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Bellona woke to the smell of coffee and cooking eggs wafting up the stairs. She rolled over and checked her phone. 8 a.m. What the fuck was Rafael doing awake already?
Bellona put on her robe and stumbled into her bathroom. Gods didn't need much sleep, but Bellona still liked it. Humans required more than five hours of sleep, didn't they? She washed her face and brushed her teeth before wandering out to see what Rafael was up to.
What greeted her was an oddly relaxed scene of Rafael reading a newspaper on an iPad while drinking espresso. He had the balcony doors open. Morning light and the purr of Roman traffic were coming through them. He was dressed and ready to go out.
"What's going on? You are meant to be still asleep," she said, putting her hands on her hips.
"Good morning to you too, goddess of war. There're eggs in the oven for you," Rafael replied, giving her one of his dazzling smiles. It made her scowl at him even more. "Unlike some gorgeous goddesses I know, I must go to work today."
"No. You can't go where they can find you," Bellona replied. He tried to argue, but she turned on the espresso machine and pretended she couldn't hear him.
"Are you finished?" he asked when the apartment went quiet. "I need to go to work, Bellona. I'm the CEO. If nothing else, I need to make some arrangements to be away until this mess with Cino and Tirone is sorted out."
"It's too obvious that you will go there." Bellona took the plate of scrambled eggs and toast from the oven. She liked that he had made her a decent portion size. She ate a lot and wasn't ashamed of it. She never could understand the fashion of women starving themselves unnecessarily. Modern people didn't understand how good they had it not having to farm their food.
Rafael put the iPad down and gave her his hard stare. Bellona had never seen it and didn't know why it sent a dark little thrill through her. On anyone else, she would have seen the look as a challenge. On Rafael, it just made her want to throw him over her shoulder and carry him back upstairs.
He said sternly, "They aren't going to firebomb a building they want to own one day. Trust me. I only need to go in for a few hours to sort out some things. If I enter the building, I can give you full access to all the servers. You can dig about in there to see if Cino and Tirone are up to no good. I couldn't find anything obvious, but you are better than me at this." He lifted his espresso to his lips. "Besides, you technically work for me and have to do what I tell you."
Bellona's eyes narrowed. "You think so? I'm pretty sure I never signed a contract saying that. I agreed to protect you. I could hogtie you and sit on you, and you wouldn't go anywhere. Come to think of it, it's probably a good idea."
"You like thinking of tying me up, mia angela? I'm flattered. I can even tell you the most comfortable spots to sit if you like," he replied, his smile shifting to charm in the blink of an eye. "What else do you think about doing to me?"
"Gagging you so you stop trying to flirt with me."
"You could ask me to stop, and I would, but you haven't." Rafael picked up his iPad and went back to his paper. "You can come to work with me or stay here. Either way, I'm leaving here in thirty minutes."
Bellona's temper flared. "You aren't going anywhere without me."
"Better get your ropes ready to tie me up then," he said, not looking up. Bellona was tempted to prove he shouldn't provoke her. Unfortunately, the idea of tying him up did evoke thoughts she shouldn't be having.
Bellona took her breakfast upstairs to eat while she got ready. It annoyed her that she was giving in to it, but maybe she was just being paranoid. Rafael's partners wanted him to suffer, not their assets.
Bellona dressed in a suit and put her hair in a neat bun. She could play bodyguard for a few hours, and getting into the servers would help. Bellona slid on a holster of knives and a handgun, just in case the bounty hunters got enthusiastic, before putting on her jacket.
Rafael was waiting for her by the front door. He checked his watch. "Twenty-nine minutes and forty-two seconds. Impressive."
"Don't look so smug. Are you wearing jeans to work, Mr. CEO?" she asked.
"I have a spare suit at the office. I like yours. You'll have to tell me who your tailor is." Rafael opened the door for her. "Ladies first."
"Bodyguards first," Bellona corrected and paused beside him. "I don't like this, but I'm trying to be reasonable. You get what you need done, and then I'm getting you out of there, understand?"
"I understand. Trust me, I could use some time off work. I wouldn't be going in unless I really had to," Rafael replied.
Bellona drove them through the frustrating peak-hour traffic all the way to the business district of Esposizione Universale di Roma. It was one of the areas in Rome that Bellona disliked. It was cold, like the more modern architecture, but it was perfect for soulless businessmen.
"I've never liked it much either," Rafael admitted, reading the expression on her face too easily. "My father thought it was the best place for us to have a building, and that was that."
"Is there anything you like about the job?" Bellona asked.
Rafael's smile slipped. "I don't know anymore. I thought I liked parts of it until people started shooting at me. It's the family company. What can I do but defend it?"
"Sell it. Be safe. Paint pictures in the countryside. I don't know what rich boys do these days to amuse themselves," Bellona replied, making him laugh. The horrible traffic was worth it just for that. She tried not to let her thoughts get too soft, but she had trouble with that. She had never really worried about anyone in a long, long time. At least, not anyone human.
"You have the strangest look of horror on your face right now. Are you okay?" Rafael asked.
Bellona nodded. She admitted a little nervously, "I suppose I've just realized I like making you laugh, and it took me aback."
