Snowbound with my best friend's father

The Darkness Between Us

CHAPTER 3 – The Darkness Between Us

The shadow moved again.

Not a flicker.

Not imagination.

A solid, deliberate shape slipping past the edge of the window like it had been waiting for the perfect moment.

My breath caught.

Lorenzo lifted his gun higher—smooth, silent, controlled. A man who had done this before. A man who wasn’t guessing.

“Aria,” he murmured, voice low, steady, deadly. “Stay behind me.”

I didn’t argue this time.

Didn’t breathe.

Didn’t even blink.

The storm howled outside, wind slamming against the house hard enough to rattle the glass. But underneath that noise… there were footsteps. Heavy ones. Crunching the snow right outside the door.

He noticed them too.

Lorenzo moved with a precision that made my heart slam into my ribs. He put himself between me and the window, one hand steady on the gun, the other reaching back blindly until his fingers brushed my wrist.

Just a touch—barely there.

But it grounded me.

Anchored me.

“Don’t step away from me. Not even an inch.” His tone left no room for argument.

Another shadow moved across the porch.

Then—

A knock.

Three slow, deliberate hits against the wood.

I flinched.

Lorenzo didn’t.

He aimed for the door now, shoulders squared, jaw tight enough to crack. “They’re not trying to hide anymore,” he whispered.

“W-Who is it?” My voice cracked.

His look over his shoulder was sharp. “Don’t speak.”

We waited.

One second.

Two.

Three.

Then a voice—deep, muffled through the door, but unmistakably male.

“Open up.”

My heart turned to ice.

Lorenzo shifted, stepping forward like a predator ready to strike. “Aria, move to the stairs. Slowly.”

Another knock, harder this time.

Then—

The door handle twisted.

I gasped, stumbling back. Lorenzo aimed straight at the lock.

“Stay back!” he barked.

The intruder tried again, forceful this time, rattling the entire frame.

Lorenzo clicked the safety off.

Everything in me spiraled—fear, adrenaline, and something else I couldn’t name. Something fierce and hot that came from watching him like this… ready to protect me with everything he had.

The handle twisted one more time—

And then the power cut.

All lights off.

Darkness swallowed the room whole.

I choked on a gasp. “Lorenzo—”

His hand grabbed me instantly in the dark, pulling me against his chest. “Quiet.”

I felt his breath near my ear.

Felt the tension in his muscles.

Felt the heat of his body even as everything around us fell into cold, terrifying black.

The storm raged.

The door shook.

And Lorenzo’s arm locked around my waist as he whispered:

“He’s inside the house.”

The words sliced through the darkness, sharp enough to steal the breath from my lungs.

Lorenzo’s grip tightened around my waist as the wind battered the estate, shaking the walls like the storm itself wanted in. But the storm was nothing compared to the footsteps echoing from somewhere deeper inside the mansion.

Heavy.

Slow.

Deliberate.

Not the wind.

Not the house settling.

A man.

I felt Lorenzo move before I could even see him. His arm eased from my waist only to slide up my back and push me gently behind him. His body remained between me and the entire world.

“Stay with me,” he breathed.

I swallowed hard, nodding even though he couldn’t see me. My heart was pounding loud enough I was terrified the intruder could hear it too.

A soft click — Lorenzo’s thumb sliding to the side of the gun, positioning himself for a clean shot.

Then—

Another footstep.

Closer.

The darkness wasn’t just dark now.

It felt alive. Watching. Waiting.

Lorenzo’s hand found mine again, squeezing once before he moved us silently along the wall, guiding me like he knew every inch of the house even blind.

A faint beam of light flashed from the hallway. Not steady — a sweep. A moving flashlight. Searching.

The intruder wasn’t lost.

He was hunting.

My chest tightened.

Lorenzo stopped abruptly, pushing me against the wall with his forearm braced beside my head. His breath brushed my cheek.

“He’s headed toward the stairs,” Lorenzo whispered, barely audible. “If he comes up here, he’ll see you first.”

I bit my lip to stop the sound rising in my throat. Fear. Shock. And something else — something tangled and uncontrollable. Being pressed this close to him, feeling his steady breathing while mine trembled, did something dangerous to me.

The flashlight beam brightened, moving across the floor below.

Lorenzo leaned closer. “I’m going down to intercept him.”

“No—” I grabbed his shirt instinctively, fingers curling in the fabric. “You can’t go alone.”

He reached up, cupping the back of my neck with a hand that was strong, shaking just slightly. “Aria, listen to me. I need you safe. I can’t think straight if—”

He stopped.

But he didn’t pull away.

Not even when his forehead lowered until it nearly touched mine.

For one suspended heartbeat, the danger outside and the danger inside him collided.

“Stay here,” he murmured, voice thick, controlled, but cracking at the edges. “Please.”

I felt my pulse trip.

Then—

A crash from downstairs.

Glass shattering.

The flashlight whipped violently toward the sound.

Lorenzo’s entire body snapped back into lethal focus.

He pressed something into my hand — cold metal.

A backup phone.

No signal, but its small flashlight still worked.

“If anything happens,” he said, “you run. Don’t hide. Run.”

My throat tightened. “Lorenzo—”

He didn’t let me finish.

His hand slid up my jaw, steadying me, grounding me in the pitch-black chaos.

“I’m coming back for you.”

A promise.

A warning.

A vow.

Then he moved away from me like a shadow disappearing into another shadow.

The darkness swallowed him whole.

I stood frozen, clutching the tiny flashlight he left with me, listening as his footsteps melted into silence.

Then I heard it.

Two voices downstairs.

Not one intruder.

Two.

And one of them said a name I wasn’t supposed to hear—

“De Luca.”

The temperature dropped.

Ice crawled up my spine.

They weren’t lost.

They weren’t burglars.

They were here for him.

And I was alone at the top of the stairs.

Until a third sound cut the air.

A floorboard behind me creaked.

Not downstairs.

Behind me.

Upstairs.

Right where I thought I was safe.

I turned slowly, breath trembling, heart shaking so hard it hurt.

But the darkness didn’t move.

It breathed.

I froze, heart hammering so violently I was sure the intruders could hear it. My flashlight trembled in my hand, tiny beam flickering across the dark hallway. The safe room Lorenzo had instructed me to stay in—the one hidden behind the wardrobe—was only a few steps away, yet it felt impossibly far. Every creak of the floorboards, every distant thud from below made my pulse jump.

I swallowed hard, trying to steady my breath. One step. Another. Each movement felt like walking through molten glass. And then—another creak. Closer. My stomach dropped. Whoever—or whatever—was upstairs, was not moving cautiously. They weren’t thieves scared of being seen. They were hunters.

I pressed my back against the wall, holding the flashlight tight like it could be a weapon. My ears strained to catch the faintest sounds: the wind howling, the snow beating against the windows, Lorenzo’s distant movements below, and now… the sound of footsteps directly behind me.

My body tensed. I couldn’t turn. Not yet. Not without revealing my position.

“Aria?” a whisper—soft, almost seductive—slipped through the darkness. My breath hitched.

I spun around, shining the flashlight. Nothing. Just the shadows of the ornate rug and the towering wardrobe. My fingers brushed the handle, cold metal biting against my skin. The safe room. I had to get to it.

I started moving, slow, careful, each step measured. Then—the sound of someone sliding across the floor. Too deliberate. Too close.

“Lorenzo…” I whispered into the darkness, though I knew he couldn’t hear me. My voice shook. “Please come back.”

A shadow flickered against the wall, just a hair’s breadth from me. My hand froze on the wardrobe.

“Looking for me?” a voice breathed—low, rough, menacing.

I jumped, my flashlight swinging. It hit the corner of the room, throwing shadows against the walls. My heart slammed. Whoever this was, they weren’t here by accident. And they weren’t alone anymore—there was a second voice, closer, echoing softly down the hall.

I pressed my body flat against the wall, shivering. I could hear their boots clicking across the floor. I could feel them. Someone in this house, just steps away, hunting.

Then—I heard it. The subtle, almost imperceptible click of a weapon. My throat went dry.

I had to move. Now.

The safe room was just a few feet away, hidden behind a narrow section of the wardrobe. I inched toward it, every muscle taut, every nerve screaming. The shadows moved again, just at the edge of my flashlight.

“Aria,” a voice whispered—familiar, impossibly warm. My blood froze. Not one of the intruders. His.

I turned sharply, heart leaping. Lorenzo appeared from the shadows of the hallway, gun in hand, eyes blazing with fire. His movements were precise, silent, deadly. He didn’t smile. He didn’t hesitate. He was pure predator.

“Stay here,” he commanded, voice low and fierce. “Lock the door. Do not open it for anyone. Do you understand?”

I nodded, barely able to speak. “Yes… yes, Lorenzo.”

He gave me a fleeting look, intense enough to make me melt where I stood. And then—he was gone, moving like a shadow down the stairs toward the intruders.

I blinked, paralyzed. Alone. Trapped. Terrified. And yet… alive because of him.

I stumbled toward the wardrobe, heart hammering, hands shaking violently as I pulled at the concealed handle. The door slid open silently. I slipped inside, closing it behind me. Darkness swallowed me. The tiny room smelled of cedar and old linens. Perfect. Safe.

I locked it. Click.

Click.

I sank to the floor, my flashlight shaking in my lap. My knees were pressed to my chest. My breath came in short, sharp gasps. My hands trembled uncontrollably.

And then—the faintest sound. A footstep. Outside the door.

Frozen, I held my breath.

Lorenzo. Or someone else?

“Aria,” a voice whispered from beyond the thin walls. My chest jumped. “Are you okay?”

His voice. Always calm, commanding, protective. I pressed my hand over my mouth to keep from sobbing.

“I’m… I’m fine,” I whispered back.

“Don’t come out until I say so,” he replied. “I’ll clear the house. Trust me.”

The footsteps receded, then silence.

The seconds stretched. Minutes passed. I didn’t move. My ears strained. The only sound was the wind against the mansion, and my own heartbeat.

I wrapped my arms around my legs, trying to convince myself I wasn’t terrified. I tried to think about anything else—anything but the danger downstairs, anything but Lorenzo fighting for my safety, anything but the way my body still tingled from his last touch.

But it was impossible. Every memory of his hands on me, his lips against mine, his whispered confessions of desire burned through me like fire. And yet, in that moment, I realized something terrifying. Desire didn’t matter. Lust didn’t matter. Not tonight. Tonight, it was about survival. And I was terrified I might not be able to separate the two.

A soft click echoed from below again. The intruders were regrouping. They hadn’t given up. They were smart. Professional. Dangerous.

I leaned against the wall, silent, listening. My phone, the backup he gave me, was useless—no signal, dead battery. No way to call for help. No way out. I was trapped, alone, and completely at the mercy of Lorenzo’s ability to protect me.

I squeezed my eyes shut, wishing it was a nightmare. Wishing he was here. Wishing… anything that could make this not real.

And then—a sound unlike any other: a deep growl of warning. Lorenzo. Somewhere downstairs. Close. So close it shook the walls, rattled the floorboards.

I shivered. Not from cold. From fear. And something else. Something I couldn’t name.

Minutes passed. The storm outside raged harder. Lightning illuminated the room for a brief second. And in that flash, I saw him—at the bottom of the stairs, standing like a statue of pure power. Every muscle tense. Gun raised. Shadowed eyes scanning. Waiting.

The intruders moved. I could hear it—the subtle shuffle of feet, whispering voices. And then—a muffled grunt.

The first one went down.

A crash. A thud. Another grunt.

Lorenzo was taking them out. One by one. Silently. Lethally. Every movement precise, every breath controlled. I could hear it even in the safe room, the sharp snaps of bodies hitting the floor.

A sound of ice breaking. A scream cut through the storm.

I gasped, gripping the flashlight like a lifeline. My stomach turned. And then… silence.

Silence, broken only by Lorenzo’s calm voice, calling my name softly.

“Aria,” he whispered, almost gentle. “Come out. It’s safe. For now.”

I hesitated. Heart in my throat. Every instinct screaming both to run into his arms and to stay hidden.

I opened the wardrobe door slowly, peeking out. The hallway was empty. For the first time since the storm started, the world felt… still.

I ran to him, nearly tripping over my own feet. He caught me instantly, strong arms wrapping around me, holding me like I was the only thing keeping him grounded.

“Are you hurt?” he asked, voice low, urgent.

“No,” I whispered, pressing myself to him. “I’m fine. Thanks to you.”

His jaw flexed. He kissed my temple, soft, grounding. But I could feel the lingering edge of the predator still in him. Still ready for whatever came next.

“You’re not safe yet,” he said, voice rough. “I need you close. Every second you’re not… I can’t think. I can’t—”

“I’m here,” I whispered.

His hands moved to my waist, pulling me flush against him. My heart thudded against his chest. Every muscle in me ached for him. For comfort. For safety. For something beyond the storm, beyond danger.

He pressed a soft kiss to my forehead. “Stay with me. Please. I don’t care what happens after. Just… stay. Here. Now.”

I nodded, burying my face against his chest. The storm outside might have been raging, the world might have been collapsing, intruders might still be waiting… but in that moment, nothing existed beyond him.

And I realized something terrifying. Something terrifying and wonderful.

I didn’t just want to stay. I couldn’t imagine leaving him ever again.