But unlike them, she didn’t know me except for my reputation, which was probably why her brother hated me so much. I stole his show in the brutality department on occasion.
“You don’t have to be scared of me,” I said quietly, softening my voice, something I never did for anyone, and I wasn’t sure why the hell I did it for her, but I simply didn’t want her to be scared of me.
She tilted her head, regarding me quietly. The tension didn’t leave her body. “I know who you are,” she said simply. She touched her ear, eyes flitting to the keypad then to me again.
“And I know who you are, Greta, so you’re safe by default. Not to mention that I’d never hurt a woman. You don’t have to be worried.”
“I’m not scared of you,” she said, which I seriously doubted considering her reaction to my proximity so far, but I allowed her the lie. “There’s blood on your face and shirt.”
I reached for my mouth and my fingers came away red. My tongue. Glancing down at my shirt, I saw a few droplets of blood on the white material, which had spread due to the fabric’s wet state.
No wonder she’d run away screaming. She’d probably thought I’d come to murder her, or worse. I could only imagine what kind of horror stories Nevio told her about me.
“Fuck.” My eyes flitted up to find Greta still watching me. “I apologize. I shouldn’t curse in front of you.” Had I really just said that?
“I hear worse on a daily basis,” she said, her body relaxing ever so slightly.
“I bet.”
She pointed at my lips as she pushed to her feet. “Was that Nevio?”
“No.” I wasn’t sure why I said it but for some reason I didn’t want her to know how much he and I hated each other. Once she saw us together there would be no hiding it, not to mention that I didn’t know why I’d bother anyway.
The silk ribbon of one of her ballet shoes had come undone and wrapped around her other leg, causing her to lose her balance. I reached out to steady Greta who stumbled forward. Her eyes widened, looking at my fingers on her arm as if they might strangle her. I released her the moment she was steady. Dad would be pissed if I caused a war with the Camorra with a misunderstanding. I bet Remo and Nevio would love to misunderstand me touching Greta’s arm.
“I meant it, you don’t have to be scared.”
She smiled in embarrassment. “And I told you, I’m not scared of you. I’m nervous around people I don’t know well, especially in surroundings that give me anxiety in the first place.”
I remembered the rumors about her social phobia. I’d never given it much thought. I’d never given Greta Falcone much thought. I nodded. “There’s only one solution to our problem, you have to enter the code that keeps us locked in.”
She shook her head then bent forward to wrap the ribbon around her slender ankle and calf once more, completely throwing me off with the movement and the way her ass propped up in the air. “I can’t. Someone set off the alarm by entering a wrong code somewhere in the house and by doing so locked all the electronic doors in the house.” She seemed completely oblivious of the view she was giving me. I swallowed thickly and dragged my eyes back to the keypad and busied myself hitting the buttons of it but the keys remained dark.
“How long will we be trapped down here?”
She appeared in my peripheral vision but more than anan arm’s lengthaway from me. “My family will check every locked room in the mansions and basements systematically.” She fell silent, gnawing on her lower lip. “I can’t tell you more.”
I could make you.This was important safety information. I just nodded.
My eyes traveled the length of her once more, unable to stop. She barely reached my chest and the cold down here in the basement had a very obvious effect on her body, the least of all were the goosebumps on her skin. Her nipples had hardened to firm pebbles under her leotard.
Tearing my gaze away, I cleared my throat, which felt dry and rough. “Will you be okay in this enclosed space until someone gets us out?”
She gave me a grateful smile. “I doubt I have a choice, so yes, I’ll be okay.”
For some reason, my lips pulled into a smile in return which I cut off quickly. What the hell was wrong with me?
“I’m sure we’ll be out in no time.”
Greta eyed me with curiosity. I met her gaze and she didn’t look away. She scanned me from head to toe. If it was any other girl, I’d say she was checking me out, but with her I honestly wasn’t sure.
“You’re very tall and muscled, unusually so.”
My eyebrows shot up, and I almost laughed. I didn’t laugh in public, definitely not around people who could become the enemy any day. “Thanks?” I said then narrowed my eyes. “Or did you insult me? I’m really not sure.”
Greta tilted her head with a small, secretive smile. “It wasn’t an insult.”
“A compliment?”