“Dinner is ready,signor.”
I understood her surprise. Dinner was a formal affair in my home, whether I had guests or not, the etiquette always remained the same. It was my father’s one rule in the dining room, and I’d never changed it. With a quick nod, Rosana disappeared through the entrance doors leading toward the kitchen. Scratching my chin, I turned intending to go up to change when Gianna entered. Dressed in black yoga pants and an oversized shirt, her hair wet from a shower, her face void of make-up, she looked refreshingly casual, comfortable and the smile on her face indicated she felt that way too.
Noticing me, she paused and as if she caught my examination of her dress sense, she glanced down at her clothes before lifting her gaze to meet mine. “Um...” She bit her bottom lip then ran a hand through her hair. “Should I change? I borrowed them from Rosana.”
Wordlessly, I took my seat at the head of the table, and I was surprised when she immediately slid into the seat on my right. I expected her to seat herself as far away as possible from me. Rosana appeared a moment later and placed a plate in front of Gianna.
“Just the way you wanted,signora,” she whispered.
“Thank you, Rosana.” Her smile at the older woman was filled with a glee I didn’t understand until she lifted the silver domed cover. Catching my surprised look, Gianna’s smile faltered for just a moment. “It’s a burger and French fries,” she offered, her reply hushed as if worried I would have the casual dish taken away.
When Rosana walked to my side and removed the cover on my plate, this time, I hid my surprise at the ribeye with rosemary and wild mushroom serving. Not sure why I was expecting to be served the same as Gianna, the girl’s simplicity was beginning to test my patience. “Grazie, Rosana.” When she stepped back and moved to her spot she always occupied until dinner was over, I picked up the fork and knife to begin eating.
I glanced up to find Gianna watching me. Quickly, she dropped her gaze and picked up her burger. I didn’t miss her soft moan on her first bite. Her eyes closed, she was licking her lips while slowly chewing. Annoyed with the sudden twitch of my cock, I proceeded to slice my steak. Only the stiffness in both hands persisted and I dropped the knife. The clatter on my plate had Gianna standing up.
Frowning, I looked at her and barely kept from cursing when she moved to stand near me. She picked up my knife, took the fork from my hand, and began slicing the meat on my plate. For a man who killed people, stumbling on words shocked me more than the audacity of this girl.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I asked, my tone steel.
She didn’t answer. When her eyes met mine, her smile light, she continued slicing the meat. Her perfume, a soft smell of lavender with a hint of vanilla, curled around me, and clenching my teeth, I clamped down on the emotions stealing over my usual thoughts.
Jerking the knife out of her hand, I pointed to her chair. “Sit.” She set my fork on the napkin, moved away and slid slowly into her seat. Forking a piece of the steak into my mouth, I glanced at her. She was toying with her French fries, moving them around her plate in an absentminded design, her burger untouched. “Stop playing with your food and eat, girl.” Fuck, I sounded like a reproachful parent. Instead of doing as she was told, she looked up, her eyes glazed with unshed tears, met mine. Leaning back in my chair, I arched a brow.
“If you don’t want me to help or at least try a relationship with me, why marry me. Why keep me around?” she mumbled.
“To fuck,” my reply slipped through thinned lips, annoyed that she was getting under my skin, and I was usually the narcissistic bastard no one controlled.
“Then why don’t you get on with it, instead of playing with my emotions. At least then you can satisfy whatever urges you have and send me on my way.” She jumped to her feet.
I was out of my seat so fast, she wasn’t quick enough to move. She leaned away from me, her body bowing backward as I caged her in with my palms flat on the table on either side of her.
“You might be a cheeky little girl with others but trust me, you don’t have what it takes to fuck with me,” I growled, dropping a hand between her thighs.
Even as I said the words, I wanted nothing more than to fuck that virgin cunt of hers. Blinking rapidly, her eyes glazed with tears. Torment painting her cheeks a distinct shade of fear, I craved.
“I’d think twice about provoking a man like me,bella.”
I wanted to taste the sweet nectar of her innocence on my tongue. The idea of being her first fucked with my head. Would she cry out in pain or writhe in the pleasure of my touch? I squeezed her mound and she whimpered, pushing her thighs together to keep me out. Jerking her leg to the side, I forced her thighs apart.
“My sexual proclivities might scare the fuck out of you if you’re not careful.” I could practically taste the scent of her arousal. The thought of slipping my cock into her dripping cunt after I’d whipped her ass, tightened my balls. If I stayed there a moment longer, I was likely to fuck her right there on the table. Pulling a deep breath, I stepped back. “Now sit your ass down and shut the fuck up, little girl before you make me regret my decision to give you a bedroom to sleep in,” I snapped.
Immediately, she dropped to her chair and with a sullen glance in my direction, began eating. After two bites, she pushed her plate aside and stood. “May I be excused?” I could hear the restraint in her voice, she was attempting to keep either her anger or tears at bay.
It would’ve been easy to toy with her, to see how far I could push before she probably retaliated with the steak knife through my heart, but I didn’t. I planned to keep that little endeavor for when she truly became mine. Yet, something told me that while she’d become my wife, it would be in name only. Anything else I wanted from her, I’d have to take by force. Bastard that I was, I anticipated the outcome would be one to remember, for me at least.
I nodded without looking up. After she walked off, Rosana stepped forward to remove her plate. “Make sure she eats something,” I instructed. No longer hungry, I dropped my fork and stood to walk away.
“She’s trying to be brave,signor. She’s just lost her mother and thrown into a world that doesn’t make sense to her.” Speaking in Italian, Rosana’s soft words stopped me. She’d never spoken out before and that surprised me.
Slowly, I turned and studied my housekeeper’s solemn expression. “I don’t want a barbie doll to play house, Rosana. You know what I need.” With that, I walked away, once more annoyed with how quickly that girl was beginning to occupy a lot more brain space than I cared for.
With a brandy in my hand, I walked out onto the balcony outside my den. Leaning my elbows on the railing, I glanced out toward the now darkened sea in the distance, wondering how I’d landed myself in this situation.
When Cassius took a loan from my father to cover his debt, I had no idea what the terms of their agreement were. I was twenty-five then and ignored the agreement until ten years later and that moment she stood in my living room fighting her father’s decision.
After finding out the details behind Cassius’ operation, I now understood the reason her mother hid Gianna all these years—untouched and innocently beautiful. Manipulative bastard that he was proving to be, Cassius would’ve easily sold her to another, if I’d turned her down. No one, not my father, Cassius, or her mother could be certain I’d go ahead with the marriage when the deal was signed and that left everyone making alternate plans until my digging uncovered a lot more information than I bargained for. Now, my reason to marry her might be considered unwise but it was fucking foolproof.
Turning, to lean my butt against the rail, I glanced toward Gianna’s bedroom, visible from where I stood given the concave design of the building. She was sitting on the railing ledge, one leg up in front of her, the other dangling on the inside of the balcony. With her elbow resting on the leg up, her head leaning on that hand, she looked out to sea as if, like me a moment ago, lost in thought. Even if I didn’t want to admit it, another few days with her and I was fucking terrified of the idea that she might ingrain herself into my heart. I couldn’t let that happen. Not now, not ever.
