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There must be some small part of me that wants to be touched by a monster.
Is it because I’m from his world, even though I didn’t know it until a few days ago? Is it innate in my blood? As a lost Mafia princess—a goddamn Carlotti if I’m to believe Rio—then maybe there’s a darkness in my soul that recognizes him and his world as the place I truly belong.
No. I sit up, throw back the bedcovers, and stomp to the bathroom to shower. I don’t accept that. I don’t believe that. I wasn’t like that for the previous twenty-five years of my life, and I refuse to reinvent my values and my moral code just because I’m confused about my desire for my kidnapper.
Even if he is now my husband.
Francine comes in with breakfast not long after I finish dressing. She gives me a side-eye when she sees what I’m wearing, but I don’t care. I’ve chosen a pair of simple cream trousers and an olive-green top for comfort rather than glamour. They were in the dressing room, so I have to assume I’m allowed to wear them at some point. I’ve added slip-on flats and chosen not to wear makeup.
I have no idea if the wedding guests are all still here, or whether I’m supposed to be paraded around in front of them again, but if so, they can see me in normal clothes for once rather than an evening gown and heels.
I smile sweetly at Francine as I pour a coffee from the silver jug and then take a bite of toast. “What’s on for today, then, Auntie?” I speak around the toast. “More hanging out in the suite here?”
“Well, I…” She scowls at me. “Francine will be fine. Aunt if you must. Auntie…” She screws up her nose, and I know exactly what I’ll be calling her from now on. “I will double-check with Rio, but I believe you may be required out and about today.”
I almost choke on my toast. I hadn’t actually expected a positive response. Out and about means there may be opportunities to escape.
“Okay, that sounds…good.” I leave off the “Auntie.” I really do want out of here, and clearly, the only way to achieve that will be to behave. For now. “Thank you.”
“You are welcome.” She turns to leave, then pauses. “You really did make a beautiful bride, Bianca. You and Rio looked good together. I believe, in time, you will learn to be very happy with my nephew.”
She seems genuine with a warmth in her eyes that is new. I can’t bring myself to respond in any way, except for a small nod that she notes before abruptly leaving.
This world. It is unlike anything I’ve ever known. I don’t understand them at all. Most of the time, they seem cold and unfeeling, driven purely by vengeance or the need to build their endless wealth. And then out of the blue, I catch a faint glimpse here and there of what feels like humanity. In Francine just then, and in Rio last night when he wrapped his arms around me and held me as if he cared.
It unsettles me. I don’t want them to be human. I don’t want to see anything positive in this horrific situation. I need to focus on the truth—that Rio heads a cartel of murderous criminals who flout the law and kill people for a living. That he kidnapped me, shot my friends—or at least his men did—and he has held me captive ever since.
That is my new reality, and I need to remember it every second of every day for the time I have left here in this compound.
And for as long as he allows me to live.
* * *
Rio
I am placingtrust in Bianca today by letting her out of her suite. Of course, she won’t be able to get away—at least not far. My security team will see to that. But she doesn’t know how closely she’ll be watched, and it will be interesting to see what she does when I allow the caged bird a little taste of freedom.
“Come, my darling wife.” I watch her from my seat behind the desk and beckon her in as she continues to pause in the doorway of my office. “Meet your new brother-in-law, Nicky.”
Bianca looks fresh and clean, younger than her twenty-five years with little makeup and her dark hair tumbling down her back. She hesitates a moment longer, scuffling one foot back and forth, and then her chin comes up and she walks into the room with a small smile.
“We sort of met at the wedding yesterday,” she says. “But pleased to meet you officially, Nicky.”
She thrusts out a hand, and my brother shoots me an amused grin before reaching forward to clasp her tiny hand in his much larger one. “Charmed, Bianca. Rio is a very lucky man to have you by his side.”
He releases her hand quickly. He knows better than to try and hold on too long to something I have claimed as mine.
“Hmm.” She shifts her gaze briefly to me, and the fire I read there instantly ignites my cock. “I’m sure luck has little to do with Rio’s life. He’s far too calculating and strategic to allow luck to play any part.”
Nicky laughs, and I resist the urge to growl as he says, “You already know your husband well, then.”
“No,” she says, surprising Nicky as much as me. Once again, her eyes seek out mine. “I think my new husband has many complex layers, and I don’t believe I know much of him at all.”
Interesting observation. I study her intently, looking for any sign of the fearful little bird she was when my men brought her here. In only a few days, she has lost the timidity that ignites my natural need to control her. To crush her.
I’m not sure how I feel about that. I don’t know any other way to be, other than to use my power to control everyone around me. Bianca’s seemingly newfound confidence while in my presence challenges everything I know about her. And about myself.
I don’t like it.
