Bite Marks

BITE MARKS MOB TIES BOOK 5 MILLY TAIDEN CONTENTS Bite Marks About the Book 1. Vanessa 2. Nunzio 3. Vanessa 4. Nunzio 5. Vanessa 6. Nunzio 7. Vanessa 8. Nunzio 9. Vanessa 10. Vanessa 11. Nunzio 12. Vanessa 13. Nunzio 14. Vanessa 15. Nunzio 16. Vanessa 17. Nunzio 18. Nunzio 19. Vanessa 20. Vanessa 21. Nunzio 22. Vanessa 23. Nunzio About the Author Also by Milly Taiden BITE MARKS MOB TIES 5 NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY BESTSELLING AUTHOR MILLY TAIDEN This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are fictitious or have been used fictitiously, and are not to be construed as real in any way. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales, or organizations is entirely coincidental. Published By Latin Goddess Press Winter Springs, FL 32708 http://millytaiden.com Bite Marks Copyright © 2023 by Milly Taiden Cover: Jacqueline Sweet All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Property of Milly Taiden January 2023 Created with Vellum ABOUT THE BOOK Vanessa Ciampa lost her father to the mob and now wants nothing to do with it. She’s content with making her art gallery famous and going home to a lonely, empty apartment. Well, maybe not content. When disaster threatens to close her business, she can’t believe who the tall, broad, gorgeous man is who can bail her out. Maybe he can save more than her gallery. Nunzio Sarducci, a wolf shifter, has achieved his dream of being a made man within the family. All he wants is to climb the mob family ladder to become powerful. But when the Don tells him he needs to find a wife, or he’ll get a pair of cement shoes, Nunzio’s panicked mind comes up with a scheme. What he never imagined how important Vanessa would be in his life. In exchange for help, Vanessa agrees to fake-date Nunzio. Well, everyone knows how those types of deals work out. But Vanessa is dead set against falling for the delicious hunk of a man. He’s part of the problem. What will Nunzio have to do to change her mind? He would willingly give his life for her. But is that enough? —For my amazing readers. Enjoy the mob! ONE VANESSA Walking through the halls of her gallery, Vanessa’s heart raced with the thrill of having the premier impressionist exhibition of the year. The massive collection took an overwhelming amount of networking and paperwork to pull together, but it would all be worth it once people walked the halls with their eyes popping from their heads. “The two Renoirs came in last night.” Vanessa’s assistant, Maria, handed her the documents detailing their condition and arrival times. “And the Pissarro is due to arrive at two this afternoon.” When Vanessa originally hired Maria, it came down between her and one other candidate who looked entirely too similar to Vanessa. In this line of work, it wasn’t who you knew but who knew you, and having an assistant be confused for the gallery owner wouldn’t do the business any favors. That was one of the lessons Vanessa’s father taught her before he died. That, and stay away from the mob. However, he’d taught her that lesson in a more brutal fashion. Vanessa poured over the documents as they headed to the back. “Gavin opened them?” “They were the only ones here.” Maria frowned and picked up her pace to make it to the door before Vanessa and held it for her. Vanessa passed into the back room without breaking her stride and found the paintings. Gavin wasn’t bad at his job, but he was a little inexperienced. Given that the Renoirs were the second most important pieces to the collection, they should have called her to come down to open them before filling out any paperwork. Vanessa pulled the paintings out to find them in excellent condition. La Balançoire, also known as The Swing, had definitely been the hardest piece in the whole gallery to get on loan from the Musée d’Orsay. The French were always hesitant to let their pieces travel. La Petite Irène, or Portrait of Irène Cahen d'Anvers, was much easier to get from Zürich, though just as difficult and time-consuming to ship. They would serve as two of the brightest jewels in the gallery’s crown. “How about we skip over to Craig’s?” Maria asked. “I could use a cup.” Vanessa checked her watch and nodded. “We have time, and I could definitely use one too.” They headed out and waited at the corner for the crosswalk to change. “Have you found anyone for the opening yet?” Maria raised a brow, peering up at her boss. Vanessa frowned. “No. Haven’t had time to look.” That wasn’t an outright lie, but she knew that she hadn’t made any time for it either. “You don’t need to look. Men are looking for you. All you need to do is drop the proverbial handkerchief. Watch them come running.” The light changed, and the group of waiting pedestrians walked across Michigan Avenue. “I don’t want to watch a pack of dogs fight over who gets to drool first.” “But isn’t that fun? Watching? We just sit back and wait for the one who breaks free of the scuffle first to hand us that handkerchief. It’s cute and sexy.” Maria’s hips picked up some extra sway. “I love seeing guys elbow each other in the ribs while keeping a smile on their faces.” They reached Craig’s Café and hopped in line. It wasn’t overly long, given it was the end of their morning rush. “Noon-Zio?” a barista calls out. “Venti Caffe Amere-cano, for Noon-Zio.” Vanessa’s heart froze for a moment as a giant man rose from a chair like a mountain rising from a catastrophic earthquake. Up, up, up, till he looked like the only