My heart began to pound as he stalked me like the predator he was, waiting for the right moment to pounce. By the time he did, my nerves were stretched so taut I almost screamed when he dropped to his knees in front of me, but I managed to stay where I was. I refused to show him any fear if I could help it.
But what he did next surprised me. “Face that way.” He lifted his chin toward the opposite wall of bars. Swallowing hard, I adjusted my position until I was facing away from him. He tookmy braided hair in his hands.It was a tangled mess, half of my hair not even in the braid anymore, but fixing it hadn't been my first priority.
“What are you doing?” I asked when he removed the tie at the bottom and began to unweave the braid.
“Don’t move. Stay exactly as you are.” The rumble of his deep voice, so close and intimate, raised gooseflesh on my skin. Loose hair tickled the sides of my neck as he gathered it up in his hands, pulling it away from my back and shoulders. Carefully, he ran his fingers through the strands, gently detangling the knots as best he could. I didn’t move. I couldn’t. The tension between us was so thick my muscles were frozen in place and I had a hard time breathing. Was I the only one who felt it?
When his fingers were able to move through my hair without getting snagged, he let it fall naturally down my back. The heat of his body warmed my skin as he leaned so close, his chest brushed against my shoulder blades when he inhaled. “I love the way you smell,” he said softly. “That was one thing I couldn’t capture in my drawings. The way you smell. And the way you feel. So soft.” His fingers trembled as they trailed up my arms.
I closed my eyes, fighting the arousal he forced out of me so easily. “Are you going to keep me in here forever?” Was that his plan? To keep me locked up so he could play with me whenever he wanted? Like a doll?
Once again, his answer surprised me. “No. At least, I don’t think so.” He continued to run the tips of his fingers up and down my arms, raising more gooseflesh.
All my focus was on that soft touch, and I had to give myself an internal shake to remember what we were talking about. “You don’t think so?” I repeated. “When will you know?”
“When you’re safe. When I have you out of my head.” He sounded distracted as he smelled my hair.
“You still haven’t told me what you’re trying to keep me safefrom. Maybe I wouldn’t fight you so much about being in here if you’d just tell me.”
His touch disappeared, as did the warmth of his body close to my back. Slowly, I turned to face him, making sure to keep my hands to myself. He was sitting back on his heels, his entire body tense, watching me warily. We were so close our knees almost touched. I slid my ass back on the floor, putting a little more distance between us.
“Tell me,” I demanded.
CHAPTER 3
Tristan
“Gino is your father.” I hadn’t planned to blurt it out like that, but there really wasn't a way to break the news to her gently. And she was right. She deserved to know why I’d brought her here. I’d never planned to keep it a secret.
Her large blue eyes blinked once. Twice. “What did you just say?”
“After your mother was killed, you were given up for adoption. You and your brother. It was Gino who turned you both over to the state.” I searched her face. Her eyes. The way she held her body. Trying to understand what she was thinking. How she was taking all of this. But I couldn’t read her.
She sat very still. Too still. “How do you know about my mother?”
Ah, that was a question I wasn’t ready to answer. Not yet. “She was the wife of a capo inLa Cosa Nostra,” I told her. “Gino’s. Your biological father. They had two children. You and your younger brother, Logan.”
She gave her head a little shake, struggling to understand. "I was with my…myfather?" Looking anywhere but at me, she shook her head again. "No. That's impossible."
From her reaction, I knew what I'd said before to Luca was correct. She didn't remember him. I wanted to hold her hands, to comfort her, but instead I dug my fingers into my thighs. “Luna, your current situation with him wasn’t your fault. You didn’t know.”
“But you did? And you’re just telling me this now? After all the times you snuck into my room?” Her voice was calm. Without emotion. But she flung her hand out, gesturing at the drawings on the walls. Proof that I was there, just like she said.
“I didn’t know who he was to you right away. And when I found out, I came to get you immediately.”
“To save me.”
There was no sarcasm, but still, her words didn’t sit right with me. I was no hero. But I also couldn’t allow her to stay there, knowing what I did. “It wasn’t right for you to be there…”Fucking him.It was what I wanted to say, but I couldn’t bring myself to say the words aloud.
She stared at me for a long, long time. And then she started to laugh.
I drew back, surprised, and unsure how to react. I was prepared for her anger. Her tears. Violence, even. Why was she laughing? “Do you understand what I’m telling you, Luna?”
“Oh, I understand,” she burst out when she’d caught her breath. “I understand I just tried to bite…I can’t even say it!” With that,she lost it completely, throwing her head back and laughing until tears were rolling down her cheeks.
What the hell was wrong with her? “You did what?”
She waved my question away, gulping at the air like a fish out of water.
