Her eyes narrowed to green slits. “Trust me. Even the devil wouldn’t be able to spawn the evil I’ve become. And the name’s Gianna. Ria doesn’t exist anymore, seems like she never did.”
“Why do you believe Ria never existed. She did for me.” I took a step forward.
She uttered a caustic laugh. “No, Zayne, you used her just like all the others.”
“What the fuck? I never used you, I loved you, always will.” Then her words registered. “What others?” What happened to her to stem such vehemence. “Talk to me, please.”
“Save it for someone who cares,” I flinched at the venom in her words. “If you’re done talking, there’s the door you can go back to your little girlfriend and play house.”
My brow furrowed. Knowing I wasn’t going to get anything out of her, I took a step back. “What about her nephew?”
She shrugged. “No deal. You didn’t keep up your end.”
My hand flew through my hair. “Why are you doing this?” I repeated.
Her once sparkling green eyes resembled icebergs I doubted any cold region could compare. “Because I can. Power, money, beauty. I have it all”
“Bullshit.” I barked out a laugh. For someone who never bothered with money, beauty, or power, I couldn’t believe this was the same woman I’d loved more than life itself. The sweet innocent Ria whose lightest touch could ignite my passion faster than a flick of a match. The woman I’d wanted to bear my children and never got a chance to.
“So, would you like to fuck?” Her not-so-subtle question pulled me out of my musings.
I might love this woman but right now I felt no warmth, no arousal for her, just plain confusion. “I’m in a relationship.” I wouldn’t call what I had with Jaz a relationship. We kissed, once and it was just because we were drunk after dinner. Even though we’d become good friends, I’d felt unsettled ever since. Now, using it as an excuse, I hoped it would ignite some jealousy, some feeling from the woman standing in front of me.
That’s not what I got. “And I care, why? The fact that you chased after me, doesn’t say much about your relationship, does it?” She cocked her head to one side, those green spheres a toss-up between heat and something I couldn’t fathom. “What did you tell her about the deal?”
“Nothing.” I clenched my fingers to keep from shouting out. I needed to bring Ria back. She’d loved my dominance before. Maybe that would work. “I swore to protect you, Ria but you disappeared on me. Not even a call to let me know you were okay.” I needed to shake that hard act. Having done it before with her, I knew how to. I took a step forward.
Her steel veneer didn’t budge. “Is that what you want to do now? Protect me?”
“No.” Eyebrow raised, I took another step and she stepped back. Good.
I saw the distinct falter in her expression. “Just so you know,” her voice broke and she cleared her throat. “I can take care of myself.”
Another step and I watched her feet slide back before I lifted my gaze to hers. “I guess in a world full of these types of criminals you associate with, you probably can. But I don’t think you can handle every powerful man.”
She blinked. A slight crumble to that confidence. “You’re powerful and I can handle you.”
“Me?” I smirked.
One perfectly shaped brow arched. “Why? You think I don’t stand a chance against you. That I’m not strong enough to take you on?” Irritation lined her words, yet not enough to hide the fact she knew who she was dealing with.
I widened my lips in a slow smile. “I didn’t say that.”
“Maybe you don’t know this, but I pretty much made Vincenzo Salvatore my bitch. And he’s one of the most powerful men in the world.” She bit out and another crumble fell.
Vincenzo Salvatore was a widely known mafia head with strong ties in just about anything and everything. Regardless, the man was as private as they came. No one knew anything about his personal life. So, I wondered what her relationship was with him. “Yeah, but I know you like he never would.”
“What does that mean?” she growled at me. I guessed me attacking her power didn’t sit well with her. “You think I wouldn’t think twice to kill you?”
I let my tongue roll over my bottom lip and her eyes followed the trail. “No,” I replied.
“Really?” she asked. I nodded. “Why is that?”
“Because you loved me once,” my words were low, meant to appeal to the woman I once knew.
“Hate to break it to you, but I’m smarter now,” I didn’t miss the kick of sarcasm to her words. “I know how to use my fists. It sure as hell works a lot better than my heart. I’m trained, skilled and fast.”
“And I’m faster.”
