Living with the Billionaire Monster

Warning.

“Thank you, Marcelo,” I said to my bodyguard, taking his hand to get out of the truck.

“Where should I take your suitcases, Fina?”

I gave him a slight glance and he shrugged. I sighed and ignored his gesture, turning my gaze towards the entrance of the castle, where I saw the same man from last night coming out to meet me.

Alessandro Ferretti was one of the best lawyers in Italy, or so the internet has told me. He is a handsome man. Tall, tan skin, green eyes, brown hair, gelled and well combed; extremely elegant and with quite a charming smile.

“Good evening, Mrs. Barone. Welcome to your castle.”

I raised my eyebrows, but I still extended my hand to shake him.

"Fiore," I clarified with a smile.

“I'm Serafina Fiore.”

“I'm Daemon's wife,” he replied.

“Not by choice,” I responded, still smiling at him. “This is not a real marriage, Mr. Ferretti, and we both know it, so why the masks? The day I fall in love with someone. That day will be the day I use his last name with pride.”

The look that Marcelo showed me made me laugh, but I ignored it.

“As long as you are married to Daemon Barone, you will be treated as the lady of the castle, you will be called by your husband's surname, and you will enjoy its benefits as well. When everything is over and the divorce is a truth, you will go back to being Serafina Fiore, is that clear?” he asked passively and, in a way, aggressively.

"Is this worth arguing about?," I sighed, although I already knew the answer.

“Could you please tell my security man where to leave my bags?”

“Greta will do it.”

We both smiled at each other, but you could tell that neither of us could stand each other. He invited us in, but I refused, informing him that I would walk a little through the vines before entering. Suspicious, he agreed to my request and asked Marcelo to follow him and leave the suitcases in the hall.

"Don't go too far from the castle, Mrs. Barone." At night, it is impossible to notice if there is an animal ready to attack you or notice any specter watching you from behind the shadows.

I frowned as I saw a hint of a smile on his lips. I'm not stupid, and I could understand that he was making fun of me. Marcelo even noticed it and he did not hide his displeasure at all.

"Don't worry, I'm often armed." I patted my small bag across my body.

“See you later.”

I smiled at him, and looked at Marcelo giving a nod to him, and then turned my back on them and started walking towards the hills where the vines were. I embraced my body, assimilating what my life had now become from one day to the next.

I couldn't erase the astonishment on my father's face from my head when I arrived at the mansion last night and told him that I had gotten married, and was totally in love with the Barone heir. He was incredulous and confused. Although, he could not hide his satisfaction at the union of both families.

The Barones have always been powerful, there were companies, businesses and even ventures that grew so fast just by being associated with them. Their lineage was one that has had the blessing of the gods and even if they only sold cakes like Daemon's aunt they would still be the best in Italy. Of course, my father wanted to know how, when, and where all this love arose, to which I grossly lied.

“Did you see his face, Serafina?” He asked me after his shock had passed, to which I responded with yet another lie; “Of course, Dad, he is my husband, the man I love.”

I tried to stop myself from laughing at that. His curiosity grew, wanting to know how it turned out, to which I had to lie to him once again.

“Beautiful enough to enchant me.”

My father was not a stupid man, but he was quite peaceful and believed everything I told him. For years, he believed my older sister, until everything turned into chaos and the truth exploded in his face. Mine would never burst, because by accepting this marriage contract, I had made sure that would never happen.

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. I touched a grape leaf with the tips of my fingers, feeling the softness, but little roughness of its texture. It was so green that it showed life even under the light of the moon. I peeled off a grape and took it to my mouth, I savored it, closing my eyes, enjoying the exquisite sweet flavor of it, the slight cold that enveloped it, sighing with ecstasy at the divine nature of the fruit.

Without a doubt, the gods had indeed touched these grapes

I remember the last time I was walking in the middle of these vines. It was quite traumatic for me. I never believed that one of the grape pickers would try to commit such an act with me, nor did I believe that Daemon would defend me as he did. That afternoon was my last afternoon there, it was the last time I saw his beautiful face, the divinity of it. Daemon was a truly perfect man, he even looked like a Greek god who walked and dazzled.

Or maybe my teenage self just saw him that way.

The fact is, there was no place where he was that was not the center of everyone's attention. Too perfect for himself, too inhuman. I wondered what exactly happened to him to turn him from a charismatic and glorious man to the monster he had become.

He had a tragic accident, I remember it was all on the news. I was very moved because I thought he had died since everyone said so many things that I didn't know who to believe. By then, I was barely twenty years old and had already cut off all communication with Gio, but I still called her. I could remember hearing her cry for her only brother for more than an hour; I was terrified. After that, I didn't hear from her again because she was sent to study in New York and I didn't hear from him again, because he had just disappeared.

Giovanna and I were no longer friends, circumstances separated us, but there were days when I missed her, and there were days when I remembered our childhood and adolescence.

Did she know that I am now her brother's wife? She would surely be laughing at me and at the ironies of life.

A strong cold breeze hit me, my body shuddered and I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up completely. Suddenly, the survival instinct activated in me and I decided to return to the gloom of the castle. I felt watched as I moved forward, I even looked from side to side, searching among the vines for some animal or person, falling into the paranoia that had been planted in me by Alessandro.

I wandered further than I should have, I know, but it's impossible not to be drawn to the same vineyard.

I raised my head as soon as I got close to the castle and stopped dead when I saw the spectre that was motionless looking at me. There, on the balcony, hidden behind in the darkness, within the great shadow made by the tallest tower, which reached the balcony, is that him? I noticed the silhouette of his body, that dark silhouette that assured me that he was there, looking at me, but without me being able to see him completely.

The myths were many, the gossip said everything, but I had not stopped wondering for five years, how bad it was to hide and never let anyone see you again.

The memories came back to my head of his beauty, how striking he was, and even how sexy he was. As a child, I always saw him as beautiful, but as I became older, I began to see him with different eyes, causing my body to react differently with every slight glance he gave me, with every smile, even hearing his voice was a blessing for me.

I shook my head, pushing those memories aside.

I decided to look away from that shadow and continued my way towards the interior of the castle, my new home.

"I left all your suitcases in the hall, they didn't allow me to take them up to your room," Marcelo told me in a low voice when he saw me.

“I don't like this place, Fina.”

“And you think I do?” I raised an eyebrow, my annoyance evident.

“But I can't allow myself to be exposed and you know it. I gave you the solution last night, but you didn't accept it.”

“Fleeing is not a solution, Marcelo," I showed him a slight conciliatory smile, avoiding showing too much because Alessandro was looking at us. “Thanks for bringing me,” I added.

“It's my job, and tomorrow I'll be here before the sun's rays rise. I must take care of you, Fina and I will not allow that Mons.…”

"Daemon! his name is Daemon Barone," I clarified

He raised his eyebrow and I could see the disgust trying to come out, but I brushed it off. It is one thing for me to call him that for blackmailing me with this marriage, but it is quite another for him to use the nickname to make fun of his accident and what happened to him.

“Inform him that I'll be here tomorrow and every damn day until you get divorced.”

His sentence was scathing, but it did nothing for me. I knew Marcelo well enough to overlook his childish attitude.

I heard the sound of the door being slammed shut, causing an uncomfortable echo throughout the room, while a mature woman next to an older man and two adult men stared at me with interest. I sighed and decided to continue with my smile intact while Alessandro scrutinized me with his narrowed eyes.

“My bodyguard tends to be a little…”

“Foolish.”

"Yes," I said to Alessandro, maintaining a smile on my face. “But he's good at what he does… so much that I pay him to take care of me, so he'll be here every day.”

“He is not allowed entry into the castle, by orders of your husband. If you want him to come every day and to remain outside, then fine.”

I wanted to rip off Alessandro's balls.

This was going to be more stressful than I thought, but for tonight, I decided to ignore the faithful messenger.

"I had better introduce myself," a woman with brown hair and honey-coloured eyes broke the silence, approaching me. I managed to spot her because today, the hall is completely illuminated.

“My name is Greta de Morreti, the housekeeper and in charge of maintaining order here. This is my husband, Luca Morreti and my children, Lorenzo and Manolo.”

I approached them and extended my hand to the older man and to the rest as well. He informed me that he is the foreman of the entire vineyard, just as he informed me that his eldest son, Lorenzo, is second in command when he is not there, followed by Manolo, the youngest, who is third in command when he is not there, him or his first son, also clarifying that the three of them, in the end, are servants of their lord Daemon, who when he appeared, they only obeyed his orders.

“…And now we will abide by yours like the lord's wife!" exclaimed old Luca, smiling at me. “We are extremely happy for you. I wish you many blessings in your marriage and that the prosperity of the gods reaches you and you can fill this castle with life with many heirs.”

"Many what?"

Still smiling, I took a quick look at Alessandro in search of an explanation, but he just remained calm in his place, looking at me with a certain desire to laugh at what Luca had said.

What exactly did they say to these people?

“It's a pleasure to meet you all, you can just call me Serafina, or Fina if it's too long for you.”

“Mrs. Barone, is fine for everyone.”

For god's sake!

"Mrs. Fiore, it's fine with me," I clarified, they looked at me confused and I realized my stupidity.

“Although, I guess I should get used to being named by my dear husband's last name, right?” I said immediately.

I let out a nervous laugh, but they didn't notice, so they laughed charmingly at what I said except Alessandro, he knew I was being quite sarcastic.

“Greta, why don't you take Mrs. Barone to her room?”

Moron.

“Of course, Mr. Alessandro,” the woman replied.

I reached out to take one of my suitcases, but he stopped me.

“Manolo is in charge. You can calmly go up to your room, Mrs. Barone.”

I looked him straight in the eyes. I swore to God that I wanted to rip his balls off for being such a jerk to me for no apparent reason. Although, now that I think about it, I had a feeling that he knew my secret, and if so, he better not be treating me the way he did because of that, because I wasn't going to hesitate to put him in his place, but it won't be today.

“Good!” I managed to say.

I dropped my suitcase and continued to follow Greta up the stairs. The sound of my heels could be heard with every step taken, causing the four men we left behind to look at me.

We had taken the stairs on the left side, since there were two; one from side to side, which led you to go up to the second level. I realized that the left side was enlightened when the right side was in darkness. Knowing that there was some light gave me peace, because last night when I arrived at this place, it looked like a castle of terror.

The walls with the wallpaper could now be admired, as well as the carpeted floor and the paintings that decorated the walls of the corridor. Renaissance paintings gave you an idea of ​​how old this place was, yet everything looked so preserved and beautiful. The door frames that we had left behind were golden, with a quite delicate but imposing design. Now that there was light, and I could detail the walls, the floor, the paintings and each sculpture on one side of the corridor, I felt like I had gone back in time, to the times of kings and queens, and I even imagined wearing a dress with a perfect hairstyle and a tiara on my head.

“We have arrived, Mrs. Barone,” Greta said, breaking me out of my thoughts. “Welcome to your room.”

She opened both white doors for me, inviting me to enter first.

When my eyes detailed the interior of the immense room, I opened my mouth avoiding the gasp of surprise that wanted to come out. I had grown up with luxuries all my life, but nothing compared to this. This is not luxury, this is art, and this is certainly a different wealth than what I was used to.

Now I feel like the queen of this castle!

The large four-poster bed greeted me, along with those silk sheets with embroidery that invited me to lie down on it and never leave there.

The classic French style, with its gold edges and ivory cushions, took my breath away; the large carpet beneath it, the wide windows with long champagne-colored curtains, and the doors leading to the balcony outside, along with the large crystal chandelier hanging from the high ceiling, left me spellbound.

I think I've found my favorite place in the entire castle.

There were two doors on one side, where Greta informed me that it was my dressing room, she also showed me the bathroom and my goodness, this bathroom had to have been brought from Olympus itself. It smelled like jasmine and even though it was a fairly old castle, it had an air system because I felt the cold inside the room.

"She's beautiful," I murmured delightedly.

"Mr. Daemon requested that the second largest room be given to you."

I turned to look at her curiously.

“And which is the first one that is bigger than this?”

“His.”

I nodded, understanding that we wouldn’t be sleeping together.

That made me smile, because how do you expect us to have a child if we are going to sleep separately?

I gave myself the answer to my question, making myself laugh softly. I guess the less contact we had, the better, so I was grateful that artificial insemination exister these days.

“Would you like something to eat before bed?”

"I'm not hungry yet, thank you," I replied calmly. “But if I get hungry, I'll go out.”

“I'll be in the kitchen, it's down the stairs, taking the right arch that is in the hall, almost at the end.”

I nodded and thanked her.

Greta left the room leaving me alone. The first thing I did was lie on my back on the bed and sigh as soon as the softness of the sheets touched my bare skin. I sighed and stared at the chandelier on the ceiling, thinking about what I would now do to settle my affairs. I had to be intelligent, cunning and not raise suspicions. I gave Daemon what he wanted by becoming his wife. I only needed to give him a child, but until that happened, my life would continue the same, my affairs would not stop and what I would do, of course neither.

He's locked up here, but I'm not. I could go out and I planned to. With that last thought, I closed my eyes enjoying the smell of jasmine that permeated the entire room and decided to relax for a few minutes.

I opened my eyes as I felt the growl in my stomach. I stretched, not wanting to get up, but the hunger I felt forced me to do so. Even with my bag hanging on me, I looked for my phone to check the time.

It just couldn't be.

I got up suddenly when I saw that it was two in the morning and I had fallen asleep. I huffed and took off my bag, throwing it on the bed next to my phone.

I needed to eat.

I squeezed my face and with reluctance, but convinced to go get some food, I left my room remembering Greta's explanation to get to the kitchen. I knew perfectly well that I wouldn't find her sitting there waiting for me, but I did know that there would be a refrigerator full of food to offer me.

This was more than enough for me.

I tried to make as little noise as possible, so I had taken off my heels before and walked cautiously so as not to attract attention.

I reached the bottom of the stairs and realized that on the right side, towards the kitchen, the lights were completely off. I bit my lips, debating whether the challenge was worth it, because I hated the imposed darkness, but the growling in my stomach urged me to sacrifice myself.

I moved quickly, this time I was not careful because I wanted to go to my refuge, so when I got to the kitchen, I went directly to the large refrigerator that dazzled thanks to the moonlight that filtered through the windows.

"Let's see what we have here..." I murmured as soon as the light illuminated the entire kitchen.

“This will help me,” I said, holding a container of ice cream.

It's not food, but at least it would help me survive until dawn. I closed both doors and turned to look for a spoon. I saw the shiny steel on the table in front of me and I approached it curiously to notice that there was a piece of paper with my name written on it. When I lifted the lid, I smiled as I saw my dinner on the plate plus the silverware on the side.

"Greta..."

I smiled, I opened the refrigerator again to get the light, since I didn't know where the lights came on, and I sat down to eat what the woman saved for me.

I'm not rude, so I won't leave food on the table for her. I think I've done enough by falling asleep and probably not hearing her call me.

Thirty minutes later there was nothing on the plate. I got up and went to the sink, washed my hands and looked for that spoon. I closed the refrigerator and left the kitchen ready to eat the ice cream in my room.

Satisfied and wide awake, I moved forward with less fear than at the beginning. I got up the stairs and ran towards the lit side. I heard footsteps behind me and stopped immediately. I didn't see anyone, my pulse accelerated and the fear that I didn't feel settled in me again.

I decided to go back to the stairs, but I didn't see anyone. I heard the steps again and since I was a coward, but a curious one, I went down quickly to see where those steps came from.

There is nothing.

I decided to return to my room and go up the stairs again, but this time running, but I stopped dead when the lights went out, depriving me of clarity.

"s**t, s**t, shit."

“Snooping, Serafina?”

His voice behind me sets off my nerves. I turned almost in slow motion because I heard it too close, very close I would say.

"Daemon?" I looked at him in detail, trying to find his eyes in the middle of the gold around him.

“Is that you, Daemon?”

"Why aren't you in your room?"

Of course it is him.

“I was hungry,” I answered and shortened the distance, reaching in front of him. I raised my head due to the height difference, and even with fear eating away at me, I decided to take action.

“Why aren't you in yours?”

“That's none of your business.”

“True, I don't care.”

I raised one of my hands and decided to try to touch that shiny gold thing, wanting to remove it, so I could see his face just out of curiosity. I could notice the shine in his eyes, the intensity of them. I remember that they were golden, almost like two circles of fire that made it look like a lion. Around them, in the little that the mask allowed me to see in detail, I saw a little of his skin, and it was either wrinkled, or marked, I honestly didn't notice it well. Why is he wearing a gold mask?

I didn't know, but as soon as he held my wrist tightly with his gloved hand, I knew I wouldn't be able to kill my curiosity.

I flinched a little from the grip, but I didn't show him that his abrupt action scared me.

“Do you want to have nightmares?”

“I just wanted to meet you.”

“You already know me, Serafina.”

“Not this version of you.”

I swallow.

"And you will never know me," he said, squeezing me tighter. “Now, go to your room and the next time you fall asleep before dinner, I will lock your door so you don't go out at night to sniff out what doesn't concern you unless you want to be eaten by the monster.”

He let go of me angrily and turned his back on me, leaving me alone in the middle of the corridor. I heard him come down the stairs, the step of his boots was firm, and when the sound of some door being slammed resounded, the lights on my side turned on, allowing me to see again, but without dissipating the erratic beating of my heart.