The Mafia Devil in My Inbox Chapter 08

The Mafia Devil in My Inbox Chapter 08

The answer slipped out before I could stop 

myself. 

“Of course she’d like it. I mean, I’d be pretty happy 

with it.” 

The moment the words left my mouth, I wanted to 

bite my tongue off. 

I immediately covered my mouth, my ears burning. 

Dante only chuckled, “It was just a casual 

question, Hannah. No need to be nervous.” 

The morning sunlight softened his features, taking 

away some of the intimidating edge he usually 

carried. 

For some reason, that made him even harder to 

resist. 

When we arrived at New Smyrna Beach, the 

shoreline was crowded with tourists. 

The salty ocean breeze swept across my face. 

Excited, I dragged Dante along the coast, 

determined to show him all the famous spots I’d 

researched online. 

Eventually, we reached the beach’s most famous 

attraction. 

An offshore sandbar. 

At low tide, a long strip of white sand emerged. 

from the ocean, creating what looked like a 

pathway stretching toward the horizon. 

Tourists were everywhere, taking photos and enjoying the view. 

I walked ahead, completely absorbed in the 

scenery. What I didn’t notice was the water slowly 

rising around us. 

By the time I realized something was wrong, the sand beneath my feet had begun disappearing 

beneath the tide. 

Then a powerful current wrapped around my 

ankle. 

My balance vanished instantly. The next thing I 

knew, I was falling into the ocean. 

Cold seawater rushed into my mouth and nose. 

People nearby began shouting. 

Then suddenly, a hand seized my wrist. The grip was unbelievably strong. 

I looked up. Dante had already jumped into the 

water. 

His dark hair was soaked, water dripped down his face. But his gray eyes were terrifyingly cold. 

“Hold on to me.” 

It wasn’t a suggestion. It was an order. 

Instinctively, I grabbed his arm. 

The current continued pulling at me, but Dante 

didn’t move an inch. 

He stood firm against the waves like a rock rising 

from the sea. 

Several minutes later, he finally guided me back to 

shore. 

My legs gave out the moment we reached the 

sand. 

I collapsed onto the beach. Dante crouched in 

front of me. 

His expression was frighteningly dark, “Who told you it was okay to run ahead by yourself?” 

It was the first time I’d ever seen him angry. 

I shrank back slightly, “I didn’t know there was a current…” 

Before I could finish, he reached out and brushed the wet hair away from my forehead. 

The gesture was gentle. 

The emotions in his eyes were not, “What if I’d 

been one second too late?” 

I froze. 

For a moment, I couldn’t answer. 

Just then, several drunken young men wandered over, “Hey, beautiful, need me to give you 

mouth–to–mouth?” 

Before he could come closer, Dante stood up. 

His tall frame instantly blocked me from view. The 

men immediately fell silent. 

Because the Dante standing before them looked 

nothing like the one who had spent the day quietly following me around the beach. 

There was no smile on his face. 

No warmth. Only a coldness that made my skin. crawl. 

The look in his eyes was the kind people reserved for enemies. 

Or corpses. 

Despite wearing nothing more than casual 

clothes, he radiated danger. 

“Leave.” 

Just one word. That was all it took. 

The men backed away almost immediately, as if 

some primal instinct was screaming at them to 

run. 

Within seconds, they were gone. 

Only then did I finally breathe again. 

By the time we sat back down on the beach, the 

sun was beginning to set. 

The ocean had turned gold and crimson beneath the fading light. 

I glanced sideways at Dante. 

The wind lifted the edge of his cardigan. His gaze remained fixed on the horizon. 

But the veins standing out on the back of his hand around his water bottle hadn’t relaxed once. 

That’s when it hit me. 

The accident hadn’t only scared me. It had scared 

him, too. 

This man was the Don of the DeLorenzo family. 

The legendary Mafia King. 

A man who controlled empires. A man whose 

emotions rarely showed on his face. 

Yet during those few terrifying moments in the water, he’d looked genuinely afraid. 

The realization made something flutter inside my 

chest. A small, dangerous beat of my heart. 

But I buried it immediately. I was just a normal 

person. Once my father’s debt was paid and this 

project was over, I would never cross paths with them again. 

After leaving the beach, Dante asked if there was anything good to eat nearby. 

I immediately recommended a famous local pizza place. 

The restaurant itself wasn’t much to look at. The 

food, however, was incredible. 

I led him to one of the outdoor tables. 

We ordered several signature dishes, and six 

bottles of beer. 

Because after almost drowning, I figured I’d 

earned them.