Five Families

When I was little, I was obsessed with fairytales. My dad told me the stories of the stars and white knights who rescue princesses. I’d wear a silver plastic crown and stare at the sky, waiting for the day my knight in shining armor would come. Then my dad died, my crown broke, and my mom shipped my sister and me off to boarding school. And then I met them. My knights. Only they’re nothing like the fairytales I grew up on. They’re wrapped in sin and shrouded in darkness. Bossy, protective, alphaholes. And heirs to the Italian mafia.

When I’m ripped from safety, catapulted into consciousness, and thrown into a nightmare, I come face-to-face with the cruel plot twist fate threw me. My fight-or-flight instinct kicks in, and when every road leads to chaos, there’s only one option. In my darkest moments, I promised myself I’d take what I want, and that includes them. My dark avengers.

Fate is a fickle mistress. She gives as easily as she takes, and she makes no apologies for it. When I’m on the precipice of an inconceivable loss and a betrayal slices me wide open, I have a decision to make. I can stay the polite, subservient girl—or I can shed my societal restraints and become the person I was destined to be. With my dark Italian kings by my side, we don’t just change the rules, we remake the whole game. Gone is the girl with stars in her eyes, and in her place is a woman with vengeance in her veins. It’s time I stop asking for permission and start claiming what’s mine.

It was supposed to be my happily ever after. For the first time in a long time, there was a promise of peace. So my Italian heirs and I made plans—big, life-changing plans—and tried to move on with our lives. I was naive to think there weren’t snakes lying in the grass, just waiting for the opportune time to strike. It was a blow no one saw coming. We didn’t start this war, but with the help of our unexpected allies, we’re sure as h\*ll going to end it. I vowed I would never sit idle while my family is in danger. And I never break a promise.