Bloodstained Hands, Gentle Touch

‎Chapter 6: The Gilded Cage

‎Elena

‎The Moretti estate wasn't a home; it was a monument to power.

‎Located behind towering iron gates and a driveway that felt miles long, the house was a sprawling masterpiece of stone and glass. But as Alessandro led me through the front doors, his hand a heavy, warm weight on the small of my back, I didn't feel like a guest. I felt like a prize being moved into a vault.

‎"I can't stay here, Alessandro," I said, my voice echoing in the marble foyer. "I have a shift in twelve hours. I have a life."

‎"You have a target on your back," he corrected. He turned to a man in a sharp black suit who was waiting near the stairs. "Dante, double the perimeter. I want a sweep of the grounds every twenty minutes. And get the doctor here to look at her—make sure I didn't miss any glass."

‎"I'm a nurse!" I snapped, my fear finally turning into a spark of genuine anger. "I checked myself. I'm fine. What I’m not fine with is being kidnapped."

‎Alessandro dismissed the man with a nod and stepped toward me. He didn't stop until I was backed against the mahogany railing of the grand staircase. He braced his hands on either side of me, trapping me in the scent of his skin and the sheer heat of his presence.

‎"It’s not kidnapping when I’m saving your life, Elena."

‎"It is when you don't give me a choice!"

‎His gaze dropped to my mouth, and for a second, the cold Don disappeared. His eyes grew dark, clouded with a raw, desperate hunger. "I gave you a choice in the restaurant. I told you to go home. You stayed. You saved me in that ER, and now the world knows you're linked to me. The Lucianos don't care about your nursing ethics. They see a woman the Don of Chicago went into a public place to claim. To them, you are my heart. And they want to stop it from beating."

‎My heart hammered against my ribs—not from fear of the Lucianos, but from the way he said my heart.

‎"I'm not your heart," I whispered, though my breath hitched as he leaned in, his lips brushing the sensitive skin of my neck.

‎"Then why did I feel like the world was ending when I saw that glass break?" he murmured against my skin. His hand slid up my waist, his fingers splaying over my ribs, claiming me through the thin fabric of my scrubs. "You are light, Elena. And I am a man who has spent his whole life in the dark. I'm not letting you go back out there until I’ve killed every person who thought they could lay a finger on you."

‎He pulled back just enough to look me in the eye. The "Slow Burn" we had been dancing around for days finally caught fire. The air between us was thick, electric, and dangerous.

‎"You’ll sleep in my room," he commanded.

‎"In your... no. Absolutely not."

‎"It’s the only room with reinforced glass and a direct line to my security detail," he lied—I could see the faint, possessive smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Unless you'd rather sleep in the hall with my guards?"

‎He knew he had me. He leaned down, his voice a low, rough vibration against my lips. "Be a good girl and do as you're told, Elena. I'm already on the edge. Don't push me over it tonight."