Prologue
I shifted as I sat up, feeling the soft-white silk covers under me slide against my skin. My eyes opened to the glaring sun and my hand grasped the butt of my gun under her pillow. Something woke me from my slumber; a sound in the room I did not expect, but a glance around told me nothing was there. This did not ease my tension, and I shifted again, the blankets falling away to reveal tattooed, tanned, naked flesh.
With my free hand, I pinned my brown hair back and pointed the magnum around the room again with narrowed eyes. Every nerve ending in my body sensed someone in the room that did not get my permission to enter my private quarters. Right as a familiar man rose to a stand in front of me from the edge of the bed, hands in the air, I raised my gun right at his face with a snarl.
“How many times have I told you to knock before you enter my room, Marcello?” I asked with a raised brow, not even flinching when his eyes roamed my naked body. “Do you have a death wish?”
“The Don has a job for you,” Marcello replied while raising his hands in pacification. “And as much as I enjoy the view, wearing clothes to sleep is what normal people do.”
“I’m the future Donna of the Accardi Family. Normal does not qualify for me.” I countered with a shrug and stood to walk over to my wardrobe. “Next time, do not enter my room without permission, or I will shoot you.”
Marcello visibly shivered before nodding his head, a fearful expression. And that fearfulness made sense. I was next in line to run one of the most powerful families in the world, and one of the strongest members of my family, despite my size. That is right, the future Donna of the Accardi Family is smaller than the smallest man.
At five foot five and ninety-four pounds, I barely came to the shoulder of the smallest guy in my family. It was thanks to that, that I was the most successful of all the family’s informants. That and my mother’s techniques that even my grandfather did not know. It was one of the few ways I could help my ailing grandfather. My job as the future Donna.
I pulled on her blue jeans and navy turtleneck before turning to face Marcello again. I often found myself with a lot of suitors, but they were only after the position of Don they would get from marrying me. Not to be with me as a person. Though I knew it was pointless to wish for love, especially with my position in this world. As a Princess, I would likely have a groom selected for me by my grandfather, so I gave up on love.
My duty to my family was far more important. I followed Marcello out into the lavishly decorated hallway down to my grandfather’s office in silence. Whatever the job, I would solve it and be back in no time, with a confident nod and surety in her steps. We paused at the door before Marcello glanced at me as he lifted his hand to knock.
““Entra.” The raspy but firm voice on the other side said, sounding weak in her ears. “Mia Cara Lili, ti trovo bellissima oggi!”
My grandfather served as the Don of the Accardi Family for the past twenty years, but he did not pressure me to become the Donna despite his failing health. He actually seemed hesitant to let me fully become a member of their family, despite it being my reason for existing. Even though I have the highest success rates on all my missions. I stared into her grandfather’s eyes with concern as a fit of coughs left him.
Since mother died, grandfather has been getting sicker and sicker, no matter how often they called for the doctor. As much as he did not want me involved, he had to prepare me for the eventuality of his death. And I knew it. I stepped forward before bowing at the waist, my hand fisting over my chest in the family’s salute.
“Lili, there is a family I want you to infiltrate. Not as a Princess, but as a maid.” He said, raising a blood-soaked tissue to his mouth. “The Don there cannot know who you are. Do you think you can pull this off?”
“Of course I can, grandfather. I have mother’s techniques if all else fails.” I replied, to which my grandfather sighed. “I know you’re not a fan, but they work well.”
Mother’s techniques. The women of my mother’s family used seduction to gain information from people. Even at twenty-three, I had a higher success rate than anyone in the family thanks to my mother’s secret techniques. My grandfather did not know the full details of the reason it had such a high success rate, but it was thanks to them I was confident in my abilities. There was no job too small or big for me to take on.
I ran my fingers through my short brown hair before glancing at Marcello, who took an interest in the floor. It was the reason most of the men in the family did not mess with me. I could be dangerous to their futures as members of her family. I needed to focus on the details if I wanted to be successful on this next mission. Who knew what the family I would be investigating would hide?
“Don Romano, I’m bringing in a few new girls as maids. Allow me to introduce them.” The Head Servant said with a nod towards the gaggle of girls giggling in his presence. “Though all but one has never worked for a family before.”
“Oh?” This piqued his interest, especially because he had his eyes on one girl who remained silent near the door. “What family did she work for?”
“Accardi.” The older man replied, motioning towards the doe-eyed woman who stepped forward with a graceful bow. “This is Lili Orlando. A maid from the Accardi house.”
The top of her head stopped at his shoulder, but when he stepped forward to examine her closer, she did not flinch. Instead, Lili met his gaze head-on, daring him to say something. What she expected, he did not know, but he knew he could feel his body responding to the lilac scent of her filling his nose. A few years passed since he last spent time in the company of a woman, so perhaps she could entertain him for a while.
It helped that he could tell she was not much older than him. At twenty-eight, and a Don, he could not find time to date, and if he did, the woman would have to meet his family’s standards for a Donna. But that did not mean he could not have fun. She was tiny, too, and he wondered where she stored her bravery to look someone so much larger than her straight in the eyes.
Maybe it was because she was a woman who knew her own strengths made her attractive, or maybe it was the small tattoo he could see on the base of her neck, under her pretty brown hair. He did not really know, but one thing he was sure of was he wanted her. In his bed. For a few hours at least. Lili cleared her throat, drawing his gaze down to her lips before her sexy, full lips parted to speak. The smoothness of her voice startled him from his thoughts and, for the first time in his life, he felt weak in the knees.
“My former Mistress told me a lot about you.” She said, her brown eyes narrowing gently as she spoke, making him feel at ease immediately. “You are just as handsome as she said. I am Lili Orlando, a former maid of Liliana Accardi. They assigned me to her because of our names.”
“Then you will service me as my personal maid.” Nicolo replied, making everyone gasp in shock at his on-the-spot decision. “You’ve already served a Princess, so serving your Don should not be much more difficult.”
He knew this would cause her trouble, but something was telling him she was not as she seemed. A smile lifted the corners of her lips, making him notice a dimple form in her left cheek, before she nodded her understanding and bowed. Perhaps he should think this through a little more, but the closer she is, the easier she will be to seduce. He never expected one of his maids to be exactly his type, though testing her strength under the power of everyone’s jealousy would be necessary if she became Donna. The thought came from nowhere and he shook the silly idea from his head.
“Boss, are you sure about this?” Piero, his underboss, asked with concern. “Putting such a scrawny maid at your service could put you at risk.”
“Hm. Non interrogarmi.” The Don said, stepping forward to invade her personal space. “She does not work for the Accardi any longer. She should learn her place here.”
