Chapter 3 - You really think we're safe?
1235 Words
R H E A
The two of us lock gazes, neither of us breaking eye contact, as if we are the only two people left on the street. Cars pass, headlights illuminating his face further, and I see clearly that he is observing me, eyeing me from head to toe as he slyly keeps his hands in his pockets, watching me carefully. Despite all that's going on around me... all I hear... all I feel... is him.
Micheal Vescari.
His eyes track over me slowly, as if mapping every inch of my body and filing it away. My breath hitches, chest tightening, and I swear I feel his stare the way I’d feel fingertips brushing my bare skin. He watches me the way a predator would watch something it doesn't intend to chase, because it already knows it can catch it.
I should run... make a break for it with Cassie, but it's like my feet are bolted to the ground, cemented in place by fear... and attraction.
"Rhea, come on..." I hear Cassie's harsh whisper, followed by a desperate tug on my arm, an attempt to pull me back to reality. My body finally moves, but still I'm not able to take my eyes off Micheal. Everything about him... his eyes, his lips, his scent... is now driving me crazy. It was just one kiss with a stranger... a very hot stranger... but it shouldn't mean anything...
So why do I feel like my entire world has just been flipped upside down?
Cassie's words run through my mind... billionaire, criminal syndicate, Don...
I kissed a Mafia leader....
I... kissed him...
And God help me, I'd do it again...
Micheal's gaze shifts to my mouth, and that's when I notice the corners of his lips begin to rise into a handsome, dangerous smile, one that immediately makes me feel weak in the knees. It's as if he remembers what I taste like, and the thought of that causes a series of chills to run up and down my spine. That's when a sleek black car finally pulls up to the curb in front of him, and one of his bodyguards moves to open the door for him. He prolongs his gaze on me for a moment before he finally steps forward and walks towards the open door of the vehicle, and steps inside, just as the bodyguards around him circle the car before stepping inside themselves.
Once they're gone, my lungs suddenly suck in air, and I can finally snap out of it, gaining some control over my body. That's when I hear Cassie's voice again, this time louder than before.
"RHEA!" She exclaims, and my body jolts just as I look back at her, seeing that she is now standing right in front of me, feeling her hands clamped onto my shoulders as she shakes me lightly.
"Huh? What?" I blink at her, half dazed, but all I'm thinking about right now is my kiss with Micheal...
"Are you kidding me right now?" She snaps at me, her face a blend of pani and exasperation.
"I'm sorry... there's just something about him..." I answer, swallowing hard as heat burns my cheeks.
"No s**t there's something about him. He's part of the f*****g mob. Snap out of it!" She whispers to me as she holds onto my arm, and that's when I frown deeply to myself, worry now creeping into my mind.
"Y-yeah... you're right..." My voice cracks as I suddenly become nervous while glancing in the direction his car had gone.
"Come on, we need to get out of here right now." Cassie lets out, her voice low and urgent, sending a new wave of fear crawling up my spine.
"Why...?" My voice trembles. "Cassie... are we in danger..?"
"I don't know," she admits, and that uncertainty terrifies me more than anything else. "But guys like him? They don't just let stuff go... especially in front of their guards, in front of a whole club. Come on." She says before grabbing my hand this time, as if she's afraid I'll vanish or do something stupid like chase after him.
"Taxi!" She then calls out, waving her hand out to the yellow cab that passes by us. Eventually, we watch as it comes to a stop and Cassie tugs me towards the door, our heels tapping sharply against the pavement. We have sobered up, not completely, but enough to make sense of what's happening right now...
. . . .
After a 15-minute drive, we finally get back to our apartment building in one piece. The entrance lights flicker ever head, and I swear the familiar brick exterior has never looked so comforting. Cassie is silent the entire time we make it up the stairs, and after not being able to handle any more of the silent treatment, I finally speak up.
"Okay, you have to tell me more about him..." Is the first thing I say once we get inside.
"Not now..." She mutters as she kicks off her heels and holds onto her head while I follow after her desperately.
"You're mad at me? I don't know Cass. Besides, you dared me remember?" I try to say in attempting to figure out what she's feeling.
"I'm not mad, damn it. No one thinks you purposely made out with the most dangerous man in New York." She answers me just as she turns back around.
"Ugh. When you say it out loud, it sounds even worse..." I groan, shuffling over and finding myself on a nearby couch.
"That's because it is worse." She answers, following after me and taking a seat next to me as well. "What did he say to you when you kissed him? Or what did you say to him? Cause frankly, he looked like he wanted to devour you and also personally skin anyone who looked at you for too long..." Cassie lets out, and I groan and cover my face, trying my best not to think about our kiss.
"Cassie..." I mumble. "What if... what if he comes after me...? What if it was bad? What if it’s like… disrespectful to kiss someone like him in public?" I say.
She shakes her head. “I don’t know all the mafia rules, babe. I only know what I know because the streets talk, and you can't live in New York without knowing who runs this city. But from the way he looked at you? I don’t think he was offended...” She says before taking a moment to breathe.
“We're home. Safe. Away from dangerous billionaires with cheekbones sharp enough to commit homicide.” She laughs
A nervous laugh escapes me. “You really think we’re safe?”
Cassie opens her mouth to reassure me, and suddenly stops, her eyebrows pulling together as she stares at me in complete seriousness.
“I don’t know,” she admits quietly. “I honestly don’t.”
The air settles, heavy and thick between us as I press a hand to my chest, feeling my heartbeat jackhammer. “Cassie…”
"Let's try to get some rest, Rhea. We'll figure it out in the morning." She says, and I nod at her, but deep down I know one thing:
There is no version of tomorrow where Michael Vescari forgets about me.
And there is absolutely no version where I forget about him...
- Writer
