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I couldn’t see his face, but from the way his shoulders were rising up and down in rapid breaths, I was glad I was spared the sight. “No. I promise. They just talked to me.”
That seemed to calm him a little as I heard him exhale deeply. I suddenly realised that he wasn’t angry with me. He was scared. He thought they had done something to me. His fury was at them. I swallowed as I tiptoed towards him cautiously and placed my hand on his shoulder blade. He tensed at my touch. The atmosphere thickened around us.
“Look at me Gio,” I whispered. He slowly turned and glanced down at my face. I held his haunted stare. “I am fine. They didn’t do anything to me.”
His face softened and he stepped forward carefully, wrapping his arms around my waist and leaning down to bury his head in my neck. I froze. I didn’t know how to react. A part of me wanted to hug him back but a bigger part of me still needed time. I was still so unsure and didn't know what to think or how to feel about any of this.
“Just let me hold you, bambola. Just for one minute. I’m sorry I scared you.”
My heart ached at his words and I fought the lump in my throat. I allowed him to hold me, the tension slowly ebbing away from his body and I closed my eyes to try to ignore his intoxicating smell or the warmth of his skin. I could feel myself caving. My resolve was wavering.
“Giovanni, please,” I whispered, my voice coming out in a broken husk. He lifted his head and rested his forehead on mine, which only made it worse.
“Look at me, bambola. I am still right here. It’s still me.”
I couldn’t. It was too soon. I pushed at his chest lightly and turned away as his arms dropped from my body.
“They wanted me to deliver a message to you.” I walked over to the counter and picked up the brown envelope. I threw it down on the surface as it slid towards him. His face scrunched up as he picked it up and pulled out the photographs. That sinister look was back. Only this time I was more prepared for it. “They had been following me, us, for weeks. Since you took that man’s eye. They threatened my life unless…” he glanced up at me and pure rage was swirling in those almost black eyes. “You meet with them alone. Without telling anyone. They said you had two weeks to decide.”
He burst out laughing, taking me by complete surprise. But it wasn’t his usual laugh. It was a calculating and dangerous laugh full of arrogance. “That is fucking hilarious.”
My mouth fell open and my eyes widened. Did he not care? That they were going to kill me? “My life is on the line, and you find it amusing?” I growled.
“Bambola. Your life is not on the line. I will never let them get within one mile of you again. Their threats are void because I will never let it happen. I fucked up by letting you out of my sight yesterday, but they won’t get that chance again.”
“What do you mean? Why do they want to meet with you anyway?”
“To kill me. The first person you take down in the family is the underboss… Then the boss. Then the whole system falls apart. And I mean, you are staying with me now so pack a bag. You will never be out of my sight or you will always have protection around you. They won’t be able to touch you.”
My eyes bulged as I realised what he was saying. I was going to become his prisoner in his home like his mother. Never leaving the house. Always having to ask permission to do anything. To go anywhere. Is this what my life would be if I chose to stay with him? To give up my freedom and my life just to stay hidden away by his side? I didn't survive everything I had just to be controlled and scared again.
“No.”
His head snapped up and his eyes narrowed, but I wouldn’t let him intimidate me. Even after everything I now knew about him, I still believed he would never hurt me. He was a monster to many, but never to me. That I knew. I stood my ground as he put the pictures down carefully, never taking his eyes off mine in challenge. “No?”
“I will not end up like your mother, Giovanni. I am not going to be hidden away behind your mansion walls like a caged animal. I wasn’t raised in your world and I do not have to accept it. I still have my freedom and I am willing to fight for it.”
His nostrils flared as he fought to hold onto his control. I don’t know why he was surprised. He should know me by now. The one thing I would never allow is for a man to control my life.
“This is not up for discussion, Olivia. Even if you don’t want to be with me right now, even if you need some time to think about us, you are still coming back with me today and you will not be allowed out of my sight,” his deep voice was demanding and hard.
I scoffed loudly, which made his nostrils flare. “You cannot control me Gio. I am not one of your men that follows your every command.”
“I am not trying to control you. I am trying to protect you,” he hissed, stepping closer to me. I wanted to step back but I knew it was a power move. I forced my feet to stay glued to the floor as he towered over me, glaring down into my eyes. They flickered down to my lips fleetingly and he licked his own, causing my stomach to flutter.No Liv. Not now. This man had just told you he was a cold-blooded killer and wanted to keep you locked away and you are thinking about kissing him?Fuck I have issues.
“Well, right now, I don’t need your protection. They said I had two weeks. So that means I have two weeks to figure this shit out and make my decision.”
He was so close to me now that I could feel his warm breath on my face. His beautiful yet fierce features were so smouldering and dark as he listened to my words and I saw the passion and desire in his eyes.
“And what shit do you have to figure out, bambola?” His voice was a low seductive caress and my centre ached with need. He knew what he was doing. He was trying to break me down using his most lethal weapon. Sex. And my body was falling for it.
Pushing my body against the kitchen counter, he trapped me there with his arms on either side of my hips. I gulped down my arousal and I tried to maintain my sanity and think clearly.
“It looks as though I have only two choices. Stay with you and live a life of confinement.”
“But have the best sex and be worshipped every day,” he smirked as he brushed his lips lightly against mine, causing my breath to hitch. “Or?”
“Or leave. Take the next plane out of here and disappear,” I whispered, and he froze. His eyes burned into mine with a storm of emotions and his breathing became laboured.
