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Amused, he looked at me as if he knew the answer. As if it differed from the one I had in mind. I stared back with narrowed eyes, waiting for him to say something.
But first he withdrew his hand, placed it on the table with the other over it.
"You can't deny that you liked it,micina. If it weren't for that, you would have reacted differently. I speak from experience."
I remained silent and studied his features. He was so convinced of what he was saying. Believed in it with every fiber of his being, as if he had the self-confidence of a god.
Goosebumps formed on my forearms. Was it Dario's intense gaze? Or that he mentioned that morning and thus awakened memories I would rather only have in front of my eyes when I was all alone?
I pursed my mouth a little. "Even so. The rule was clear. One time only. "
Before I could get in my own way, I rose again, my sports bag already back in my hand. How far would I be able to escape from him in this apartment? It wasn't even that I didn't want to. For heaven's sake, Dario demanded that I felt attraction for him. And in a way I could barely resist. But that didn't mean he had the right to make me his little doll just because he felt sorry for me. At least, that's what I assumed.
"Let's just drop it, shall we? It's better for both of us," I said and retreated to the living room.
This time Dario did not follow me. Either because he had accepted it– or because he couldn't cope with hearing a no from a woman.
9
Dario
Istared at Emilio in disbelief for thirty seconds, even though the sun was shining straight in my face and I had disgusting spots in my field of vision after just a few seconds.
"You're not serious, are you?" I asked again, because I just couldn't believe it.
Emilio held onto the railing of the balcony with a tighter grip, but otherwise didn't let on that my renewed demand was bugging him.
"I'll repeat it one last time," he growled, looking at me with a warning. "The police fished the Frenchman's body out of the river and identified him beyond a doubt. He is dead. There was a quick autopsy. And I have seen the documents that confirm it."
"Dead, just like that," I groaned. My mood darkened more and more every second. I had already imagined how I would torture the guy and elicit from him everything we wanted to know. Had to know. And now he was just dead?
I gave a snort. "That's ridiculous. I mean, he could have still gotten out of the car."
"But he drowned."
"Great." I hit the parapet with the flat of my hand and ignored the stabbing pain that went up my arm.
"Be happy. Less work for us."
"Yeah right. You're just glad you don't have any extra trouble on your hands now," I grumbled. "Perhaps you should have consulted Vince on issues like this."
"Don't you start that, too!" There was a warning undertone in his voice. "Carlotta bugs me about it whenever she crosses my path. You don't let the subject rest either! What do you think I do all day? Twiddling my thumbs? There were numerous phone calls and background investigations beforehand! Nothing indicated he was coming to Naples to steal from us or kill us."
Again I looked in his direction. Emilio seemed tense, which was a bad sign with this good news. So there was more. More information, whether about the Frenchman or about something else, didn't matter. It kept him busy, and since he hadn't come out with it so far, I didn't think he would soon.
"We should still try to find out who he was working with in France. Take some precautions in case they try to frame us for murder and prepare for anyone else to show up," I said, in a much more matter-of-fact tone.
Maybe I would get to do something that was fun after all.
"Then what are you waiting for, Dario? Take care of it and then leave me out of it." Emilio made a gesture with his hand that was meant to send me away.
I shook my head, though, before taking a step closer to him and leaning in until I was close enough to smell his aftershave. "Remember, I'm your brother, Emilio. Not one of your employees that you can push around as you please."
Of course, he couldn't just accept that, but instead turned in my direction. He pressed his lips together, a clear sign of his disapproval. How dare I remind him of that? He would have preferred no siblings at all, or only those who blindly obeyed and read his every wish from his eyes before he even had to speak out loud.
"Come on. Threaten me, Emilio. Or are you going to stab me with a fork again? Maybe you'll come up with something new," I provoked him.
Somewhere in the back of my brain I was aware of how bad an idea it was to mess with him and tempt my fate. But I needed this. I needed to drive him up the wall and enjoy his reaction to the fullest. At least it distracted me from the other thing that was gnawing at my mind.
