Until now.
And I will never have him again.
Liam Brenner deserves the world, not the darkness that I crave to fill him with.
“You look like you could use some rescuing,bella,” a thickly accented voice says from beside us.
Liam breaks his hold on my gaze, and I instantly feel cold when he releases me. I don’t like this feeling of dependency he brings. His face grows cold, and my spine snaps straight, suddenly remembering where we are and the threats around us.
I look to my left, and there’s a familiar man staring back at me with a smug smirk on his face. The mask doesn’t hide the mischief in his eyes when he looks between Liam and me.
Liam’s arm snakes along my waist, and he pulls me into his side. Despite the movement, he never takes his eyes off the man in front of us.
Elio Ricci—the Italian Mafia heir.
This is the other man here trying to steal my hand in marriage, and I roll my eyes at the thought. He narrows in on the movement, clearly not impressed with the look I gave him.
I’ve met him once before and, of course, he didn’t know who I was. The Ricci family are firm believers in arranged marriages. They’re thirsty for power, always trying to stretch their reach as far as they can to climb the ladder. It’s been years since I’ve seen Elio, and we didn’t talk when I met him; I doubt he recognizes me.
He was a twat back then, and he looks like a twat now. The poster boy of sexism and misogyny. I have half a mind to kick him in the balls to show him that this isn’t a business transaction, and he can’t fucking have me.
“She’s exactly where she should be,” Liam answers for me.
I want to look at him. Try to decipher his words by the look on his face. There are a lot of things I expected to come out of his mouth, but that wasn’t one of them.
Elio snaps a hard glare at Liam, and Liam’s fingers dig into my side. I’m waiting for one of them to either lift their leg and mark me or rip each other apart. As much as I love this attention, especially from Liam, it’s about to get ugly between them, and quickly.
Elio cants his head and smiles, an unspoken threat as his eyes volley between Liam and me. “I would very much like to dance with my future queen. Feel free to piss off now.”
Liam stiffens, then his weight shifts like he’s going to charge. I move before he can and step into Elio, bringing his attention to me. Dark-brown eyes look down at me as my hands press flat against his chest.
A growl sounds from behind me, and it’s enough to create a pool between my legs. I’m familiar with Liam’s jealousy, and his reaction to me touching Elio makes me want to spur him on to see what he would do.
If I didn’t think he would be killed for his temper, then I would be pushing Liam’s envy for my own twisted pleasure.
Green is my favorite color on him.
“Meet me on the balcony,” I say to Elio, running my hand along his arm.
His eyes narrow, and his jaw tenses. I just told him to do something, and he’s not happy about it. Elio is the type of man I spend every day proving myself against. I would happily cut out his jugular on the balcony with a smile on my face, war be damned.
Elio is hesitant, and I can feel his need to put me in my place. He won’t do it here, though. He’s supposed to be trying to win my hand, and backhanding me on the dance floor won’t be beneficial for him. If he were to win me, I have no doubt I’d be punished on my first night with him.
Without acknowledging my request, he turns on his heel and walks in the direction I told him to go. I spin to face Liam, meeting his glare with my own and stomping my feet like a petulant child as I close the distance between us.
“I can’t protect you here,” I hiss in a low voice.
I’m positive my dad has put something in place for Liam’s protection, but that can only go so far. These men are bred to be ruthless and trained to conquer, looking for the easiest prey to dominate. In a roomful of testosterone-filled criminals, Liam would be the easiest pick. The man is by no means weak, but he wasn’t raised to be a killer.
Liam snorts. “I don’t fucking need you to protect me. You’re a fucking Olin, Malia.”
I can practically feel him vibrating from the force of his anger, and the urge to reach out and let him take it out on me is overwhelming.
“You don’t want me as your fucking enemy, Liam.”
He smiles and steps into me, bending down so his mouth brushes against my ear as he speaks. I swallow the shudder that threatens to wrack through my body.
“Agent Brenner, Miss Olin,” he whispers. I can feel his hand skating along my lower back, yet it’s high enough for me to feel on my bare back and goosebumps blanket my skin.