My mind traversed back to the little bit of sexual interaction we did have, with his rules to always be called by name, and be specific.
To always be asked nicely.
It didn’t seem like they would be difficult rules to follow. Were there more rules? I remembered the woman that I saw in his room that time I made a very poor attempt to escape. She was tied down so she couldn’t move her arms or legs. Gio made me grab onto the post of my bed so that my arms were restrained. I almost thought that maybe he had a thing with being touched, but that wasn’t it, it was about control. If his subs arms and legs were restrained, they didn’t have any say in what happened with their body, it was totally up to him.
I was heating up just thinking about it.
Suddenly, I was on my feet and walking towards the door before I’d even made a conscious decision to do so. It had been about three hours since Gio and I had lunch, and it would probably be another two or three until we had dinner. It was late afternoon, but I’d learned he was a workaholic, he may not even be home. Rather than trying to track him down, when I walked out into the hallway, I just looked for the nearest staff member.
“Miss Narzand,” the first woman I found said. “Is everything okay? Do you need something?”
“Is Gio here?” I asked.
“I believe Mr. Raines is in his bedroom,” she said. “I can fetch him for you.”
“That’s okay,” I said. “I’ll go.”
I started off, but she reached out and grabbed my wrist. “Um… I should probably just go and get him for you. He may have company.”
For some reason, that registered like sludge in my gut. “Are you sure? Did you see… them?”
“No,” she responded. “It’s just not often he’s in his bedroom in the middle of the day. It’s typically an indicator that he’s… entertaining.”
The words actually made me feel a little jealous. It had only been a few days since I first asked about being his sub. Did I wait too long to make a decision? It made some sense. Gio was probably the kind of guy who needed to have his… needs met regularly.
“You know what?” I said, “don’t worry about it. I’ll see him at dinner.”
She accepted this answer with a nod. “Yes ma’am.”
I drifted back down the hallway towards my room and waited for that staff member to leave my sight, then I turned right back around. The useless arrows I’d made on the wall led to one place, and that was Gio’s bedroom. If he had already moved on from the idea of making me his sub, then I would accept that. I’d sign away the idea that our relationship would ever become romantic and just do what I had to do in order to help get my dad’s debt repaid and then I’d leave.
I had no idea what narrative my brothers and father had sold the media about my disappearance, but I was hoping I could use it to my advantage. When I left Gio’s estate, I’d head to France and live out the rest of my days there.
It was a good enough plan for me, even if it did leave a twinge of disappointment in my stomach.
Following my markings, I eventually made my way to Gio’s bedroom door. My heart started to thunder in my chest as I remembered what I’d seen the last time I’d been there. Terror blended with intrigue and sent me back to my room in such a drunken state that I masturbated in front of a pretty obvious camera and enticed Gio to come to my bed. All things considered, that turned out well for me, but this time would be different. If Gio really did have someone in his room, then it would change everything.
I lifted my hand to knock on the door but stopped. What good would knocking on the door do if he was in the middle of having sex with a different woman? He probably wouldn’t answer, or he would, and I’d have to battle the awkward situation that would be created by his greeting me, his would-be sub with a different woman tied to his bed behind him. No, as awful as it was, if I was going to get the answer I really wanted, I’d have to discover it in the same way I discovered it last time.
By just wandering in.
As quietly as I could, I twisted the knob and pushed the door open slightly, peeking my head just barely inside. To my surprise, the room wasn’t as dark as it was last time but appeared to be relatively well lit by the natural light from the windows in the back of the room. Was I just that beside myself when I was there the first time or did those windows not exist before? The bed was there, opposite the doors, and there was someone in it, but it wasn’t a woman.
It was a fully dressed and completely passed-out Gio.
My first impulse was to turn around and leave the room. He wasn’t entertaining anyone; he was just asleep. Which made sense because he worked like a madman, running both an above-ground and below-ground business. By the way he looked though, he’d just face-planted on the bed and fallen asleep before he could do anything else. He still had his shoes on, though his feet were hanging over the edge of the bed.
And curiosity killed the cat.
I tiptoed into the room, hearing the soft sounds of him snoring the closer I got. Even though I felt like a total creep, I just couldn’t help myself. I wanted to see what the big, bad Giovanni looked like in his most vulnerable state.
Sliding around the side of his bed, I looked down at his face and was overwhelmed with cuteness. He looked so peaceful, with his bottom lip poked out slightly further than his upper one. How was it possible for someone who had pulled a gun on me so easily to also look so calm and gentle. I found myself dropping to my knees on the side of his bed and settling my head on the mattress. It was actually really calming to watch.
All at once, I became aware of what I was doing and figured it was probably best for me to leave. As quietly and carefully as I could, I got to my feet and started to tiptoe back out of the room. I’d just barely made it to the door and was opening it when an arm reached around me and shut it. I looked behind me, and Gio was no longer sleeping, but on his feet and right behind me.
“Hi,” I said sheepishly.
“Snooping?” he said.
