“Not something. It’s someone.”
His smile returned as his fingers drew circles on the back of mine. “Who?”
“You know who.” I buried my nose in the menu. “My nephew.”
His hand stilled for a moment, but then it squeezed around mine. I winced, anticipating the pain, but he dragged it away before he crushed my bones. “Your nephew?”
“Yes, who else?” Biting my lip on a smile, I chanced a look at him, and his face was dark red. “What about the villa? Can I decorate it however I like as well?”
He practically tossed the menu aside. “You want to demolish the blue room, don’t you?”
“I can’t say the idea hasn’t crossed my mind.”
He rolled his eyes at me, but there was a new glint in them I had yet to understand. “I don’t care if you tear the whole place apart. Do whatever you like. If redesigning houses is what makes you happy, so be it.”
My heart fluttered. Did I hear him correctly? “You will let me do that to your villa?”
“I’m not letting you do anything to it. It’s not my villa anymore. It’s yours.”
“Mine?”
“Consider it my wedding gift to you.”
Stunned, flesh covered in goosebumps, a turmoil of emotions running through me, I just stared at him. He held my hand again, and my breath caught. Even his simplest touch was too much at this moment.
“What?” he asked.
“I got out of the villa, out of your bed, and came here to gain perspective away from all influence, but you keep…”
“Surprising you?”
Taking my breath away.
“Little kitten, I told you right from the start, don’t stereotype me.”
“You also said you wanted all my hate.” Overwhelmed, tears burned my eyes. “How am I supposed to hate you now?”
His chest puffed up with a long breath, and he scooted so close to me his thigh pressed to mine. Then he brought my hand to his lips and kissed it. “Is it too much to want something else from you?”
I sucked in a hiss, and it came out a trembling gasp. “Please stop. When you do and say things like this, how am I supposed to make sense of all that’s happening? All that I’m feeling, all the changes in my mind and…” I froze. I couldn’t say it. I’d be insane if I did.
“Mind and what?”
My lips parted with the breath I forgot how to take. “I can’t believe this is the only thing I’ve come to understand.”
“What did you understand?”
Tears blurred my vision, all the sounds had faded, and I could only hear the frantic rhythm of my heart. “Why Lina fell for Tino.”
His eyes widened for a second, and the yellow gleam I knew too well by now sparkled in them. The coyote dug his claws in the little kitten.
No. No, this couldn’t be happening. I wouldn’t wait until he swallowed me. I couldn’t just let myself drown in the world I loathed. I put the menu aside and yanked my hand out of his. Shuddering, I moved my butt to the edge of the sofa.
“Nicky, come here.”
I dragged myself off the sofa, my legs heavy with fear. “I just…I’m going to the ladies’ room.”
I twisted and faltered toward the curtains. I didn’t have a plan, and all the ideas in my head were probably never going to work. Maybe, if I managed to get out of the resort, I could make a run for the police station and tell them to take me to the embassy or I could call Lina for help. Fuck, I was spiraling, but I had to do something. Anything that would get me out of here before it was too late.
