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There was a big scuffle, but it didn’t take long for the two men going against Teo and Alessandro to be pulled away by other Venturi men. Once things were under control, I slipped out of the closet, sticking to the back of the crowd that had gathered. Both of the men’s masks had been pulled off during the fight but I didn’t recognize either of them.
Everyone stood around Teo, Alessandro, and the two men being restrained by others, and I moved closer to see what was going on.
“Romano’s men,” Alessandro spit the words as if they left a bitter taste in his mouth.
“I caught a glimpse of their guns and got suspicious,” Teo explained. “When I tried to strike up a conversation, that one bolted.” He nodded to the man with blood running from his nose and a cut above his eye. “Take them to the compound and get them ready for questioning. I want to know what the hell they were thinking coming here tonight.”
“You got it,” Alessandro said before looking at me.
“Sienna can ride back with me.” Mia came out of nowhere and linked her arm with mine, offering me a friendly smile.
“Thank you, donna.”
Teo stepped forward and gave Mia a quick peck on the lips. “I’ll see you at home.”
She smiled adoringly at him and nodded. Alessandro met my gaze, an understanding passing between us. It wasn’t a warning to not cause trouble like he usually would, it was something different. It was like I could hear him saying ‘Be safe. I’ll see you at home.”
Chapter 18
Sienna
It seemed that I had picked a very festive time of year to be staying with the Venturis. It was either that or their family just enjoyed throwing a lot of events because the week after the All-Saints Day party, was the gala to celebrate the new administration. It was also the day I was expected to give Teo my decision about whether or not I’d stay to work for him.
Not that I needed another reason to be nervous about going to the gala. It was a formal event and would include a lot of important people. Everyone had been busy the day before preparing for the gala, so I’d spent most of my time in the guest room alone with my thoughts, just trying to stay out of the way.
Matteo had assured me that he would send me home if I chose to leave. Sometime that night, I would give my answer then I’d return home, leaving Alessandro and putting the whole ordeal behind me.
Trying to get me to stay had been a fool’s errand from the start. There had been no way they were going to convince me to leave my whole life behind to work for the mob. A few fancy parties and promises of a larger income were not enough to make me change my mind. Even my growing feelings for Alex and my friendship with Luca couldn’t be enough to sway me.
I finished pinning a few long, wavy tendrils back from my face, leaving the rest to flow freely down my back and slipped on a pair of black heels before running my hands down the front of the elegant gown that had been delivered to my door by one of the housekeepers earlier that day. It wasn’t one of Mia’s. It was new with the tag still on it, which surprised me. I felt bad that Alessandro had spent so much money on the dress, but all of that guilt left my mind when I pulled the dress from the box and watched as the flowy black fabric fluttered toward the floor.
It was clearly expensive with fine blue and teal sequins that started at the plunging neckline and seemed to climb over the mermaid style dress like vines until it gradually trickled to a stop mid-thigh while the flowy black fabric flared out and continued on to the ankle. It was beautiful but left me a bit self-conscious once I stood there in front of the full-length mirror, staring at a woman I didn’t even recognize.
After tonight,this will all be over, I reminded myself and was surprised by the pang of sadness that replaced the relief I’d been expecting. A sudden knock on the door startled me, making me jump.
“Come in.”
I turned toward the door, expecting it to be the housekeeper but instead, was surprised to see Alessandro standing there looking like sex personified in his perfectly tailored black tuxedo. The tie and pocket square matched the teal in my dress perfectly.
He visibly dragged his gaze over my body, and I swore, I could feel his eyes on me as well as I could have if it had been his hands.
I shivered and fidgeted nervously but he didn’t speak.
The silence was too much. I had to say something. “Do I look okay?”
“No.” His gruff voice made me tense. I opened my mouth to respond when he added, “you look exquisite.”
My cheeks heated and I was speechless under his gaze as I stood there, frozen. Finally, Alessandro blinked, shook his head, and cleared his throat as he broke the spell.
“The limo is waiting downstairs. We will be riding along with Teo, Mia, and Luca."
He held his hand out to me and I stepped into the hallway, tensing as electricity shot up my spine the moment his hand found the bare skin just above the small of my back. It amazed me the way my body responded to him every time.
We descended the staircase to find Teo and Mia standing at the door with Luca.
The three of them looked at us as we approached.
“There they are,” Luca said happily.
