I had to see where he took her.
I took the seashell while I was there because I knew I might need it as proof one day. Proof that I could get to her if I had to, that there was nowhere he could take her that I wouldn't find her.
Now it's proof that I'm not some fool he can intimidate.
His eyes meet mine, and I see a flicker of something in them.
Surprise. Respect. Fear. It's a volatile mix, and I have a feeling it's a dangerous combination in a man like him.
"Let me be clear," I say, my voice dangerously low now. "I'm here to protect your sister. But my cousin's safety is non-negotiable. If she or her son gets so much as a scratch because you're not being forthcoming with me, our little conversation right now will look like a friendly chat. Are we clear?"
He closes his fist around the shell, and I hear it crack in the quiet space between us.
For a second, I think he’s going to lunge at me. That this is it, this is the moment where the civility cracks and we see what we’re really made of.
But he doesn’t.
He looks at me, and his eyes are like chips of black ice.
"Then let me be clear," he says, his voice dropping to match mine. "Cristiano isn't just my heir, and Teresa isn't just some woman I took. They're my entire world. Their protection is not a secondary concern. It is the only concern. They are my only priority."
He takes a step forward, closing the space between us until we are almost nose to nose. I can feel the heat coming off him, the tension thrumming in the air.
"Regardless of how my relationship with her started is irrelevant," he says, each word precise and firm. "They are mine. And I would burn everything and everyone to the ground to keep them safe. That includes you, if you get in my way."
It’s a threat. A bald-faced, unapologetic threat.
And, strangely, it’s exactly what I wanted to hear.
He's not going to be careless with her safety. He’s not going to treat her as an afterthought. He'll protect her, not because she's my cousin, but because he can't bear the thought of losing her.
I can work with that.
"Good," I say, stepping back and putting some space between us. "Then we're on the same page."
Teresa walks back into the living room with a tray, three glasses of water on top. She looks from Vito to me and then back again.
Her smile is gone. "What did I miss?"
"Nothing," Vito says, his demeanor shifting in a way that's so seamless it's almost terrifying. He slips his hand into his pocket, then steps forward to take the tray from her.
"We were just talking security," he adds, glancing at me. "Stuff you don't want to hear."
I force my face into something resembling a neutral expression as I take a glass from the tray. "Got some details out of the way."
Teresa looks from one of us to the other again, her brow furrowed. "For a couple of professional liars, you two are terrible at it."
Vito sets the tray down on a large wooden coffee table and puts a hand on her back, leans down, and kisses her temple. "Don't ask questions you don't want the answer to."
"Right," Teresa says, shaking her head, but she lets it go. "Well, since you're both done measuring your dicks, let's eat."
Chapter Two
Caterina
"I don't see why I need a bodyguard."
My father does not even look up right away.
