“You’re going to ruin it if you keep fussing,” I murmured to my reflection, but I didn’t step away.
If I was this mesmerized, Nico was going to be locked in like a hound on the scent.
A shiver of anticipation shot straight to my core.
I let out a slow breath. Excitement fluttered in my chest, light and quick. He said that once he was the don, there would be no more hiding. While I was over the sneaking around and hated the risk of being caught, I was going to missthis. Wearing the masks, chasing one another through the dark, stolen kisses andmore—it was fun.
But standing here, dressed and ready, I couldn’t pretend anymore. This was happening. I was going to be with the boss of a mob.
Maybe the fun doesn’t have to stop.
A wicked smile tipped my lips. There was no reason we couldn’t chase one another through the dark passageways of a house. And there were sure to be plenty of chances to steal kisses.
I turned once in a slow circle, watching the skirt move with me. It swayed and settled like something out of a story. Girls in those stories stepped into carriages and found their lives changed before midnight. I took one last look in the mirror. My midnight was coming, even if it wasn’t tonight.
“You done wandered a fair piece from home, haven’t you?” I breathed.
My reflection grinned.
The first sound was small enough that I almost ignored it. A soft creak, low and slow, whispered as wood shifted under a weight.
I went still. The servant cottage had its noises. Just like the big house. The wind pressed at the walls. The floorboards complained. The old steps had a voice of their own. I knew every one of those sounds. This was not one of them.
Another creak followed, a little louder this time. It was unmistakable. Someone was on the stairs.
My heart gave a sharp, hard thud. No one should have been here. Uncle Theo and Franky were both at the big house. I would have heard them open the door, stomping into the downstairs like a herd of wild boars.
Maybe it was Nico.
I wanted to feel the surprised rush of relief. But a warning in my head said this wasn’t one of our games. He would be at the ball with his family and associates.
“Luigi?” I called, trying to keep my voice steady.
No answer.
The silence that followed felt wrong. It stretched too tight, too expectant.
I took a careful step, my gaze fixed on the doorway that led to the narrow hall. The lamplight did not reach far enough to touch the base of the stairs. Shadows gathered there, thick and unmoving.
Then something shifted inside them.
A man crept forward.
The balaclava hid his face. He was the wrong size and shape to be my mafia prince. He didn’t prowl like my monster. And the dead look in his eye made me sick.
I had only a second to register those details before he lunged.
I stumbled back with a shout, the force of his movement knocking into me as I tried to twist away. His hand caught my arm, fingers digging in hard enough to bruise. I reacted without thinking, shoving at his chest.
I was plum fed up with these underworld thugs thinking I was someone they could attack! This time, I was going to kill the sonofabitch. Tear his heart from his chest before cleaning the blood off the floor. Or maybe…maybe it was my ex sending someone after me again.
My pulse roared in my ears. “Get off me!”
He didn’t speak. He only tightened his grip and dragged me toward him.
Panic surged, hot and blinding. I thrashed, twisting, my heel slipping on the floor. My hand struck the table, searching, grasping for anything. My fingers closed around something solid. Heat radiated near my fingertips.
The curling iron.
