Page 21 of Ruthless Sinner

My original plan to make Enzo squirm and feel uncomfortable quickly fades from my mind as I become fixated on the speed at which this vibrating toy will bring me to orgasm. As the locks twist and the door slowly opens, I quickly pull myself together and prepare to perform.

Enzo stops with one foot in the door, his eyes widening in disbelief at the sight of me on the bed. For three long seconds, he stares at me while trying to compose himself. It takes every effort for him to tear his gaze off me and go about his business. I hear him mumbling under his breath, but I can’t make out what he says. He gathers the tray with my untouched breakfast and slams the door behind him. Curiously, he doesn’t lock it.

A few moments later, Enzo’s presence is replaced by Dante’s. His chest rapidly rises and falls, his nostrils flaring as he fixates on me with a mix of anger and desire. “Are you pleased with yourself?”

“Give me thirty more seconds, and I will be,” I grin cheekily.

Dante moves with a powerful, almost primal energy. He strides across the room, his steps heavy and decisive. In one swift motion, he snatches the vibrator out of my hand and flings it across the room. The plastic device ricochets off the wall with a loud thud before clattering to the ground; the vibrating stops.

My eyes follow the scene with mild interest until Dante grabs me by the throat and leans over me. My heart races as I feel the heat of his breath against my face, his intense gaze pinning me in place like helpless prey. The scent of cologne and danger surrounds him, making my senses reel. Fear and excitement mix in a potent cocktail that leaves me trembling in his grasp. “Don’t even think about touching my pussy without permission. Do you understand me?”

“What are you going to do to stop me?” I tease, the words hanging in the air, daring and challenging him to do what we both know he wants to do.

“Not everything is a game, Adalina.” He growls, each syllable laced with a warning. “You may still learn that I can be more cruel than your father.”

There is a hollow, empty feeling in my chest that begs to be filled. It keeps me up at night, begging the universe to bring me a savior. It permeates my body from head to toe. “Do it then,” I challenge. “Show me your cruelty.”

Dante’s fingers tighten around my throat, cutting off my oxygen supply. My vision blurs and darkens at the edges. “You’re insane. Do you know that? I extend an olive branch, and you squander it with incessant taunting and relentless attempts to push me over the edge.”

I don’t know how to tell Dante that I’m broken inside, that my father’s abuse carved scars into my soul that run deeper than any physical pain could ever inflict. No one can ever wound me as deeply or as permanently as Tommaso has. But Dante’s attempts to tame me feel like salt in an open wound, a cruel and futile effort to control something that has long since been irreparably damaged. I will not be tamed, for even my own flesh and blood could not break me. What makes him think he can succeed where others have failed? My strength and determination are unshakeable, and I will not go down without a fight.

“Now you have nothing to say?” Dante’s brows furrow as his eyes narrow into sharp, piercing slits. His expression is filled with frustration and annoyance, and a hint of anger simmering just beneath the surface.

A second later, he releases my throat, and I gasp for air. My lungs expand with relief, but I can still feel the burning imprint of his fingers on my skin. “You can’t scare me,” I choke out. “I’m not afraid of anything.”

Dante walks across the room to grab the vibrator, shoving it in his pocket. “You think that now, but just wait, Adalina.”

The threat lingers in the air, a poisonous fog that suffocates and distorts my senses. My world has never been large, but being in Dante’s home has shrunk it to near nonexistence. I don’t believe he stole me from my father and locked me in a gilded cage just so he could kill me in the end, but he may have no choice. I will not bow or break for a man—not today, not tomorrow, not ever.

Chapter 23

Dante

Isit down with my brothers for lunch, trying to push away the thoughts of the shipment of guns waiting for me. My mind is already a mess, but I know I can’t afford to make any mistakes. Knowing I need a clear head, I order iced tea instead of my usual whiskey.

“Good to see you’re still alive,” Salvatore greets with a smile as he sits down. He’s the last of us to arrive, with Niccolo and Luciano showing up ten minutes ago. “Did this guy tell you he fucked the girl he was trying to kidnap?”

Having a drink might numb my senses, including the newfound hatred I feel towards my brother. “Say it a little louder next time. I don’t think the people on the street heard you.”

“You want me to scream it?” Sal leans back in his chair, his head tilting to the side in a confrontational manner. His dark hair falls slightly over his face, obscuring his sharp features. His lips curl into a sly smile, showing off a dimple on one cheek. “I’ve been loud since birth, brother. Just say the word, and I’ll make sure everyone in Manhattan hears me.”

I let out an exasperated sigh, but my lips curl upwards into a smile. My brothers have a way of annoying me and making me laugh at the same time. It’s a love-hate relationship that I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world.

Niccolo wears a frown as he shakes his head slowly in disapproval. “You’re kidnapping girls now? This is why I don’t want any part of the family business.”

I almost choke on my tea. If he thinks he’s exempt from the Terlizzi traditions because he’s chosen to be a professor at the university, he has another thing coming. You can distance yourself from family, but you can never escape them. “I’m not kidnapping girls,” I reply patiently. “I’m helping Father retrieve a debt.”

Salvatore stage-whispers, “He fucked the debt he retrieved for Father.”

Luciano snorts into his beer before tossing me a look. “Is that what we’re doing now?”

“I can’t fucking stand any of you.” Having siblings is a blessing and a curse. There is never a moment of peace or quiet with four of them. They always have something to say about the choices I’ve made, making me doubt my own decisions. But at the same time, they are family, and I couldn’t imagine going through life without them.

“I’ll be honest, I don’t understand any of this,” Niccolo announces with a shrug. “And don’t feel like you have to explain. Plausible deniability and all.”

A long time ago, Niccolo begrudgingly married to appease our father. Despite his insistence that he wanted nothing to do with the family business, he married Caterina Lucatello as a show of respect. Tragically, his wife passed away just last year, leaving Niccolo to raise a teenage stepdaughter. I know he wants to be on the outside of things, but that isn’t always possible.

“The Martinellis owe Father a quarter of a mil. I had a sit down with Tommaso a few months ago, and it was clear he had no intention of paying it back,” I explain despite Niccolo asking me not to.

---