I flinch hard, but I still don’t run. Nico is capable of this kind of cruelty. And for some twisted, terrifying reason… it doesn’t make me want to run away from him.
It makes something dark and breathless unfurl low in my stomach. I stay hidden in the shadows of the doorway, breathing shallow, watching the most dangerous man I’ve ever met wipe blood from his fingers like it’s nothing.
Nico slowly turns his head, and our eyes lock. His whiskey-brown eyes are almost black now, pupils blown wide with violence and adrenaline. For one long, terrifying second, the entire world narrows to just the two of us.
He drops the bloody shears with a clatter and starts walking toward me, abandoning the sobbing man without a second glance. Pure, barely-leashed rage rolls off him in waves.
I should run.
But my feet still stay glued to the floor as he stalks closer, chest heaving, blood splattered across his bare torso and busted knuckles, muscles still pumped from the beating.
“What the hell are you doing down here?” he snarls, voice low and deadly.
His hand shoots out and clamps around my upper arm. He yanks me forward so hard I stumble, then starts dragging me back up the stairs. I try to pull away, but his grip only tightens, fingers digging into my flesh.
“Let go of me!” I snap, twisting against his hold. “You fucking animal, get your filthy hands off me!”
He ignores every insult I hurl at him, dragging me through the hallway like I’m a child. I stumble again when he suddenly shoves open a door and pushes me inside. I catch myself before I fall, spinning around to face him.
“What the hell is wrong with you?!”
Nico slams the door shut behind him, the sound echoing like a gunshot. He’s breathing hard, covered in another man’s blood and his own sweat, eyes still wild.
“What were you doing down there?” he demands, stepping closer. “Trying to eavesdrop? Thought you could spy on me and run back to your father with information?”
I roll my eyes, even though my heart is hammering. “And then do what with it? Write a strongly worded letter? I was just looking around the house and found the stairs. Is that suddenly a crime now?”
His jaw clenches so hard I can see the muscle jump. He closes the distance between us in two strides, towering over me, blood still dripping from his knuckles onto the floor.
“And what exactly were you hoping to achieve by wandering around the house? I told you not to leave your room.”
I shrug, refusing to back down, even though every instinct is screaming at me. “I don’t take orders from you.”
His eyes darken further. “Careful,” he growls.
“And where the fuck is your bodyguard?” He looks around like he’s expecting Daniel to jump out and explain to him why I was out of his sight. From the looks of it, he’s going to rip Daniel a new one when he sees him.
“I don’t know,” I say with a nonchalant shrug. “Not my fault your employee is incompetent.”
Something dangerous flickers across his face, but he doesn’t react. Instead, he steps even closer until I can smell the copper of blood mixed with his sweat and the faint trace of his body wash.
“You deserve to be punished for this little stunt,” he says, voice low and rough, almost a growl.
My breath catches.
I should be terrified. I should be begging him to let me go and not punish me. There must be something wrong with me, because I’m not.
Instead, I’m staring up into those stormy eyes, daring him to go ahead and punish me. Because some dark, treacherous part of me desperately wants to know exactly what kind of punishment Nico Lombardi has in mind for me.
My eyes keep dropping to his mouth. To those firm, cruel lips still slightly parted. What the hell is wrong with me? I shouldn’t want them on me. I shouldn’t be imagining how they would feel against mine. But I do. God, I do. The thought alone makes my breath hitch.
A rush of heat floods between my legs, warm and slick and completely unwanted. My core throbs, the sensation so strong it makes my knees feel weak. I press my thighs together tightly, but that only makes it worse
Nico’s gaze darkens as he notices. A slow, predatory sneer curves his lips. “What?” he murmurs, voice low and rough. “No smart comeback this time, princess?”
The air between us feels charged, almost suffocating. I take a shaky step back, trying to put distance between us.
Nico follows, stalking forward like a predator who’s scented weakness. I retreat again. He advances. We continue this dangerous dance until my back suddenly hits the edge of a heavy wooden desk. There’s nowhere left to go.
