“What are you doing?” I whisper as he sets me on the bed.
“This is where you should sleep tonight.” He furrows his brow and turns away from me, storming out of the room. Like he’s angry with me.
Or maybe he’s angry with himself.
Chapter Eleven
Leo
What have I done?
Seeing Emma’s home, the farm where she grew up, made everything change. I saw the lock on her bedroom door. I saw her bloody hands. The way her mother slapped her. Spoke to her.
Was Emma kept as a prisoner in her own home her entire life?
Valentina made it clear that she didn’t want Alessandro to know Emma, which means that Emma was telling me the truth. She’s never known her father. She’s never been a part of this.
So how did she end up on my doorstep that night of all places? Yes, I sent Danilo to kidnap her and he led her to my home but it’s too much of a coincidence.
Or is it fate?
Fuck. I run my hand down my face, pacing back and forth. I’ve been horrible to Emma because I wasn’t sure if I could trust her or not.
The tension inside of me is reaching a boiling point. A part of me wants her for myself. To consume her. Make her truly mine. Take her innocence. While another part of me wants to still use her to punish Alessandro. He needs to be stopped and Emma is the only way to make that happen. But that still means using her.
Using a girl that I know for a fact is innocent now.
How can I do that? I may be a mafia man without much feelings but Emma has stirred something in me. She’s just so… soft and sweet. It makes me want to protect her from all the bad things in this world. That should include me as well.
I just can’t let her go. I want to keep her for myself.
I have no fucking clue what to do.
With a sigh, I sink into the chair behind my office desk and grab the bottle of whiskey I keep stashed away for moments when I really need it. Right now is a moment when I really need it.
Instead of pouring a small glass, I take a large chug of it, which is a mistake. A cough bubbles out of me but it’s worth it for the burn. I need to forget everything I’ve done to Emma. All the guilt. If I’m going to continue using her to get at Alessandro, I need to push any conflicting feelings for her to the side.
I just have no idea how I’m going to do that.
Emma
I wake up to the feeling of eyes on me.
Leo stands by my bed, watching me sleep. With a gasp, I sit up, clutching the blanket to my chest.
He sits down in the chair beside the bed. “You’re awake. Finally.”
“How long have you been there?”
“Does it matter?” He leans forward, staring me down with an intensity that makes me breathless. “I need you to tell me about your mother. What your life was like with her. I need to know all of it, Emma. Was that what you were keeping from me?”
It takes all my strength to say the word. “Yes.”
“Why didn’t you tell me how your mother treated you?”
“Would it have made you believe my story more?”
“It might,” he admits.
