#5
1286 Words
DANTE
I gulped down the wine in one burning swallow before I slammed the crystal glass onto the table.
What the hell was I thinking?
My blood was simmering, an unyielding coil of heat locking up my lower abdomen. Getting worked up over that girl was a line I shouldn't even be looking at. But goddamnit, the image of her standing by that bed refused to dissolve.
She had been wearing something so flagrantly revealing, the thin silk mapping the curves of her luscious breasts, staring right back at me as if she had no idea what kind of fuse she was lighting. I hadn't expected her to be so damn beautiful. It was a complication I didn't need. For f**k's sake, she was twenty years old. And I was thirty six.
Old enough to know better.
Old enough not to stand in her bedroom staring like some starved animal.
“Get a grip,” I muttered to myself.
I dragged a hand hard over my face, the stubble scraping against my palm.
To me, Diana had always been a little girl. All wide eyes and innocence.
My jaw clenched as I poured another glass.
That girl was going to be trouble.
I could feel it already.
"Boss, you're back," Marco announced himself, his boots clicking casually against the hardwood as he stepped through the open doorway.
I tossed back the second glass before answering.
“I’m obviously back.”
Marco didn't take the hint to leave. He leaned his hip against the desk, his eyes searching my face with far too much ease. "Did you see the girl in the house?"
My brow furrowed instantly, "How do you know she's here?"
Marco gave a small relaxed shrug. "I saw her wandering around earlier. Looked completely lost, so I guided her down and even made some spaghetti for her."
The air in my lungs went rigid. I sat down stiffly in my chair as I stared up at him. "I didn't know you suddenly became a chef, Marco."
He lifted a shoulder again, completely unbothered by the venom in my tone. "Just looking out for her."
Something ugly twisted in my chest.
"Stay away from her," I said, the words dropping cold.
Marco raised both hands in a mock gesture of surrender, though a knowing glint remained in his eyes. He pulled out a small flash drive from his vest pocket and set it down on the desk between us, sliding it forward until it tapped against my laptop casing.
"Is this the drive containing the footage from that night?"
Marco nodded, his expression finally hardening into something professional.
I flipped the laptop open and inserted the drive into the side port, my fingers flying across the trackpad to open the file directory. I hit play. The screen flickered as the security footage began to roll.
The time stamp in the corner counted down to the seconds before the door was breached. The playback showed a man and his wife, caught entirely off guard in the center of their apartment. The flash of gunfire was silent on the screen, but the brutality was loud.
They were shot down without a second thought. Then, the frame shifted toward the hallway, where a terrified girl scrambled backward, her small hands clawing at the frame of a closet door before she vanished inside it, pulling the slatted wood shut behind her.
The armed men entered the frame a second later, tossing the room, tearing down curtains, searching for the missing piece. They didn't find her. After a few agonizing minutes, they turned on their heels and left the apartment empty.
Marco leaned closer. "Does this contain everything you need?"
"It contains everything I needed," I murmured. I reached out, clicked the eject icon, and pulled the drive from the port. I slid the metal casing deep into my trousers pocket.
Marco studied me, his head tilting slightly. "Is that the girl?"
I gave a single tight nod, sliding lower into my chair.
My blue eyes locked onto Marco’s, unblinking.
"What’s the plan?" Marco asked anyway, his curiosity cutting through the silence.
I let out a dry breath, the corners of my mouth tightening. "You should know by now, Marco, I don't tell anybody my plans until I execute them."
He held my gaze for a beat longer before nodding, taking a step back from the desk. "I understand, Boss."
I waved a hand dismissively, signaling the end of the conversation. Marco turned and walked out, the door closing softly behind him. Left alone I reached for my phone and dialed a secure unlisted number. The line ringed before it was picked.
"I’ve got the drive," I said coldly. "And the girl is now here with me at the estate. It’s time. Start processing the inheritance documents immediately. I want every single piece of paperwork forwarded to my mail by tomorrow morning."
I hung up before he could reply, tossing the phone onto the desk.
—————
Morning came too fast.
A knock sounded against my bedroom door.
I shifted under the sheets, a rough, sleep thickened growl tearing from my throat. "Come in."
The door creaked open.
I turned over on the mattress, my eyes narrowing as I locked onto the small figure slipping into my room.
Diana.
Still half asleep, I reached over to the nightstand and switched on the lamp.
The room flooded with light.
And I immediately regretted it.
"f*****g hell," I growled under my breath,.
She stood in my room but the outfit she was wearing made every muscle in my body snap to attention. The fabric was short, high up her thighs, exposing an endless stretch of smooth, pale skin that had the blood instantly rushing to my ears.
My gaze lifted and the shape of her breasts pressing against the fabric made my mouth go dry.
No bra. The realization hit me hard.
"Did I wake you up?" she asked, her voice soft, entirely too innocent for the wreckage she was causing in my head.
I forced my eyes up, dragging them darkly away from her chest, locking my gaze strictly on her face.
My body was already betraying me in ways I didn’t need reminding of.
"You didn't,"
My eyes locked onto hers. “But you woke something else up.”
The words slipped out before I could stop them.
Her lips parted.
A flicker of surprise crossed her face.
Shit.
I sat up straighter, my jaw aching from how hard I was clenching it. "What are you doing here this early?"
She shifted her weight, the movement causing the hem of her outfit to ride up even higher against her thigh. "You said you were going to show me around the estate today."
Right.
I’d said that last night.
When her body was distracting enough. But this morning it was worse.
Way worse.
I swallowed hard, my throat dry.
Her eyes wandered over me, and I knew exactly what she was seeing.
Bare chest and low slung sheets, sleep rumpled hair.
And judging by the slight hitch in her breath—
She noticed.
I cursed under my breath.
“Diana.”
My voice came out sharper this time, she straightened up immediately.
I dragged my hand over my face, trying to gather whatever patience I had left, but my eyes dropped again.
Against my will.
Her n*****s pressed faintly through that thin top.
Bloodly hell.
My jaw locked.
I swallowed hard, the back of my throat completely dry as I cursed violently under my breath.
"Is this how you dress on a daily basis? Because if the answer is yes, please go change into something else right away."
- Writer
