Revenge Is Mine

17: Shadows And Candlelight

Chiara Moretti

I honestly expected the house to be completely dark when I walked through the estate's front doors. It had been a long, exhausting week. By the time my driver dropped me off at the main entrance, my whole body felt heavy. All I wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep for two days straight.

But when I stepped inside the foyer, I noticed a soft, warm glow coming from the dining room.

I dropped my bag on the entryway table and walked slowly down the hall. I stopped right in the doorway, completely surprised. The bright overhead lights were turned off. Instead, the long dining table was lit by dozens of heavy, flickering candles. It looked incredibly cozy and intimate. The smell of roasted garlic, rich meat, and fresh herbs filled the air, making my stomach instantly growl.

"Dinner is almost ready," a deep voice called out from the kitchen area.

I smiled to myself. "I am going to take a quick bath first. I feel like I have the entire city's dirt on my skin."

"Take your time," Alessandro replied.

I walked upstairs to my room and went straight to the bathroom. I turned on the hot water, added some bath oils, and just let myself sink into the huge tub. The hot water felt amazing on my tired muscles, I closed my eyes and let out a long, heavy sigh.

I finished washing up, feeling much lighter. I drained the tub, dried off, and threw on something really comfortable... a soft, oversized beige cashmere sweater and some fitted black leggings. I left my hair damp and falling down my back.

When I walked back downstairs and into the dining room, Alessandro was already sitting at the table. He had changed out of his usual business suits too. He was wearing a dark, long-sleeved sweater pushed up to his elbows. He looked relaxed as he poured red wine into two crystal glasses. The candlelight danced across his face, highlighting his sharp jawline and those intense dark eyes. My breath actually caught in my throat for a second. He was just so effortlessly handsome.

I pulled out the chair next to him and sat down. "This looks amazing," I said, looking at the perfectly cooked steak, roasted potatoes, and fresh salad on the table.

"You needed a good meal," Alessandro said smoothly, sliding a glass of wine over to me. "You have barely eaten anything since Wednesday."

We started eating, and for a while, the dining room was just filled with the quiet clinking of silverware and the comfortable silence between us.

I took a sip of my wine, letting the rich taste settle on my tongue. "So," I said quietly. "Did your men see anything last night?"

Alessandro slowly cut a piece of his steak. "They did. Marco was dragged out of his penthouse around midnight. He looked shaken, but he was very much alive. He is drowning, completely out of options. i wonder why he can't just let the company go."

"You have to understand the way Marco's brain works," I explained, running my finger around the rim of my wine glass. "He didn't build Moretti Holdings, didn't even buy it. He stole it and he didn't just steal it with clever paperwork. He killed for it. If he signs fifty-one percent of the company over to a stranger just to save his own skin, he is admitting that he did all of those horrible things for absolutely nothing."

I looked up and met Alessandro's eyes. "Moretti Holdings is his trophy. It proves that he is smart, that he won, and that he is a king. He will never just hand it over, Alessandro. He will literally die before he gives it away."

Alessandro didn't interrupt me, he understood. We fell back into a comfortable silence as we finished our dinner.

I pushed my empty plate forward and rested my elbows on the table. I watched Alessandro for a minute, I looked at the broad slope of his shoulders, the calm way he carried himself, the absolute power he held in his hands.

He was a dangerous man, but he had never been dangerous to me. "Alessandro?" I called his name softly.

He looked over at me. "Yes?"

"Why are you doing this?" I asked.

He raised an eyebrow slightly. "Doing what?"

"All of this," I gestured around the room, meaning the house, the money, the protection. "You gave me a safe place to live, a brand new identity. You are a very busy, powerful man, have your own empire to run. You still haven't told me, why did you spend the last two years helping a dead girl get her revenge?"

Alessandro completely stopped moving.

He stared at me, and the silence in the dining room suddenly felt incredibly heavy.

Then, he slowly pushed his chair back and stood up. My heart instantly started beating a little faster, Alessandro slowly walked around the corner of the table. He stopped right beside my chair.

He turned toward me and stepped right into my personal space. I had to tilt my head back just to look up at him. He leaned down, placing one hand on the back of my chair and the other flat on the table, completely boxing me in. He was so close I could feel the heat radiating off his body.

A faint, devastatingly handsome smile played on his lips. "You will get to know eventually," he murmured. His voice was so low and smooth that it sent a sudden shiver straight down my spine.

I couldn't look away from his eyes. They were so dark, so intense, trapping me right there in my seat. I swallowed hard, my mouth suddenly feeling very dry. "It just... makes me uncomfortable sometimes," I admitted, my voice dropping to a breathy whisper. "I look around at everything you have given me, and I just don't know what I did to deserve it. I don't know how to repay you."

Alessandro's smile faded, he leaned in even closer. His face was only a few inches from mine now. I completely stopped breathing. His gaze slowly dropped down to my lips for a long, agonizing second, before slowly dragging back up to meet my eyes.

"You deserve everything, Chiara," he said, his voice rough and incredibly intimate. He was so close I could feel his breath brush against my skin when he spoke. "You don't need to repay me, you are special to me."

My heart hammered against my ribs. My stomach fluttered, and a rush of heat pooled low in my belly. He was looking at me like he wanted to consume me entirely. For one wild, crazy second, I thought he was actually going to kiss me right there but then, just like that, the moment snapped.

Alessandro suddenly straightened up. He pulled his hands back, took a step away from my chair, and completely smoothed out his expression.

He just flipped a switch, boxing away all that heavy, breathless intimacy like it had never even happened. My head was completely spinning. I blinked up at him, trying to catch my breath and regulate my racing heart.

He walked back to his side of the table and leaned against the edge of the wood, crossing his arms over his chest."There is an exclusive charity Gala happening this weekend," Alessandro told me. "All of the biggest names in the city's financial world will be there. It is a place to be seen, to shake hands, and to make deals."

"So, you want me to go to the Gala," I asked and he nodded.

"Yes," Alessandro agreed. "But you need to open your eyes and be incredibly careful. Because this weekend, you are walking into a room full of real monsters and if you are not being too careful, you might actually get eaten."