THE ENEMY’S DANGEROUS KISS

# Chapter One ## The Enemy's Son The first rule of being a Bellini was simple. Never trust a Vitale. Elena Bellini had heard those words all her life. Her father had repeated them whenever the Vitale name was mentioned. Her uncles had turned them into a family law. Even the old men who gathered around the long dining table in the Bellini estate spoke about the Vitales as though they were monsters hiding behind expensive suits. But Elena didn't need anyone to tell her why she should hate them. She had her own reason. Her mother. Elena stood beside the enormous bedroom window, staring at Palermo beneath the night sky. The city glowed with warm lights, beautiful and alive, but she barely noticed it. Her fingers closed around the silver pendant hanging from her neck. It had belonged to her mother. It was the only thing Elena had left of her. Twenty-four years old and already hardened by a loss she had never managed to understand, Elena had learned to hide her pain behind confidence. In the Bellini world, weakness was dangerous. And Elena refused to be weak. A soft knock sounded behind her. "Come in." The door opened. Adrian Ferretti stepped inside. His expensive black shirt was rolled slightly at the sleeves, and his dark hair was neatly pushed away from his face. To anyone watching, he looked like the perfect man for Elena—calm, protective and loyal. He was her boyfriend. Or at least, that was what Elena believed. "You should be sleeping," Adrian said. "I couldn't." His gaze moved toward the pendant around her neck. "Thinking about your mother again?" Elena looked down. "Every night." Adrian walked closer. For a moment, he simply stood beside her. Then he reached for her hand. "I know how much you miss her." Elena swallowed. "My father says the Vitales are responsible." Adrian's expression remained unreadable. "They are." "You sound very certain." "I've heard enough stories." Elena turned toward him. "They took everything from my family." Adrian squeezed her hand. "And one day, you'll make them pay." Elena stared at him. "Yes." A faint smile touched Adrian's lips. "That's my girl." Elena turned back toward the window. She didn't see the brief change in Adrian's expression. She didn't see the secret hiding behind his eyes. And she certainly didn't know that the man standing beside her knew far more about her mother's death than he had ever admitted. A sudden knock interrupted the silence. Elena frowned. "Come in." The door opened again. This time, Luca DeLuca stood there. Luca was one of her father's most trusted men. He was rarely nervous, which made the serious expression on his face immediately concerning. "Miss Bellini." Elena straightened. "What happened?" "Your father wants you downstairs." "Why?" "I wasn't told." Elena glanced at Adrian. He looked just as curious. "Come on," she said. They followed Luca downstairs. The Bellini estate was strangely quiet. Usually, the house was filled with the sounds of guards, servants and family members moving through the enormous halls. Tonight, everyone seemed to be waiting for something. When Elena entered her father's study, she immediately noticed the men standing around the large wooden desk. Her father's expression was grim. "Close the door." Elena did. "What happened?" Her father picked up a photograph from the desk. "We intercepted this tonight." He placed it in front of her. Elena looked down. The photograph showed a warehouse near the Palermo docks. She recognized the location immediately. "What is this?" Her father placed another photograph beside it. Elena's eyes narrowed. A man stood outside the warehouse. She knew him. Everyone in Sicily knew him. Matteo Vitale. The heir to the rival Mafia family. Elena's stomach tightened. "The Vitale heir." Her father nodded. "He was seen meeting several unknown men." "Why?" "We don't know." Luca stepped forward. "There have also been unusual financial transactions." Elena looked at him. "What kind?" "Money is moving through companies connected to both families." Her father's jaw tightened. "Someone is using the Bellini and Vitale names." Elena frowned. "To do what?" "Start a war." Silence settled over the room. Elena looked at the photograph again. The idea was frightening. The Bellinis and Vitales already hated each other. They didn't need much of a reason to turn their rivalry into something worse. "But what does Matteo have to do with it?" Her father shook his head. "We don't know." Elena stared at the photograph. She hated the fact that she was curious about him. She had seen Matteo Vitale only from a distance before. She knew his reputation—cold, intelligent and dangerous. Her father suddenly looked directly at her. "You stay away from him." Elena almost laughed. "I have no intention of going near him." "Good." Her father closed the folder. "Because if the Vitales are involved, I don't want you anywhere near their family." Before Elena could respond, the sound of several vehicles approaching the estate echoed outside. Everyone in the room immediately became alert. Luca moved toward the window. "There are three cars." Her father reached beneath his desk. "Who?" Luca looked again. His expression hardened. "The Vitales." Elena's heart skipped. "What?" Her father stood. "I didn't invite them." Moments later, the doors of the estate opened. Several men walked inside. Then Elena saw him. Matteo Vitale. He was taller than she had expected, dressed completely in black. His expression was calm, almost emotionless, as his eyes moved across the room. Then they stopped on Elena. Something about the way he looked at her made her chest tighten. Not fear. Something else. She immediately pushed the feeling away. He was a Vitale. Her enemy. Matteo's gaze suddenly dropped to the pendant around her neck. His expression changed. Only for a second. But Elena noticed. She touched the pendant instinctively. "You know this?" Matteo looked back into her eyes. "I've seen it before." Elena's heartbeat quickened. "Where?" Matteo remained silent. Her father stepped forward. "You have five seconds to explain why you're standing in my house." Matteo reached inside his jacket. Several Bellini guards immediately raised their weapons. Matteo slowly removed a black folder and placed it on the table. "I'm not here to fight." He pushed the folder forward. "We have a problem." Her father stared at him. "What kind of problem?" "Someone is trying to start a war between our families." Elena's eyes narrowed. "And why should we believe you?" Matteo looked directly at her. "You shouldn't." He paused. "But you should look inside that folder." Elena stepped forward before her father could stop her. She opened it. Documents. Photographs. Bank transactions. Names. Her eyes moved quickly across the pages. Then she froze. One name stood out. A name she knew. A name she trusted. Elena slowly lifted her head. "This can't be." Adrian had gone completely still beside her. Matteo noticed. His eyes moved from Elena to Adrian. And something in his expression told Elena that he already knew. She looked at Matteo. "What is this?" Matteo's voice was quiet. "Proof." "Proof of what?" "That the person behind everything isn't who your family thinks it is." Elena's fingers tightened around the folder. Her entire life had been built around one truth. The Vitales killed her mother. The Vitales destroyed her family. The Vitales were the enemy. But as she stared at the evidence in her hands, a terrible thought entered her mind. What if she had hated the wrong family all these years? And across the room, Matteo Vitale watched her realize that everything she believed might have been a lie.