Publication date: October 12th, 2020
Synopsis:
Second chance love has never been so alluring... or dangerous.
When Sofia returns to the small town of Sant'Agosto in Central Italy to take care of her sick aunt, she doesn't expect to find Antonio, her childhood sweetheart, there. He's back from Rome, has turned into the sexiest man alive - and he carries a gun. That's because, as Vice Commander of a special operations group, he fights the Mafia on a daily basis.
Can Antonio be trusted with Sofia's heart? Or will he disappoint her as he did when they were teens?
For Antonio, the situation is even more fraught: should he push Sofia away to protect her from his dangerous world, or let her love him although it could cost her life?
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Excerpt
Suddenly, a hand tugged at Antonio's shoulder and spun him around. His mouth fell open when he saw Sofia standing there, rage in her eyes.
'Sofia, my god!' His only thought was what would happen if she were somehow caught in this mission, hurt, or worse. 'It's not what you think.'
'Oh, yeah?' Her cheeks were as red as the cross on the box that the Mafia was picking up. Her arm pulled back, gathering strength, and her hand came so close to his cheek that he could feel the heat from it. She took it away without slapping him, forming a fist instead.
'I'll neutralize her,' hissed Marta, raising a fist ready to knock the wind out of Sofia.
'Marta, no! It's an order.' Antonio latched onto Marta's arm, holding it back. The last thing he needed was to draw attention to the two women while Luca was dealing with the Mafiosi.
'That's right, Mr. Big Shot. Tell all your chicks what to do.' Sofia was yelling now, trembling like a leaf ready to fall off a tree. 'Last night, if you hadn't burned the food, we would have been in bed. And today you say you have to go to work when you're parading around with some woman. You heard me, lady, he would have cheated on you, too, last night, if I'd let him. Antonio De Santis, you are a disgusting, filthy pig. What am I saying? Compared to you, pigs are adorable.'
Antonio turned to check on the ambulance men, at the same time as they stared at him. 'Fuck! It's a set up!' yelled one of them, probably recognizing Antonio, and the Mafiosi both pulled out their guns while running back to the ambulance, the box in hand.
Luca fumbled for his gun, half crouching down, while Marta aimed calmly at the first man and took the shot.
Meanwhile, one of the Mafiosi aimed at Sofia. 'Hey, De Santis, this is for your bitch and you!'
'No!' screamed Antonio, throwing himself in front of her and pushing her out of the way so hard that she seemed to fly through the air.
In that instant, pain rushed through his body and he had no idea where it originated. He was all pain, nothing but pain, every single one of his nerve endings on high alert, the agony robbing him of his breath.
He fell to his knees, aware only of how cold he suddenly became, and he wanted to scream, he wanted to cry, but even tears seemed to require more energy than was left in him.
And then Antonio's world turned black.
Pitch black, as if someone had switched him off.
His last thought was that Sofia had to make it out alive.
Nora James grew up in Australia, before spending years in Paris where she studied, worked and met the Frenchman who would soon become her husband. In her mid-twenties she returned to Western Australia with her spouse, read law at UWA and travelled extensively through her employment as an international resources lawyer and translator.
In 2016 she and her husband returned to France. She now writes novels from the home in coastal Brittany that the couple share with their daughter and a menagerie of furry friends.
When Nora's not dreaming up stories she can be found in the garden growing vegetables, in the kitchen cooking up a storm or on the couch reading a good book.
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