Chapter 64
He had her laid bare, the heat of his cock pressing against her slick folds, the promise of domination and pleasure electrifying the space between them. His hands gripped her hips, steady, demanding, ready to claim what he wanted. “Luca?” Vee’s pulse raced in her throat, her heart thudding painfully as reality collided with desire.
Something inside her screamed that this had gone too far, that the line had been crossed, her body didn’t respond with obedience but with resistance.
“Don’t say no, Vee! Fuck! Don’t say no,” he growled, eyes burning with frustration, pupils dilated. Every inch of him screamed for release, for conquest, for the intimate proof that she was his in every possible way. But desire twisted into anger, impatience, and the raw, animalistic hunger that had been caged for too long.
“No!” she spat.
“Fuck!” he bellowed, releasing her with a violent shove that sent the sheets flying. He scrambled off the bed, legs unsteady, drunk on the lingering wine and his own pent-up need. Hands trembling, he grabbed the empty bottle beside him, shaking with frustration, and flung it against the wall.
The shards fell like scattered stars across the floor, glittering but dangerous, much like their own twisted connection.
“Luca!” Vee shouted, heart hammering, eyes wide at the violence of his anger and disappointment. She had never seen him unravel like this. It was terrifying and magnetic all at once.
“Go to your apartment, Vee, before I do something I will hate myself for,” he growled.
Vee didn’t need a second warning. She scrambled from the bed, tangled sheets falling around her legs, and fled, muttering curses under her breath. Her hair was disheveled, eyes wild.
“Fuck!” Luca roared again, picking up the glass from the side table and hurling it at the mirror. The reflective surface shattered, fracturing his own image into jagged, dangerous pieces. He collapsed back onto the bed, chest heaving, mind spinning. How long would he wait for her to be ready?
The next morning, Veronica opened the door as Marco arrived to pick up Valentina.
“Miss Scalese. Good morning,” Marco said
“Ah…the original Marco.” Vee’s lips curved into a smile. Marco was a man who could be terrifying in his intensity without ever raising his voice, that was why she had assumed he was the devil and not Luca.
“Yes, I am,” Marco replied, Veronica could sense the tension in his stance. He was always that taut, immovable force.
“Tina tells me you have been good to her. Thank you p>
“Just doing my job.” Marco said.
“Thanks anyway. Come in,” Veronica invited him. She wanted to extend normal courtesies. But Marco didn’t move. His rigid posture at the door, his careful stance, immediately made her uneasy.
“I’ll just wait out here,” he said. He didn’t want to be in the same confined space as Luca’s woman, and Veronica couldn’t blame him. Marco’s refusal to enter the apartment fully, his self-imposed distance, was a shield both for him and for her.
“Valentina is just getting ready. Are you going to wait out here the whole time?” Veronica pressed.
“Yes.” Veronica’s lips parted, about to argue, when the bedroom door swung open and Valentina emerged, cheeks flushed with excitement, hair slightly tousled from her hurried preparations. Her eyes lit up as she spotted Marco, and without hesitation, she ran forward, throwing herself into his arms. “Marco!” she exclaimed as she hugged him with a fervor that spoke of trust, relief, and the unfiltered happiness of a child reunited with someone she saw as a protector.
Veronica’s eyes narrowed. What the hell was happening here? She had expected propriety, distance, and professionalism, yet here was her sister wrapping herself around Marco like a lifeline.
“Marco, please excuse us for a minute,” Vee said as she gently but decisively closed the door in his face. She turned to Valentina, hands on her sister’s shoulders. “What are you doing? Is he being inappropriate with you p>
“What? No!” Valentina protested. “Marco is just like some terrifying teddy bear. He is harmless.” Veronica felt a flicker of relief.
“He kills people for a living, Tina p>
Valentina shrugged. “He is still harmless,” she said. “Besides, you are worried about him when I will be sold to modern-day slavery on Friday? I’d rather be with Marco.” Her mind raced, trying to reconcile her sister’s calm acceptance with the horrifying reality that had been dangling over them for weeks.
“Friday? What? Friday? You didn’t say anything p>
Valentina tiptoed closer, leaning in so her lips brushed Veronica’s ear. “He is going to help me escape. You can’t tell Luca. He’ll kill him.” Vee’s heart skipped a beat, a tangle of awe, relief, and terror twisting in her chest.
Veronica’s eyes widened, comprehension dawning and fear turning into a brittle kind of hope. She nodded slowly, swallowing hard. “How do I reach you?” She needed to know she could be there.
“I will. Once I am safe,” Valentina replied, a small, confident smile tugging at the corners of her lips. Her fingers brushed Veronica’s briefly, a touch that conveyed both reassurance and bravery.
Vee pulled her sister into a tight embrace, holding her. “I love you very much, baby p>
“I love you too,” Valentina whispered back.
“And no touchy-feely with the big bad bear,” Veronica added with a teasing edge.
“It’s nothing, Vee. Trust me,” Valentina assured her, her eyes steady, her posture calm and self-possessed despite the storm they were all navigating. Her confidence was a balm.
Vee nodded, taking a deep breath, letting some of the tension ebb. Hope flickered brightly, a fragile, precious flame. Her sister would be okay—she had Marco. The burden of fear, of helplessness, was lightened, even if just slightly.
Veronica led Valentina out to where Marco waited, car idling silently. She waved goodbye, holding her breath as Valentina climbed in. Her sister’s eyes met hers one last time, the silent promise of safety shared across the space between them.
As she turned to retreat back to her apartment, she saw Luca emerging from the main house. The muscles in her neck tensed, her pulse spiked. He watched her, the blue of his eyes like frozen fire, a predator in the calm morning, and the air seemed to thrum with the intensity of the storm that was Luciano Genovese.
(16 Chapters to go. Oy vey p>