Marco took a step closer. His eyes were on fire, so deep and intense it felt like I was burning alive right with him.
I licked my lips, his gaze following my tongue, then slowly slid back to my eyes. If he bent down, just a little more, I could kiss him.
Something needed to cut the tension between us andfast,before I did something I'd regret. That was what gave me the strength to take a step back from him. I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and cleared my throat. "Thank you for this. Even though I'm not sure how you knew I was here, and it concerns me you did, you helped me, and I appreciate it."
His fingertips grazed my chin as he gently tipped my head up. His grin was wide, his dimples on full display. "Of course, it's my job."
"Job?" His touch, his smile—damn it,allof him—left me breathless.
I should have told him to stop touching me.
I should have told him to continue.
Which do I want more?
"Yes," he hissed, running his fingertips along my jaw, to my hair, where he slid down the shaft of my braid all the way to my waist. "I told you, I'd follow you wherever you go, and I will always help you. I'm on your side, Catalina. No matter how much you push me away, I will always choose you."
Why did he have to say those words to me? Why now? When I can't ignore or doubt them?
All I'd ever wanted was to be someone's first choice. To be their priority, to have their attention, to bewanted,not needed.
Why? Why did he make everything so hard?
I wanted to hate him, to despise and be wary about him. I kept trying and trying, and trying, but I couldn't. Instead, I'd laughed, shared, and grown comfortable around him.
Somewhere along the line, I'd let Marco in. I started to believe him, believeinhim, and I shouldn't have.
You stupid, stupid girl. How did you let this happen?
This was only going to hurt me in the end. I knew that, and the thought of that devastating pain helped me break whatever spell he'd so carefully woven around us.
Marco's hand fell away as if he could feel the sudden shift in the air between us. He clenched his fists, his knuckles turning pale from the force, then turned to carry the gun cases away.
I watched him retreat. And with every step he took, he stole something from me. I could feel it, like a tether I couldn't break. It was so strong that I wanted to call him back. Wanted to apologize, to change, explain, beg him, but I didn't know for what or why. I just didn't want him to leave like this.
But instead of going to his car, he walked to mine and said in a gruff voice, "Open your trunk."
I tilted my head, following him. "Why?"
He put the cases on the ground and held onto the latch for my trunk. "I didn't just bring these for you to use; they're yours."
My heartbeat sped up again. "Marco… you cannot keep doing this."
"As long as it keeps that look of joy on your face, I can and I will. Now open the trunk, Catalina."
Marco followedme in his car until we'd entered the city, making sure I'd gotten there safely. But even after he'd turned off, heading in his own direction, I still couldn't get him out of my mind.
I was stuck on the same question, the one I knew he wouldn't answer honestly.What did he want from me?
There was no tracker on my car. I'd checked multiple times, which could only mean he'd invested resources into watching me.
It wasn't that hard to find out what property I owned. If he could identify the name of my corporations, he could easily track a lot of the things he wanted, but there was nothing there that would benefit him enough to explain why he acted the way he did.
Yes, I had clubs, hotels, hospitals, and a slew of other revenue streams, but so did he. In fact, all of my research showed he had more money than I did. So why? Why go this far?
My past with men was simple. They always wanted something from me and they'd use their power to try to intimidate me into giving it to them. If that didn't work, they'd take it themselves. It was the same with my father, Fernando, even the other mafia heads who tried to get me to marry them.
But Marco wasn't like that with me. He was never aggressive. Never tried to bully or pressure me. He could have been trying to work a different angle, playing kind and adoring until I'd finally give him whatever it was he wanted, but I didn't think that was the case. At least, Ihopedit wasn't.
