals. With every step, we sunk into the hot white dunes.

I love it here, I said.

I know, Jacob said with a grin. You always say you never wanted to leave again.

Do you?

He pulled up his shoulders. He had gotten a lot taller than last year.

We belong in America where we can do work.

I crinkled my nose. You sound like your dad.

My dad knows what he’s talking about.

I didn’t answer him.

We walked on the sand in silence for a short while. When we reached a flat rock, Jacob sat down on it and patted on the seat next to him so that I would sit down, too. This was the place that Jacob liked, the spot on the beach that was right between our estates. I always thought the place appropriate since we were destined to close the gap that separated our families.

I sat down and noticed a brown parcel in his hands. Where had it come from? Had he had it this whole time?

Happy birthday, Gabriella, he said and handed me the parcel.

Oh! I let out a breath. The butterflies in my belly returned.

Every year, the families making up La Famiglia came to Sicily on vacation. Our fathers would work, meeting and handling their business affairs while our moms would lie in the sun until they were so brown, I thought they would burn like toast. It was always on my birthday that we came, but it was never for my birthday. I got presents and a cake usually, but the main reason everyone was here was for business, so that was usually the end of it.

Jacob had never gotten me a gift before.

With eager hands, I tore the brown paper open.

It’s a book, I said, holding out. The corners were folded over a little, the cover was worn. When I opened it, I could smell the pages, old and dusty.

It’s not just any book, Jacob said.

Romeo and Juliet, I read the words out loud. I’ve heard this story a thousand times before.

It’s different reading it than hearing about it, Jacob promised. Plus, you’ll like it. Do you know why?

I shook my head.

It’s about two people who love each other. Like a lot. But they’re not allowed to be together. Because their families hate each other.

I nodded, remembering a few details of when Rita had told me this story before. She often said Jacob and I were like Romeo and Juliet—her way of romanticizing my fate for effect, I suppose.

Yes, their families were like ours. Like we were.

"Like we were, yes, Jacob agreed. But our families called a truce, remember? We’re getting married one day. And we get to live happily ever after, not torn apart and dead like they do."

This book doesn’t have a happy ending. I hadn’t read it but everyone knew the story.

He smiled. But ours will.

Jacob took my hand in his. Shivers ran over my body. His hand was hot and sweaty and my palm seemed to melt into it.

I’ll love you forever, Gabriella, he said. And everything will fit together right because our families aren’t fighting anymore.

My heart spoke a thousand words, but my lips uttered none. Memories bloomed inside me. This time, every year, I always had butterflies in my stomach. It was only at this moment I realized the feeling had nothing to do with Sicily and everything to do with the boy sitting beside me.

I loved him, too.

The words of the mysterious French woman from the restaurant came to mind. There is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved. She was right. Jacob made me happy.

Forever is a long time.

Jacob nodded. It is. And I’ll love you forever.

He kissed me on the cheek, and I blushed like crazy.

Come on, Gabs, he said with a laugh. Our parents will be freaking out by now about where we are. I’ll race you back to the path.

Go! I shouted and started running. Jacob laughed and ran after me. For the first time, he didn’t stay behind me the way he always did. He stayed right next to me. We ran together all the way.

TWO

GABRIELLA

Oh, Gabriella, you look beautiful! Aunt Bree crooned when she walked into my bedroom in Sicily. She was Mama’s sister, and she had come to check on things on her behalf, no doubt.

"Thank you, Zia," I said, and allowed Bree to kiss me on both cheeks. She cupped my face and her eyes glistened with tears.

"I can’t believe this day has come, cara. You are everything your parents had prayed for, and more."

I smiled at her, hoping that she was right. I often felt like a disappointment in Mama’s eyes. Her disapproval of my resistance to embrace my destiny was palpable. But after tonight, I guessed it wouldn’t matter anymore. I would belong to Jacob, and what he thought of me would be the only thing I needed to worry about.

Or so they thought.

I turned back to the gilded floor-to-ceiling mirror in my room. Like everything else in my room, it was fit for a princess. Whites, pale pinks, and gold lined the furniture, bedding, and framed art. After twenty-one years, it was almost hard to believe that my days under this roof were numbered.

Turning my body, I studied my reflection. I had often been scrubbed and dressed up for family gatherings, but never to this extent. Rita outdid herself every time, but she’d saved all of her talents for today. And now I was her masterpiece.

I barely recognized myself. I wore an ivory strapless dress—ivory, not white, not yet—and a soft, silk stole of sorts wrapped around my neck, trailing down behind me, hanging all the way to the floor. The material was sheer. The dress, the silk, it was all just a step away from a wedding dress with a veil. I wore strappy cream heels with it, and my dark hair had been pinned up in a mass of curls that cascaded onto my shoulders. My skin smelled like roses, shimmering slightly, and my makeup had been done so that it accentuated my dark eyes, with a nude lip.

Rita was a miracle worker. She should have gone into the beauty profession. But like everyone else who belonged to La Famiglia, she had a role to fulfil, and that was the end of it.

Do you think Mama will like it? I asked Aunt Bree as I met her gaze through the mirror.

She frowned slightly. "Of course, she will. You’ll be the belle of the ball. This is your day, cara, no one will outshine you."

Oh, no one could ever outshine Ella, Rita said, studying her hard work from my other side. She offered me a soft smile when our eyes met in the mirror. Such beauty is not seen more than once in the same century.

I pursed my lips together and nodded. My beauty had never been pointed out as a compliment. Only ever as a reason why I would be good enough for Jacob. Good enough to be queen.

When Rita looked at me again, she had tears in her eyes. For every day of my life since I was a baby, Rita had been the one to style me. But that would change. After tonight, her work with me would be done. Someone else would take her place once I was officially presented to the world as Jacob’s future bride.

I have something for you, Rita said. A surprise. I didn’t want to show you until now.

Rita hurried to the closet and returned with a velvety blue box. She opened it with a flourish to reveal a sparkling Swarovski hair piece that curved like a headband.. She pinned it to my hair, and it looked oh so much like a crown.

Now you’re perfect, she whispered in one breath.

My unease settled in the pit of my stomach, seeming to flop around inside like a dead fish.

I turned back to my reflection and tried to appear excited or at least content. I knew that Rita and Aunt Bree both thought this was the most romantic, emotional night of my life. But it wasn’t. The person I saw in the mirror was merely a product of what my circumstances had made me. The person in that mirror wasn’t someone I had ever chosen to be myself.

Thank you, I said out of courtesy, meaning it. Rita had cared for me and I was thankful. The gift was expensive and I had no idea what my family paid her.

I have to take care of a few things, Aunt Bree said, sniveling. I’ll inform your mother you’re ready.

I nodded, and a moment later, they were both gone, and I stood alone in my room.

Would my mother be pleased? Would Jacob?

Now you’re perfect, Rita had said. Would Jacob think so?

While part of me told myself not to care, another part of me was ready to show Jacob everything he lost when he decided to throw me away. Yes, we’d be married and my body would be his, but not my mind and definitely not my heart.

Those would always belong to me.

My eyes slid to my bookshelf, down to the bottom book in a stack, lowest on the shelf. It was the old, tattered copy of Romeo and Juliet that I hadn’t touched since Jacob had broken my heart. The spine was undone. It only served as a reminder of how I’d felt the day he tried to crush my soul.

There’d be no second chance.

Are you coming, Gabriella? Mama asked, poking her head in the door.

I forced a smile and turned to her. My smile didn’t meet my eyes. It was unlikely that she missed it.. It was just as unlikely that she would care.

Happiness was not her priority. Neither of us had a choice in this.

Eyeing me under heavy scrutiny, she looked me up and down, and clasped her hands to her mouth. Slowly, the edges of her lips turned up into a grin. At least she looked happy with what she saw. I guess that was something.

"You’re

Reviews for Cold-Hearted

[Liew · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Cold-hearted by Eliana Salome is a very wonderful book. It's have a very intense drama for the arranged marriage couple despite the history of friend during childhood which lead to an arrangement for them to rescue their heart from falling in to each other. While following the arrangements, spicy hot romance brewing between them. Reader are blessed with every steamy scenes from sweet to spicy. The book also bring a little of tear from a heartbreak. However, the sweet loving between them make reader smile from ear to ear.

I just finished the Dirty Possession yesterday, and today I finished Cold-hearted. I'll definitely be looking forward to the new book the Eliana Salome. This book have a great storyline. Perhaps, we will be able to read a story from Morgana and Liam previously on Dirty Possession.