Cristiano, Lucas, and I have been friends since we were kids. Lucas, who is at the command center monitoring video feeds we set up in and around the funeral home, is also part of my inner circle. Cristiano and Lucasarethe inner circle. While there are others I trust, no one else has the kind of access they do. Not even close.
“I hate when you’re exposed like that,” Cristiano mutters. “Even with all the extra precautions in place. Too damn many people in and out, milling around. It’s exactly the kind of occasion one of our enemies would use to take you out. It’s not smart.”
But necessary. And I’m done talking about it. “Why do you think Daniela was so spooked by my uncle and Tomas?”
He shakes his head. “Not sure. But I’m going to poke around this afternoon. I was starting to worry that you’d want to hang around to see how it played out.”
“I saw enough.”More than enough. She belongs to me, and nobody,nobodygets to make her tremble. Nobody but me.
“What are the chances they’ve already approached her about the property?” Not that it matters. She doesn’t own it, so she can’t sell it, but I want those facts to unfold on my terms.
“We have eyes all over Quinta Rosa do Vale,” Cristiano replies, scrolling through his phone. “We’d have known if they showed up. But I guarantee they’re planning something.”
“Have Lucas sift through Daniela’s email and call records, to see if they’ve contacted her since we last checked. Tell him to drop whatever he’s doing—and get on it.”
I want answers.Now.
I drum my fingers on the armrest, until even I’m irritated by the tapping.
“I’m going to pay her a visit this week.”
Cristiano lifts his head and peers at me from across the console. “Have you changed your mind about waiting to tell her about the betrothal contract?”
“Did you see how young she is?” I scowl at him. “How long do you think I can tolerate a teenage girl’s bullshit? Especially a spoiled one?”
He groans. “My sisters weren’t spoiled teenagers, but they could torture me without breaking a sweat.”
They still torture him without breaking a sweat.
“I already have my hands full with Rafael, and he’s away at school.”
Rafael is Abel’s youngest son. Tomas’s little brother. He came to live with me several years ago, after his father’s abuse became intolerable. Rafael’s a good kid, but every day is a new adventure. Daniela is several years older than him, but after just a few minutes with her, I can already guarantee she’ll make my challenges with him seem like child’s play.
“It’ll be one headache after another if we bring her in now. I have enough problems. And I’m not a goddamn babysitter.”
She’s not a child, Antonio.No, she isn’t, but she’s not a woman either.
What she is, is tempting.Too damn tempting.
Something about her vulnerability stirred a desire I can’t shake.A desire to mark her.Tospray my seed all over her supple, virgin skin.That’s the truth. It’s exactly what was going through my mind when she licked her lips, struggling to keep it together at the funeral home.
One day, I’ll tease her until she surrenders—until I demand her surrender.It’ll be brutal and filthy. No sense in prettying it up to make it sound like something it’s not. Wife or no wife, I’m talking about base carnal lust, nothing more.
“She’s young,” Cristiano admits, propping his elbow on the armrest. “But something about her . . .” He pauses for several seconds, staring into space.
He better not say one fucking word about her innocence being a turn-on. “What about her?” I challenge.
“I don’t know. She looks like jailbait, butshe seems much older. Something about her eyes. Like they’ve seen a lot.” He draws a breath and blows it out carefully. “Our world can wipe the sheen off the rose-colored glasses pretty quick. Without her mother around, she was probably exposed to some of the dirtier parts of her father’s life.”
“Her father was sick for a long time, and the end was ugly,” I remind him. “That’s wariness and exhaustion in her eyes. D’Sousa was careful around her. Up until recently, he sheltered her from everything. Besides, his hands have always been cleaner than ours.”
I pause to remember the man I tortured last night, until he gave up the information I needed.No regrets.Not a single fucking one.
Cristiano shakes his head. “Marrying her now is likely to be a huge clusterfuck. But who knows? Maybe waiting will be even worse.”
Russian roulette. Not a game for someone, like me, who craves control.
I lean over and adjust the air flow so I can fucking breathe.