“Okay,” he said, strolling back towards me. I stepped inside, tossing my bag and coat over the dining room chair, and headed straight for the fridge, even though I already knew it would resemble a barren desert. My eyes widened when I discovered it fully stocked with food and drinks that I most definitely hadn’t put there.
“Everything okay?” Damiano asked, stepping behind me, a little too close for comfort as his chest brushed against my back. I blinked, shook my head with a frown.
“Did my father stock my fridge?”
“Not that I know of. Shall I call him?” He got ready to dial his number, but I quickly shut the fridge door and walked towards my bag to grab my phone.
“No. No, it’s fine. I’ll ask him, or it was probably my friend Allegra. She has a key, and she does that sometimes. Leaves me presents like chocolate or wine.” She’d never done a week’s worth of food shopping for me, though. That was new.
“She has a key?”
“Hm? Oh, yeah. In case of emergencies.”
“Needing wine and chocolate is an emergency?”
“In my world, yes.”
“I’ll need to report this to your father. It’s best if she returns the key.”
I glanced up from my phone, half a message typed to my best friend, and frowned. “Why?”
“Because that’s a safety breach. Someone other than you has access to your apartment.”
“She’s my best friend.”
“I understand.” He gave me a brief nod and folded his hands in front of him. “But I’ll still need to report it.”
“Fine,” I huffed, glancing back at my phone and trying to keep the agitation bottled up inside me. When he continued to stand there like a piece of furniture, I peered up from under my lashes. “Is there anything else? Do you need to check for contaminated water or explosives in my underwear drawer?”
His lips curved, and a flicker of interest crossed his brown eyes. “Was that an invitation? Would you like me to check your underwear drawer, Aria?”
I stared at him. He stepped closer to me, and I stepped back, my lower back bumping into the kitchen table. Heat crept up my skin, but not the pleasant kind.He didn’t look away, and my spine tingled with an uncomfortable itch that made panic spread through my veins. I suddenly felt very unsafe with a man who was being paid to make me feel the opposite.
He chuckled as if he’d just told the funniest joke and backed away to the door. “Arrivederci,Arianna. Lock the door behind me.”
What the hell was that? Was I being paranoid, or was that seriously creepy? He was old enough to be my father. Probably not, but close.
I moved towards the window, opening the curtain slightly to watch him leave the building. He strolled down the pavement, stopping to speak to the security men in the surveillance car parked outside before getting back into his vehicle and driving away. My bunched shoulders sagged. He wouldn’t be back until I had work later tonight, but perhaps I should talk to my father about assigning a different bodyguard. Or was I overreacting? God, all of this was messing with my head. I didn’t want to get him fired or anything. I’ll just maturely raise my concerns to his face. Tell him I found some of his comments inappropriate and I didn’t like the flirtatious tone he used when he said my name, or the subtle way he sometimes touched my lower back to guide me. I was sure that if he realised I was uncomfortable, he’d back off.
The deep purr of a vicious motorcycle wiped all thoughts of Damiano from my mind. My heart raced as I scanned the street below for any sign of it. Then it appeared, zipping round the corner in a flash of red and danger. Wearing a thin black T-shirt rolled up to reveal his tattooed biceps, black jeans, and his black helmet, Santino rode straight past the security car as if he hadn’t seen them or simply didn’t care. He stopped on the other side of the road, directly in front of my building, then pulled up his visor and looked straight up at my window.
I slammed my back against the wall, twisting out of view as my pulse rocketed and my stomach swooped. Unable to help myself, I glanced back through the window after a few seconds to see him still there, leaning against his bike with his phone in his hand. Suddenly, mine vibrated in my own.
I glanced at the message from an unknown number.
Make sure you eat lunch and dinner before you go to work,Bella Ribelle. I’ll be busy tonight, so I can’t bring you anypiadinas.
My jaw nearly hit the floor. He stocked my fridge? How? I searched my flat for any signs of forced entry, but there were none. How on earth did he get in? I had the highest security system installed and everything. Even a bloody ghost would be detected.
Your laundry’s folded. And there’s a bubble bath waitingfor you. Enjoy, beautiful.
I raced into my bedroom and saw that the piles of clean laundry I’d left by the door last night before work had disappeared. Instead, neatly folded and organised clothes were sitting on my bed, along with new, expensive bedding. Rushing into the bathroom, I gasped when I saw the bubble bath with LED tea lights covering every surface and the soothing aroma of eucalyptus and lavender filling the room. I put my fingers in the water to find it was still piping hot.
What. The. Fuck. Was. Going. On.
I couldn’t stop my fingers from gliding across the screen.
You did this? HOW? WHY?
