“I can’t go back there,” I told him. “I can’t go back to the lake house. Please,” I begged. “I’m sorry I came here. I really am. But I was about to leave anyway.” I paused, gathering my courage. “You can keep the money. You’ve taken what you wanted from me. Just let me go and I’ll be out of the city by morning. No one will ever find me.”
The corners of his mouth lifted in an evil smile. “Oh, baby girl. But I’m not finished with you. We’re just getting started.”
CHAPTER16
Enzo
When I saw Sera walk into the fundraiser just as cocky as you please, I couldn’t believe my fucking eyes. What the hell was she thinking? That a mangy blonde wig would hide her from me?
Like an animal, I could scent her the moment she walked into a room. Nothing she did or wore would keep me from knowing she was there.
I watched her in my peripheral until she disappeared from sight, not wanting to draw attention to her. Iwatchedas every goddamn male in the place fucked her with his eyes until it was all I could do not to pull out my gun and start popping them off one by one just for daring to think of her that way. I wanted to shove my way through the crowd around the bar and shield her with my body—much as I was doing now—until I could get her the hell out of there, and it took every ounce of self-control I had to make my excuses to Jade and put her in a cab before I prowled the place room by room until I found her.
And yet, she was still trying to convince herself that she could leave me.
That I would just let her go.
I glanced over my shoulder, taking in the room and everyone within it. “We need to go. Now stop arguing with me and walk with me out of this venue. Calmly. Do not make eye contact with anyone. Do not say anything. Do not draw attention to yourself.” I waited only long enough to make sure she was going to follow directions before I turned and started making my way through the crowd, pulling Serafina behind me.
I found Tristan in the main room where the actual fundraising was about to start with an auction, keeping a close eye on Luca and Veda as they stood in a corner of the room talking to Luca’s uncle. “I need to leave. I have an…issue. Can you handle this yourself?”
Tristan glanced past me to where Serafina was standing quietly, her hand tightly gripped in mine. If he was surprised to see her, he didn’t show it. “I’ll explain to Luca.”
“Thank you. I’ll check in with you later tonight.” I wasn’t taking Sera back to Luca’s. Not immediately. And not because she’d asked me not to.
I wasn’t taking her there because seeing her walk across the floor in that slip of a dress, every curve and dip of her body on prominent display, had set my blood on fire. And when I’d found her upstairs, it was all I could do not to bend her over the railing and throw the skirt of that damn dress over her head. However, the danger to her was very real, and it was the only thing that kept me from fucking her senseless in front of all of these people, but the pure lust raging through me wasn’t going to wait for us to drive all the way back to Luca’s. I was taking her back to my hotel room. It would be safe enough for a few hours. Tomorrow, we would return to the lake house.
The door man gave her a warm smile as we collected her coat. “I see you found your gentleman,” he said.
Sera gave me a nervous glance. “I did. Thank you so much.”
“Take good care of her now.” He smiled at me, and I bared my teeth at him in response. With a lift of his eyebrow, he held the door open for us. “At least the rain has stopped. Have a good evening!”
With my arm around her shoulder, I hustled Sera out into the damp, cold air and gave the valet my ticket. A few minutes later, he pulled the SUV up to the curb and hopped out. I helped Sera inside and gave him a healthy tip, then scanned the area around us as I walked around the front of the vehicle and got into the driver’s side.
“Enzo, I—”
Grabbing her by the back of her neck with one hand, I yanked her over to me, my mouth crashing down on hers. She tasted like tequila and disobedience, and she made me fucking crazy. I wanted to rip the stupid wig from her head and pull her onto my lap and fuck her right there on the street.
With every ragged breath I took, her scent filled my lungs. Her moans filled my ears. Her taste filled my mouth. I was surrounded by Sera until I couldn’t escape. And I was beginning to realize that I didn’t fucking want to.
I released her as suddenly as I’d kissed her. “Put your fucking seatbelt on and give me your bag.”
She blinked at me, her eyes unfocused and her chest heaving. “What?” she asked breathlessly. “Why?”
“Give it to me.” I held out my hand.
She dropped the small black purse into my hand and pulled her seatbelt across her body with shaky hands.
I opened the bag. It held some bobby pins and a twenty-dollar bill. “Is this your money?”
“No.”
“Where did you get it?”
She searched the interior of the SUV. “I think it was just lying on a table.”
I left it where it was, closed the purse, and handed it back to her.
