It felt real.
Arousal throbs where it shouldn’t, and shame fills me.
He’s, my brother.
Twenty minutes later we pull into an underground parking lot, the large metal gates slowly rise and I turn to look through the back window to see three cars pull in behind us, wait…we have people trailing us? I glance over at Giuliano, his steely gaze is focused out the window, I turn back to the front, of course we do.
His words from earlier come back to me. “Our blood is a trophy. Our death is a sport.”
“Good evening, Mr. Ferrara.” One of the guards nods, the men all stay quiet and on high alert, very different to how they are with me, and I get the feeling that Giuliano rules with an iron fist. Nobody would dare step a toe out of line in his presence.
We take the elevator and once at the top floor the elevator opens into a foyer area, Giuliano puts his hand over a scanner and the doors open.
“Where are we?” I ask.
“My place,” he says as he stands back and lets me walk in before him. My eyes scan the huge apartment, It’s super trendy with a ceiling-to-floor window view over Rome.
“Your place?” I frown as I take my scarf off and throw it over the back of the couch.
“I lived here before we moved operations out.”
I nod and look around, it’s very impressive.
Giuliano walks through and disappears up a large set of stairs. “The guest room is this way,” he calls, he’s dismissing me.
Oh….
I follow him up the stairs and down the grand hallway. “I’ve had your room filled with essentials but if you need anything just call.”
“Thanks.” I look around, the bedroom is beautiful, rich and luxurious with exotic art.
“Keep the door locked.”
My face falls. “You think that someone might come to my room?”
“I know they would want to.” His eyes hold mine and suddenly it becomes crystal clear who he wants to keep out of my bedroom.
Himself.
“Oh…oh…kay…” I stammer.
“Good night, Francesca.” He walks out of my bedroom and begins up the hall and I follow him out.
“Giuliano.”
He turns back toward me. “Yes.”
“Thank you.”
He nods but stays silent, we stare at each other and the pull toward him is indescribable. His eyes hold mine as he waits for me to speak, there is so much that I want to say, not one word that I can.
“Is there any way I can just finish this design job? It’s a big deal for my career, a large hotel chain and this is the first one. I just have to be here a couple of times over the next few weeks and the rest of the time I can work from the Paris office. After the Rome one is refurbished, I’ll never have to come back here, but if I don’t finish this I can’t move on to the next hotel in another country and I’m going to have to resign.”
“You don’t have to work, Francesca,” he says, his voice is soft, cajoling. Different to how he’s been speaking to me of late.
“But I want to, this is my dream job. I studied for years to get this, I don’t want to throw it away.” My eyes search his. “Can we find a solution…it’s only a couple of weeks.”
He exhales heavily. “I’ll see what I can do.”
I nod with a lopsided smile, “Thanks.”
We stare at each other, alone in the darkened hall. The air circles between us and it’s still there.
Like a tangible entity, I can feel it between us. A force to be reckoned with.
“Don’t marry him,” he murmurs.
“Why not?”
“Because I asked you not to.”
My heart constricts as we stare at each other and then, without another word, he turns and disappears down the hall.
I walk back into my room and I lock that fucking door.
Giuliano
I rush down the stairs as fast as I can, I loosen my tie with a sharp snap.
Distance.
As a matter of urgency.
I need to create some distance before I throw her onto the bed and punish her for pissing me off.
With my heart racing I walk into my living room and straight to the bar, I fill a glass with ice and then pour the scotch in so fast that it sloshes over the sides.
I tip my head back and down it in one go.
I fill the glass again and I glance over to the staircase as it taunts me.
She’s in my house.
The woman I’ve been fantasizing about for ten long years…is here.
And I can’t have her.
Fuck.
I refill my glass and drain it again, I wince as I feel the burn all the way down my esophagus.
I close my eyes and inhale with a shaky breath as I try to will myself to a state of calm. The pulse in my cock is unrelenting and takes me back to the alleyway, reminding me of her kiss.