Page 54 of Read This Before the Villain falls in Love with You

"Reach me." I spin, crossing my arms tight over my chest so I don't punch him. "Great excuse. Is that why you locked the east doors so I can't walk around without a guard following me? Or why you told Nonna to keep me out of the kitchen because of the knives?"

He doesn't even blink. "You threatened to cut Matteo with a knife two days ago. Nonna was just worried about her good knives."

I point a finger toward the yard. "Matteo stole my dessert and ate it in front of me! He had it coming."

He leans against the doorframe, crossing his arms, looking completely calm in his sharp black suit. "You're stuck in a fight you didn't start. My job is to keep you alive."

"Then you're terrible at it and you drive me crazy." I bark the words right at him, my glare sharp. "I fixed huge messes back in London before your goons threw me in a car. I know how to stay alive on my own."

"And your job." I let out a dry, bitter laugh that bounces off the cold stone. "Your job was grabbing the wrong woman. Ever since then, you just make things up as you go. You decide where I walk, what I eat, when I sleep. I hate being treated like a prisoner."

He tilts his head with a tired look. "Nobody treats you like that. Trying to look after you is like trying to hold an angry stray cat with bare hands."

"A cat who charges a lot of money," I shoot back. "Don't forget the bill I'm sending your people for all this wasted time."

His jaw tightens up, a muscle jumping under his dark stubble. "This isn't an office, Nora. You don't get to argue about safety rules when men are actively trying to kill you."

"I don't get to argue?" I step right into his space, my chin tipped up. "I ran a real company back home and solved huge problems, but here I have to ask for permission just to step outside?"

"There it is." I jab my finger hard against his chest. "The big boss talk. You sound like a man who never asks if someone wants to be protected. You think keeping me trapped makes you a good guy. It just makes me feel helpless, and I hate feeling helpless more than anything."

He catches my wrist before the next jab lands, his grip firm and immovable. "I am not trying to break you."

"Then stop acting like I'm made of glass." I pull my hand free, backing up until the cold stone rail hits my lower back. "You stand there acting calm and tough, pretending this is just smart planning. But it's fear. Yours. You lost people you loved, and now you force everyone around you to hide inside your little fortress. Well, I hate being stuck in it."

Something dark passes across his eyes. He steps away from the door and walks right up to me until I have to look straight up to see his face. "You think I like watching you jump every time a lock clicks shut? You think I sleep fine knowing you want to kill me for keeping you safe?"

"If I wanted to stab you in your sleep, I would have used the paring knife!" I bark back, my stare locked onto his dark eyes.

"I don't hate you." The words tear out of me, burning my throat. "I hate that you make all the choices for me and then look surprised when I get pissed off. You have to ask me first, Luca. Did you ever learn that, or does your family just take whatever they want?"

He lets out a low, rough growl. "You want a choice? Fine. Hear this: I won't watch another person I care about die just so I can be nice to you. You can scream at me. You can throw things. You can cuss me out all night. But you are staying behind these walls until the Bellinis are gone."

"Care about?" A harsh, broken laugh rips out of my throat, raw enough to scrape bone. "You don't care. You run hot and cold like a manic bastard. One day you're slaughtering an entire family right in front of my face, showing me exactly what a terrifying monster you are, and the sickest part is that I still let you take me. We had sex, Luca. You made me want you even after seeing that horror show, and then you just flip a switch and go freezing cold. You freeze me out, treat me like a piece of luggage, and lock every door. I hate it. And I hate myself even more for wanting you anyway."

Luca steps into my personal space until his chest brushes mine. "Do not talk about that night like it meant nothing to you. You think I turned cold because I do not care? I turned cold because having you in my bed while men are hunting this family makes me careless, Nora. And careless men get everyone killed."

"I'm serious, Luca!" I shout, shoving at his shoulder.

His palms slam down onto the stone balustrade on both sides of my hips, trapping me against the ledge without grazing an inch of fabric. "You think going cold was easy?" he snarls, his face inches from mine, nostrils flaring. "I butchered men in front of you. I showed you the ugliest, darkest filth I carry, and then I took you into my bed like an animal. I swore to God I wouldn't touch you again until you were back in London, clean and safe from this poison. But you walk through my halls smelling like jasmine, and every single second I'm watching the perimeter, my head is screaming to tear your clothes off. I can barely draw a breath around you, Nora."

"Then figure it out or leave me alone." I shove against his solid chest, but he doesn't budge an inch. "Stop acting like I'm weak. I gave your guards black eyes the night they dragged me into your car. I know how to handle trouble and guns and crazy people. What I can't stand is you taking away my choices and pretending it's love."

The word hangs there. Ugly. Exposed.

Luca's dark eyes turn hard as stone. "You want choices? Pick right now. Stay here and stand with me as my partner, or I put you on a plane tonight and send you home for good. But if you stay, stop telling yourself I protect you just to boss you around. Keeping you alive is the only thing holding me together."

I should tell him to call the plane. I should pack my bag and run. Instead my voice breaks, raw and shaky. "Don't act like giving me back my life is a favor. And don't act like your pain is worse than mine. I hate feeling weak. You hate feeling anything at all. We are a complete mess together."

"Then we'll be a mess together," he mutters, leaning closer until his body touches mine.

He dips his head until our lips nearly touch. "Then why does every single fight end with me wanting to pin you to the nearest flat surface?"

"I care about you, you stubborn man. Past the danger. Past your men grabbing me off the street. Past every locked door in this house. And it scares the hell out of me, because caring about someone gives them the power to hurt me, and I swore I would never let anyone do that again."

Luca stops moving completely. Then he rests his forehead against mine, his breath warm and uneven on my skin. "I care about you past every single rule I ever made to stay alive. Past the blood and the fight. I keep you close because if I lose you, I lose my mind. That isn't me trying to control you. That is just me trying to hold on."

My throat works, but nothing comes out except a ragged gasp. I grab the lapels of his suit jacket with both hands, jerk him down, and slam my mouth into his. The impact cracks against his teeth. He tastes like smoke, mint, and pure venom, and the fury behind it hits right down into my gut.