CHAPTER SEVEN
1117 Words
LAYING BOUNDARIES
LUCIEN'S POV
I walked off after giving her my concise but very important rule.
I would do anything for Don Romano, but this situation had the potential of becoming very very dangerous for me and for the girl.
She still had that skittish and innocent appearance about her. I noticed the way she reacted to me the first time she saw me in her father's study after seven years of my absence.
After what had happened those years ago.
I sighed immediately as I got into my office. This would be a very long one year for me. The girl had already gotten under my skin.
The sound of her voice and the literal innocence about her was wrecking with my control that I had worked so hard to put under a tight vise.
It's been so long I saw such innocence, especially within our area of business. Innocence was a luxury that no one in this murky business seemed to have or even care for.
I have to ignore her, make sure she is hurt enough not to cross certain boundaries.
It is as much to protect myself from her than to protect her.
I brought out the bottle of whiskey I always keep in a small closed shelf on the wall behind my office chair. I took out the small whiskey shot inside as well, poured myself a generous shot and gulped it down.
I won't let her pull down my defenses against her, I thought to myself as I felt the whiskey burn down my insides.
I will look after her and protect her as her father wished. I owe him so much not to, but that would be the only extent our relationship would go.
I'll definitely not allow her to cross any boundaries.
I’d have to set definitive rules then.
I sighed and returned the bottle of whiskey to the shelf.
I pushed a button by the side of my office table. I had built a lot of these buttons around the house, especially in my office.
A good number of them were hidden and scattered over my office table.
I may appear to be without any weapon or protection, but I can always summon my very capable and efficient army anytime I feel any sense of threat.
I killed the man who designed the system for me. It was too risky to let him go, I compensated his family with a lifetime of money afterwards.
George, my personal guard and the one in charge of my house, a responsibility quite close to a house keeper but encompassed much more than what an average housekeeper could do, walked into my office.
“You called sir,” he said in that brisk tone of his.
He was always straightforward like that.
“Yes, I called George,” I sighed and walked away from the table. I walked towards the shelves that lined one corner of my office.
“We have a new addition in the house, Romano's daughter, Miss Sophia Loretto,” I said calmly, this time looking at George to see how he would react to this information.
It was as I had expected, even if a bit stiff but the awe shone through all right.
“Romano Loretto's daughter is out there in the sitting room?” George asked, a bit incredulously.
“Why, yes, George, I believe that was what I said earlier,” I replied in wry amusement.
He seemed to get a hold of himself, faster than I liked but seeing him flustered for a bit was quite rewarding.
I smiled and walked up towards him.
“Relax, George, Romano was once my very good friend. I was his right hand man of some sorts during the good old days.”
I went back to my office chair and sat down noisily on it, picking one of the files I had been working on before I got Romano's call.
“Wow,” George breathed.
I must have blown his mind off.
I laughed a bit humourlessly.
“You'd stand all day being amazed at my past life, George, if I began to give you details about them,” the ruffling sound of paper as I turned the pages of the file almost drowned out my voice as I spoke.
“Ah, yes of course, sir,” He said, rolling on the balls of his fit as if to gather back his wits and the deftness with which he used to get things done.
“I will treat her with as much respect that is due her, which room would you like me to arrange for her?” He asked politely this time.
“Any room of your choice George, as far as it isn't anywhere near my room or my office. It shouldn't cross paths with any of my personal spaces,” I said calmly with enough strength in my voice.
This seemed to suggest to him that I was actually going to take the care of our guest seriously, and that I wanted her to have as much privacy as she could get.
Well, it won't do any good for Sophia or for myself and Romano if our enemies found out that I wanted to keep her at arms length. They'd misinterpret it as hidden tension between myself and Romano.
“Have the chef prepare something for her to eat as well,” I added as George prepared to leave the office.
“What should I inform the chef to prepare?” He asked after standing there a while waiting for further instructions.
“Oh, you can ask her yourself, George. She can have the run of the house if she so wishes, I've got work to finish.”
“Of course, sir,”. He closed the door to my office softly as he left.
I made every effort to concentrate on work as much as I could but images of her face popped up behind my eyes.
That flowery dress she wore when she walked into her father's study almost did me in.
She looked so innocent, so beautiful.
I groaned and rubbed my head.
“You are twice her age you f*****g dumbass,” I said angrily to myself hitting my fist of the table.
The hit rattled the table and threatened to displace some things that were on the table as well.
I have to do something to take my mind off her fast and soon.
I haven't even spent a complete day with her and she’s already getting under my skin like this.
Fuck!
One year seemed like eternity to me at that moment.
I was truly and royally f****d.
- Writer
