In His Grasp: A Mafia Romance

Chapter 131: Meeting Rocco with Grazia

After Emanuele finished his shower, he saw that Isabella had already pulled the covers over herself and was asleep. She lay there, facing away from him, a clear sign that she was still angry. The misunderstandings between them seemed to be growing, and Emanuele was becoming increasingly frustrated.

He didn't know what to do to make Isabella not despise him. However, with so many tasks demanding his attention, finding Frederick was his top priority. Until he saw Frederick's body or had concrete evidence of his demise, Emanuele couldn't rest easy. He also couldn't afford to let Isabella know his true feelings; he feared that their enemies would exploit this vulnerability.

If Isabella became his wife now, there was an 80% chance that their enemies would try to kill her. Once they knew he cared for Isabella, they would stop at nothing to eliminate her. Emanuele didn't want that to happen, so he had to suppress his emotions for Isabella.

To outsiders, their marriage was merely a convenient arrangement. As for Grazia, Emanuele admitted that part of the reason was to secure a deeper partnership by having her marry Rocco. But at the same time, it was also about protecting Grazia.

Even though the situation seemed clear now with Frederick on the run, and Emanuele still in control of Chicago, he couldn't let his guard down. People like Frederick enjoyed targeting those close to him. His subordinates and even Andrew had fallen victim to Frederick's schemes. Emanuele was afraid that, if Grazia stayed close to him, he wouldn't be able to protect her. However, if she married Rocco, there would be no need to worry about this issue, as Rocco was the head of the Italian Mafia. Emanuele believed Frederick wouldn't be foolish enough to provoke two mafia organizations simultaneously.

But he couldn't share these thoughts with Isabella; he knew she wouldn't understand. Women's minds were sometimes strange; they liked romance and all things ethereal. They were often led by emotions, even if it meant risking their lives.

If he told Isabella, she would probably agree more with Grazia pursuing what she wanted. So, he decided it wasn't necessary to discuss this matter with Isabella. He had given Grazia and Rocco time to get along, hoping they could have a pleasant relationship and a smooth marriage.

Emanuele lay beside Isabella, carefully holding her in his arms. Fortunately, she didn't wake up due to his movements. Emanuele sighed, wondering when he had started to fear Isabella's emotional states. His emotions were complicated, but holding Isabella, he drifted off to sleep.

The news of Grazia's impending marriage to Rocco continued to affect Isabella. Early in the morning, when she woke up, thoughts of this matter gave her a headache.

At breakfast downstairs, Isabella mentioned it to Lilly. Lilly said, "Even though it might be hard to understand, as a Mafia princess, she has to be ready to arrange a marriage anytime for the honor of the family." "But what if the other person is very ruthless?" Isabella asked.

In her impression, Rocco looked fierce, with a scar on his face and mysterious, calculating eyes.

A man like Rocco for Grazia's husband?

Their personalities are completely opposite; Grazia is so outgoing and looks like sunshine. Her late husband, Andrew, was witty and humorous, which Grazia seems to favor. No matter how she interacts with Rocco, it should be without any emotional attachment.

"Isabella, relax. As long as Emanuele remains strong, those people will consider his dignity and won't harm Grazia," Lilly assured.

Grazia, as the Mafia princess, represented the honor of the Lombardi family. Even if she got married, if the other party dared to mistreat her, it would be disrespectful to the Lombardi family. Emanuele, being who he was, wouldn't allow such a thing to happen.

Isabella sighed; she was still saddened by the situation. However, she was well aware of her insignificance. In the world of the Mafia, women were like tools, to be used and disposed of at will. She was fortunate to have married the person she liked. But if, at that time, Emanuele didn't want to marry her, she wouldn't have had any say in the matter and would have ended up marrying Clark.

However, Emanuele marrying her didn't necessarily mean it was good for her.

After a while, Isabella heard the doorbell. She opened the door and saw Grazia.

"Oh, God, I actually wanted to come find you, but you beat me to it," Isabella immediately pulled Grazia inside.

Grazia looked quite worn out, seemingly worried about what was coming next.

"Rocco sent me a message, saying he wants to meet me today," Grazia said, her lips trembling. It was evident that she was at a loss about meeting Rocco.

At this moment, Isabella felt calmer. She knew that one of them had to remain composed.

Grazia clearly couldn't be indifferent, so it had to be her.

"Grazia, how about I accompany you to meet him?" Isabella thought they needed some contact no matter what.

Her nature was like this: if you couldn't escape something, you faced it positively. Find a loophole in the situation and make yourself the one truly in control.

On hearing this, Grazia's emotions improved slightly. "That would be great if Rocco agrees."

She didn't want to face it alone; she felt she might break down and accidentally mess up everything. Even though her relationship with Emanuele was good, he was the Mafia boss, and she didn't dare resist his decisions. The only thing she could do was try to find a place that made her a little more comfortable in an uncomfortable environment.

Seeing Grazia a bit happier, Isabella was also pleased.

After a while, Rocco replied to Grazia: "Okay."

Grazia immediately took Isabella's hand. "Let's go meet him together."

Their agreed-upon meeting place was a nearby café. Grazia and Isabella got into Tony's car, heading to the café.

During the journey, Grazia kept asking Tony and Harry about Rocco.

"What do you think Rocco dislikes in a woman the most?"

"Definitely someone disobedient," Harry answered.

"If I'm too disobedient, he might twist my head off," Grazia vetoed. "What if I act very boring? He probably won't like me then."

"We don't know much about this kind of marriage, but based on my experience with the boss for many years, if he tells me to marry someone, I'll marry her no matter what, unless it involves a matter of principle, like her cheating. If she really cheats, being disloyal to the marriage, I might shoot her."

Grazia immediately hugged Isabella. "Oh no, it seems I can only marry Rocco."

She had heard he was not gentle at all, very cold and ruthless, with a long scar on his face, truly terrifying.