His World Of Chaos

Chapter Two

Damiano’s POV

The Maserati purred under my hands, smooth and smug as a black panther. My guys rolled behind in SUVs, tight as a wolf pack. Passenger side, Isabella sat all stiff and upright, chin up like she was posing for a statue, shooting daggers out of the corner of her eye. Like she thought she could cut me with a look.

Cute.

Most women go quiet as ghosts when I claim the barely breathe, let alone talk back. Not this woman. She’d rather go down swinging than bow. Fire in her eyes, spine made of steel. I have to admit, I respect that. Hell, I like it. Fire is fun till it gets burned out in my hands.

She caught me staring and hissed, “Take a picture, it’ll last longer.”

I just grinned. “I look at what’s mine.”

“Newsflash, I’m not.” She snapped it out, chin jutted up another notch, like she was daring me.

Couldn’t help the cold smirk. Eyes on the road, but my mind’s all over her. “You’ll figure it out.”

We rolled past these monster iron gates honestly, they looked like they could keep out a tank, easy. Cameras eyed us the whole way, guards with enough firepower to start a war saluting as we slid by. My compound's damn fortress stone villas, gold-lit fountains, gardens manicured to hell and back, and enough muscle lurking in the shadows to make sure nobody gets funny ideas.

Killed the engine, popped my seatbelt. She just sat there, jaw clenched tight enough to snap a tooth.

“Your call, walk in, or I’ll drag you,” I told her.

She shot back, “Go to hell.”

“Sweetheart, I built the place.”

She gave me a look that’d make most men fold, but when her heels hit those marble steps, she picked up the pace. I caught the tremble in her hand, though. Not dumb, just stubborn.

Inside? The place is ridiculous. Foyer’s got a ceiling so high it’s practically in orbit, chandeliers dripping crystal everywhere like someone shattered a star and hung up the pieces. Italian marble polished to a mirror, her steps echoing, nervous but trying to hide it. My guys melted into the corners, whispering about shipments, rivals, and debts, the usual background noise.

She stuck out, all innocence and wide eyes pretending not to care about the bling everywhere. She didn’t fit. Not yet. But she would. One way or another.

“Nice cage,” she muttered.

“Better than the gutter, right?”

That glare she gave me? Could’ve sliced diamonds.

Led her through the doors, velvet everywhere. The dining hall looked like someone had robbed a museum. Food lay out on silver, wine ready to pour. My men waited, hungry for orders.

“Eat,” I ordered.

She folded her arms, looking me straight in the eyes. “Not hungry.”

“Stubborn is not a survival strategy.”

She sneered, “I’ll starve before I swallow your charity.”

Ouch. Those words had bite. It should’ve made me laugh, but the way her lip curled, to under my skin.

Then Matteo, an old dog, snorted from the sidelines. “Boss, this one’s got teeth. Careful, she might bite you.”

She glare she gave him was stern.

Matteo grinned, all wolves. “If she were mine, I would have…”

Didn’t let him finish. My hand was on his throat, smashing him into the wall before he could blink. The whole thing froze. The only sound was Matteo wheezing.

“She’s not yours,” I growled. “Do it again, and I’ll let the dogs have the rest.”

He nodded like his head was about to snap off. I dropped him, let him crumple like trash.

Isabella sucked in a breath white as a sheet, but her eyes? Something wild, almost impressed. Dangerous.

And God help me, that did something to me I didn’t like.

She whispered, “Why?”

I looked her dead in the eye. “Because no one is allowed to touch what is mine.”

She tried again, softly this time. “I don’t belong to you.”

I walked slowly toward her. She moved back till her back hit the table. My voice dropped low, almost a threat, almost a promise.

“Keep saying it, Bella. Maybe one day you’ll make yourself believe it.”

During dinner, she said nothing, but don’t mistake her silence for surrender. She sat there simmering, eyes sparking like a thunderhead ready to blow. Plate untouched. I didn’t push, not stupid enough for that. She was poking at my limits, seeing where I’d flinch.

Later, I walked her up those ridiculous stairs too many dead men glaring down from their dusty frames, all of them thinking they still mattered. Every step, her pulse echoed through the marble so loud I swear I felt it in my bones.

I opened the door to her new “suite” and, man, what a room. Silk sheets, gold everywhere, a balcony view that’d make a god jealous.

“This is your room,” I said.

She laughed, sharp as broken glass. “You mean my cage.”

I just leaned in the doorway, trying not to grin. “Only a cage if you’re desperate to escape.”

She shoved past me, chin high, all fire. “Guess I’ll have to break out, then.”

“Have at it.”

I left her standing there, stubborn as hell, wrapped in velvet and spite. Couldn’t get her out of my head, even after the door slammed shut.

Night dragged in work with it money, bodies, turf. Some i***t stammered about debts. Rivals sniffed around the docks. Something about a shipment gone sideways. Usual chaos.

But my thoughts kept wandering back upstairs. That laugh, edged with nerves. The way she had looked at me when I slammed Matteo’s head against the wall showed she was scared. But there was something else in her eyes.

Desire.

Dangerous, messy, not what I wanted right now.

Yet here we were.

Hours ticked by. I told myself I checked on her because I had to, she’s in trouble, even locked away, but who was I kidding?

The room was dark except for the moonlight. She was seated at the edge of the window, hugging her knees.

“You are not sleeping,” I said.

She turned, eyes shining, sharp as molten glass. “Would you? It feels like even the shadows here are watching me.”

“Good. Fear keeps you breathing.”

She answered back, “I’m not scared of you.”

Yeah, right.

I crossed over, crouched down, searching her face.

“You should be.”

Her breath caught. Didn’t blink, though.

Silence stretched between us as we stared at each other eyes.

I swallowed hard as desire stirred within me.

I forced myself away. “Get some sleep. Tomorrow, you will learn how things work here.”

Just as I hit the door, her voice slid after me. “And if I break the rules?”

I glanced over my shoulder, meeting her challenge, heat crackling in the air. “Then I’ll break you.”

The way her lips parted, she knew exactly what I meant every layered threat and promise.