Marriage by Blackmail - Book 1

Chapter Three

Damian

Amelia. So that was this crazy albeit very attractive young woman's name. I breathed a subtle breath of relief now that my question had finally been answered without having to use brute force, I couldn't allow myself to appear weak and tarnish my family's reputation. Now to figure out what to do with her, my older brother; for whom I was doing this favor, hadn't warned me about a daughter, or the possibility that this would escalate to more than a simple debt collection.

Thanks a lot Luca. I really don't have time for this.

"Please, just let her go. She has nothing to do with this matter." Her father pleaded.

My gaze drifted back to the now, remarkably quiet Miss Costa. She was actually quite lovely when she wasn't undermining my authority. Her silky brown hair fell past her shoulders in loose curls, dark lashes framed her small brown eyes. Her full pink lips were the next things I noticed as they were pressed into a thin line; clearly communicating her displeasure. She was a tiny thing, perfectly slender with lush curves that would draw any man's eye and clad in a magenta dress that hugged each and every asset. All beautifully canvassed on her skin that was the color of warm caramel, the delicious result of her mixed parentage.

Ugh! What are you thinking!? Get your act together Giordano.

I mentally shook my self, effectively dispelling appreciative thoughts of the very annoying Miss Costa.

I wasn't here to find a woman! The plan was to rough up Matteo Costa, get my brother's money and go back to worrying about my own damn problems.

"Where's the money Costa?" I asked impatiently.

"Don Giordano, the business hasn't been turning over the kind of profit I need to repay the debt in full, I just need a little more time." He said hanging his head in an attempt to hide the emotion that had come over him, I hated that his pitiful plea affected me.

"You do realize that had my brother not been otherwise occupied and came himself, you would be dead right now, right?" I asked bluntly.

The older man flinched at the truth of my statement. I huffed out a breath and paced a bit trying to come up with a suitable solution to all our problems. I was a ruthless business man but definitely not a killer, my father had seen that which is why I had been exempted from having to participate in the family "business". Instead I had been sent to high school and university in the US with all of my family's legitimate money to educate myself in order to give the Giordano family a chance to live without coming under the scrutiny of the law. I had done well for myself and for my family. But all that was in jeopardy now, thanks to my father's underhanded methods of getting me into America.

When I finished high school and had gotten accepted to my dream college, I had mailed the relevant documents for my father to sign giving me permission to be here as I was unemployed and still dependent on my family for support. A few weeks later when I received official documentation that my visa status had been changed and I was now in the process of becoming a permanent resident of the country, I was literally over the moon. Foolish, trusting boy that I'd been, it didn't occur to me to keep track of my status myself , I just assumed all was well. Now that mistake had returned to bite me in the ass.

"Mr- err Don Giordano sir, me again, sorry but isn't there some way I can help? I have a very well paying job and a substantial bank account, surely I can write a check to cover my father's debt?" Amelia spoke up again looking hopeful.

I sighed at her innocence, "So you have £200,000 lying around in your bank account?" I watched as predictably her eyes crossed at the named figure.

She looked over at her father incredulously, seeking an explanation.

The tired man sighed in resignation, "I'm sorry cara, but things were going bad for us in Italy. Your mother was pregnant and we desperately needed to get out. We got here, started the B&B and then you were born, things were going great." He sighed wistfully, "But then the recession hit and everything took a nose dive, we never really recovered and you had worked so hard to get accepted to Harvard it would have been heartbreaking for that to be in vain, we wanted you to have a better life with a more lucrative career, so we used the money that I had been saving to send back to Italy to repay the Giordano family." He ended sadly, though clearly not regretting his choice. I respected that.

Lia on the other hand looked as though she had just witnessed a kitten massacre. It was distinctly uncomfortable to see her look so shattered, clearly conflicted by what she was feeling.

"Thank you Daddy," she whispered with watery eyes, "I'll make this better, I promise, I'll get us out of this."

Then as if her words had been the needed trigger, an idea quickly formed in my mind.

"I believe I have a solution to all our problems." I waited smugly for dramatic effect as all eyes turned to me.