AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Wren, I had some errands to run and I didn’t want to wake you before I left.
I won’t be gone too long, but I did make some freshsfogliatellefor you to try.
Here is my number if you need me.
Nonna.
I run my fingers over the number that she jotted down, before glancing at the covered plate behind the note where thesfogliatelleis. I grab one of the sweet flaky breakfast buns, taking a big bite, before I head for the door. I’m ready to get my legs moving, and this will fuel me enough to keep me going.
I’ve eaten the entire thing before I even make it to the front door, and I make a mental note to eat the other two still on the plate when I get back because they’re too delicious to waste.
Swinging the front door open, I cringe as soon as my eyes lock on the man pacing back and forth in front of a SUV. It’s the driver from yesterday, and the second he looks up, I know he’s going to be an asshole.
Instead of the suit he wore yesterday, he’s wearing a pair of black combat pants, a fitted black tee, and combat boots. He looks like someone in the military; likely has the training of someone of that caliber too. If he wasn’t sneering at me, he would almost be handsome with his slicked back black hair and olive skin.
Men always ruin themselves with the aura they give off.
Well, that’s not technically true since the aura I got from Vito, Matteo, and Enzo when I first met them was enticing and exciting. It was when the truth about me came out and they opened their damned mouths that it all went to shit.
“Back inside. Now.” His bark is sharper than I initially expected, but it doesn’t mean I’m going to follow his order.
“I’m good, but thanks.” I plaster a fake smile across my face as I shut the door behind me, and he really must have thought I was going to do as he said because he gapes at me in surprise for a second.
When he finally musters a response, I’ve already taken two steps to the right in the opposite direction of his parked SUV.
“I said, back inside. Now.” He folds his arms over his chest like he means business, clearly hoping I’ll be shaking in my boots at his mere presence, but instead, I roll my eyes, exasperated with him.
“I heard you, and politely declined. I’m not trying to escape if that makes you feel any better.” I’m itching to start running, the added chase from this fucker would be exhilarating, but at the same time, I don’t want to put my back to him and leave myself at a disadvantage.
“Listen, bitch—” he starts, but I turn to face him head-on, lifting my hand to halt him, and like a good little puppy, it works.
“I dare you to call me that again and see how far it gets you.” I don’t want to say who I am in case that hasn’t been revealed to the members of the De Luca family, but if this guy puts another foot out of place, I’ll show him what I’m capable of. He must be able to sense it in my tone, his throat bobbing, but the anger in his eyes is venomous at the same time. “I’m going for a run around the property.”
There. That’s nice enough of me. I didn’t have to share my plans, but I did in an attempt to compromise, but the way he starts shaking his head pisses me off.
“You can’t do that.”
Nope. I refuse to be told what to do by someone whose name I don’t even know. Not after everything I’ve been through. He’s not my captor and I’m not his to control.
With my mind made up, I drop my hand, offering him another fake smile, before I turn on my heels and run. I don’t stop to look at him as I hear him call out to me. Instead, I focus on putting one foot in front of the other as fast as I can.
The stones beneath my feet quickly turn into perfectly mowed grass as I get to the edge of the house and the rear of the property comes into view. A large open field is framed by the dense trees that shelter the entire land, and I use them as a guide as I continue at the same pace, smiling from ear to ear. After a few minutes, I glance back over my shoulder to find no one following me, and my smile only spreads wider as I drop my stride a little now that I know I’m not being chased.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the distance around the perimeter is about a mile. It’s nowhere near what I was hoping to cover, but it’ll do for today. With that in mind, I drop my pace to a jog, wanting to savor every ounce of the freedom I feel as the wind brushes against my face and the sun beats down on my skin.
Although I may be alone, there is one sinking feeling that stays with me no matter how many steps I take. The feeling of someone watching me. I can’t see anyone, and I’m on high alert, focused on my surroundings. My ears are perked, ready to catch the sound of anyone over the pounding of my heart in my chest, but I get nothing. Not even a glance of someone in the distance, but my gut tells me someone is there.
Keeping my pace as I move around the back of the house, I almost come full circle when I find a dozen men gathered at the front of the property. There are three more SUVs now, and every single guy is dressed exactly the same as the driver, so I instantly know they’re members of the family.
As I approach them, the asshole who lives to piss me off steps forward, others following his lead as he looks smugly at me. “Here she is. The ‘runaway.’ Let Matteo know we found her and are keeping her locked in the outer building until they can come and beat some sense into her.”
My eyebrows knit in confusion at the fact that this motherfucker is talking utter bullshit, but before I can call him out on anything, another guy steps forward, smirking at me. “Maybe he wouldn’t mind if we had a go at beating some sense into her first.” He runs his tongue over his bottom lip, and my jaw instantly tightens.
“You could try,” I state, raising my eyebrows at them as they all snicker in response.
That’s all the confirmation I needed. These fuckers definitely don’t know who I am or why I’m really here, but if they continue to push, I’m more than happy to show them. The tinge of a threat in the air has my shoulders dropping back, my stomach clenching, and my feet inching to shoulder-width apart.
If they notice the shift in me, they don’t say anything about it. Their vibe screams they believe they’re bigger, better, and more powerful than they actually are.Push me, I dare you, and let me put you back in your place.
