"I can't." Tears shimmer in her eyes. "If I tell you everything, it becomes your problem too. And I won't do that to you."
"It's already my problem, Elena. The moment Vito assigned me to protect you, it became my problem. The moment I started caring about you—" I stop, realizing what I've just admitted.
"You care about me?"
"Of course I care about you. That's the whole fucking problem."
She closes the distance between us. Looks up at me with those caramel eyes. "Then stop walking away from me."
"Elena—"
"I know all the reasons this is a bad idea. I know Vito told you no. I know it's complicated. I know I'm keeping secrets." She reaches up and touches my face. "But I also know that I want you. And I'm tired of pretending I don't."
Every rational thought in my head is screaming at me to step back. To maintain the boundary. To be professional.
But then her thumb brushes across my lower lip and all rational thought evaporates.
"We can't," I say, even as my hands move to her waist.
"Why not?"
"Because—" I can't even remember the reasons anymore.
"Marco." She says my name like a prayer. "Please stop fighting this."
CHAPTER 24
Elena
After Marco leavesthe guest room—because of course he leaves, he always leaves—I text the girls that I'm heading to Vito's penthouse for movie night. I need something to distract me from the conversation we just had.
By the time I make it to the duplex elevator, Rina, Sofia, and Gianna are right behind me, ready to go. We all head upstairs, change into pajamas, and settle into Rina's massive living room with blankets and pillows everywhere.
"Okay, spill," Sofia says the moment we're comfortable. "What's going on with you and Marco?"
"Nothing's going on." I grab a handful of popcorn.
"Liar." Rina throws a pillow at me. "I saw how he looked at you tonight. And how you very deliberately sat as far from him as possible."
"There's nothing to tell."
"Elena." Sofia leans forward. "We're not blind. The tension between you two could power this entire building."
I sigh and sink deeper into the cushions. "It's complicated."
"Everything worth having is complicated," Gianna says quietly.
"He doesn't want me," I admit. "Not really. Or maybe he does but he won't act on it. I don't know. One minute he's kissing me like I'm the only thing that matters and the next he's walking away like it was a mistake."
Rina's eyebrows shoot up. "He kissed you?"
"More than once," I mutter.
Sofia grins. "And?"
"And then he walks away. Every single time." The frustration bubbles up. "He says I'm just a job. That it can't happen. That it's too complicated."
"Did Vito say something to him?" Rina's voice takes on an edge. "Because if my husband is interfering?—"
