I have all the power in this castle. I can send her home to her family whenever I want to now. But I won’t.
I can’t.
I couldn’t bear losing her. But I can’t say that out loud because I doubt she feels the same way about me. Sure, we were intimate, and we just opened up to one another just now. But Sofia is normal—abrasive and competitive—but not emotionally shut down and awkward like I am. She probably has heart-to-hearts like this with random strangers on the street.
So, I suppose she will remain my prisoner. But what if she hates me for that?
I feel her go limp in my arms, and she starts to lightly snore, falling asleep so quickly, as if she doesn’t have a care in the world. But I know I won’t have the same fortune of being able to fall asleep like she has. Too much has happened today. Too many things have shifted—with my role in this place, between my sister and I, and of course with Sofia.
Truthfully, I have absolutely no idea what to do next regarding Sofia. Too many questions come to my mind. The worst one being—what if she’s playing me like a violin? I have many skills and capabilities, but I am painfully aware that emotional intricacies are a weakness of mine. Earlier today, I was convinced her flirtations were purely to mess with me. But what if I read her wrong?
I can’t help the paranoia growing as I think back to all we’ve just talked about. To how vulnerable I made myself around her.
She’s driving me insane and I need to keep my focus on staying alive in this castle.
Chapter 22
Sofia
“So,Ihaveaquestion,” I say as I’m lying in bed, Alessandro tying his tie in the mirror. I was watching him for a minute when I’m sure he thought I was still sleeping; his brow was furrowed and at times, it looked like he was having a conversation with himself, probably a lot on his mind given his new status.
I found it… weirdly cute.
He jolts at the sound of my voice. But he looks at me with hesitation rather than annoyance or anger that I’m used to. “What is it?”
“Those rules you made for me? Are they still a thing or…”
“Of course they’re still in place.” He smirks and turns to me.
My heart pounds at his smile.
“Well, I just broke rule number one. What are you going to do about that?” I get out from under the covers and lay on my stomach so that my head is towards the foot of the bed. I’m only wearing a t-shirt and panties, so his eyes immediately flick to my backside as my legs wave back and forth.
But he stands there frozen, making me feel self-conscious. Maybe I should have thought twice about flirting with him this morning. I’m sure I seemed so fake when I was initially trying to get him to have feelings for me. But now I’m acting natural.
“Come here.” His expression is blank; he is impossible to read.
I do as he says, swinging my legs off the bed and taking slow steps towards him across the room. Once I get into range, he grabs me by the side, spinning me around so that my back is pinned against the wall.
I can feel my face flush as he looks down at me as if he’s analyzing a difficult math problem.
“Two mornings in a row, you try to fuck me.”
“Is that a problem?”
“No…” His eyes move down my body and stop at my chest. I expect him to reach up under my shirt, but he opens his mouth again. “I just want to know why?”
“Why?”
“Yes.”
“Uhh.” I swallow and look up at him. His gaze is intense, and I can’t tell if he’s playing around with me or serious right now. How is he so good at doing that? “I… I can’t explain it. I just want to have sex with you.”
I feel so awkward.
“Why?”
“Okay, seriously?” He lets me push him away. “You have no game.”
