Rossi took another step closer, his man standing like a sentry by the door, completely blocking the exit, making escape impossible. The subtle scent of expensive cologne hit my nostrils, struggling to mute the man’s foul alpha stench.
His ring-clad fingers slid along the edge of the mattress as he bent over me until his face was only a few inches from mine. I sneered, gathering a bitter mouthful of saliva, spitting on his face with all the contempt I could muster.
“Bitch!” the guard bellowed.
Vittorio raised a hand, quietly commanding his man to stand down. I glowered at him, my lips narrowed as the glob of my spit slid down his cheek.
For a moment, he stared at me, letting my spit splatter onto the bed.
The silence stretched on, suffocating me until I almost forgot how to breathe. I braced myself for an explosion, for Vittorio Rossito unleash his fury on me.
But it never came. Instead, something dangerous rumbled in his chest, a mix between a chuckle and a growl.
“Feisty,” he murmured, his eyes glittering with something unsettling. “I can see why Finnegan is so enamored with you. You are quite the prize.”
My stomach twisted, pulling taut until it was painful. I grimaced, choking down the bubbling plea for my alpha.
“I like that,” he said, flicking my spit from his face as if it were a speck of dust. “It will make breaking you that much more rewarding.”
My heart dropped into my stomach as he leaned in closer, eyeing the ring on my finger.
“That means nothing you know. It doesn’t bind you. Not truly.”
“Y-You would offend God?” I stuttered, grasping at straws, remembering how Kaelen spoke of the Italians’ beliefs.
With a dismissive wave of his hand, Rossi returned to his full height.
“He will forgive me for my sins. Besides, you’re not bonded. Finnegan hasn’t truly mated you. Married or not doesn’t matter. So that means you’re mine to claim.”
Dread spread through my limbs, leaving my fingers numb. I clasped my hands in my lap, trying to stifle the small tremor before it became noticeable. The points of his teeth dug into his lip as a chilling look settled into his features.
I wasn’t sure when my heat was due, but unless Kaelen found me before then, this man would bite me, forcing a bond into place.
Nausea rolled in my stomach, and hot acid burned in my chest.
“I have something for you,” Vittorio said, shoving a hand into his pocket and removing a dark vial swirling with liquid.
My eyes widened as my body screamed at me to run, to fight, anything. Except I couldn’t, paralyzed by fear. With a curl of his fingers, Vittorio beckoned his guard closer.
“No!”
The word tore from me, irritating my raw throat. It was a pathetic plea, barely echoing in the silence in the room. I tried to scramble away, kicking my feet, my nails clawing at the expensiveshirt covering the man’s torso. I thrashed my head from side to side.
Vittorio laughed a hollow sound as his guard closed his hand around my neck, pinning me to the bed and halting my meager assault.
“Let go of me!” I shrieked, scratching hard enough to draw blood.
Ignoring my protests, the man clutched harder, cutting off my air just enough to make me panic. I gasped as he took the vial from Vittorio. His teeth bit into the cork, unstopping it before spitting it across the room.
“Be a good girl and open your mouth,” Vittorio said, his eyes glowing as he closed one hand around both my wrists.
I snapped my mouth shut, my nostrils flaring. My gaze locked with Vittorio’s, and his bright yellow teeth gleamed at me as his dirty nails bit into the sensitive skin around my wrists. His guard brought the vial close to my face, and a foul smell wafted from it. I closed my eyes, internally chanting for my alpha, praying Kaelen would burst into the room any second.
But we were out of time, and I couldn’t overpower the two alphas restraining me.
“Something to get my omega ready for me,” Vittorio cooed, the dark promise gnarling around me like rotting ivy.
The hand holding me moved, and Vittorio’s guard tilted my head back, forcing my mouth open until I thought he might snap my face in two.
