Page 4 of Sin of Innocence

I wasn’t too sure when it happened, but it was almost as if he had gotten closer. We still weren’t touching, but his scent was more prominent and the mint of his breath was kissing my nostrils. I knew if he got any closer, I wouldn’t be able to control the hormones begging me to jump on top of this man and let him steal every piece of me.

I shot up as fast as I could and began to take a step back. My clumsiness caused me to bump into the table behind me. A sharp gasp left my lips as I attempted to balance myself. Luckily, Emanuel grasped me by my waist so I couldn’t fall.

I was grateful for his help, but I hated how the butterflies in my stomach managed to triple.

“I’m sorry,” I muttered, trying to pull away, but he wasn’t allowing it. His arm that was wrapped around my waist, tightened. Deja Vu was hitting me like a truck when I couldn’t stop thinking about the way he held me all those nights ago. He had his erection rubbing against my stomach, leaving me breathless. It was a moment I never let myself forget.

“I can see how badly you want me, Christina, and I want you to know that I am getting hard just thinking about fucking you right on this couch with your legs wrapped around me. So, I have to ask you to leave my office and go find your father because once I rip this dress off your body, I won’t stop. Do you understand me?” he asked.

I opened my mouth, ready to speak, but nothing came out. All I could do was sternly nod my head just before he let me go. Emanuel Mariano didn’t say another word as I walked out of his office, and my heart wouldn’t stop pumping so vigorously in my chest until I was gone. I wish I had enough courage to tell him to keep his word and ruin me as he wanted. I needed everything he was offering, and I promised myself that I would get it.

2

EMANUEL

“Did you search the intern submission forms for a Christina Thomas?” I asked Matteo, my new personal assistant. The last personal assistant had been fired for insufficient work presence. She was absent more than she was present, and when she was around, she was too much of a flirt to ever get any actual work done. It felt good having an employee like Matteo, who actually showed up to work and atleastattempted to do things correctly.

“I did. I even double-checked. Her submission was nowhere to be found,” he answered. Matteo sat all the forms down on my desk, forcing my eyes to narrow. Christina was quite the vixen. I snatched my reading glasses off my face before throwing them down onto the pile of papers.

Christina was the only woman I couldn’t grasp an understanding of. Her eyes were practically begging me to ruin her innocence, yet she could so easily turn away from me.

“Find out where she has her internship and bring the information to me right away,” I ordered Matteo. He gave a curt nod before exiting my office.

My gaze lingered on the stack of intern applications with a curled lip. There were thousands of applicants, but Christina wasn’t a single one. A whole week had gone by without a word from her. It was challenging to distract my mind from the woman who had my heart for almost two years.

Ever since the moment I met her, I knew she was the woman I needed by my side. She had no clue how long I thought of that night. Christina wouldn’t understand how many times I emptied my lust to the thought of her. If only she hadn’t been pursuing her dreams and spending every waking moment devoting her time to her studies, I would have made her mine that very day.

I kept thinking back to two years ago. That night, I leaned against her bedroom door, jerking myself off to her every moan, squeal, and shout. Something about her stuck to me. Maybe it was the way her body melted against mine like a missing piece to a puzzle, or the way she moaned my name out like she was singing her favorite song.

Jason was someone I viewed as a friend, but if that weren’t the case, I would’ve ripped open that door and took her in more ways than one could imagine. There would be no stopping the way I would have taken her body with everything in me. I was ready to unleash the beast and show her the real way a man can ravish her body.

I was so occupied in my thoughts, I failed to notice Jason walking into my office until he cleared his throat. Guilt should’ve been coursing through me, but there wasn’t any. Wanting Christina beneath me was winding its way into my conscience, and there was nothing I could do.

“What can I do for you?” I asked behind a tight-lipped smile.

Jason sat down in the small chair that was perched directly in front of my desk. My brow arched as I studied him. He wore a blank expression on his face, leaving behind an atmosphere of tension behind his every movement.

“I want you to be honest with me. Did you hire me as CFO out of pity, Mr. Mariano?” Jason questioned.

Leaning back in my chair, I crossed my arms over my chest. The arch in my brow had eased as my eyes narrowed themselves into slits. “What are you talking about?”

“I don’t understand how this can happen for me. I don’t have a PhD, I am not rich, I am not the smartest cookie in this office. All week, I have been trying to figure out why you would give me this job. Every possible answer comes down to the same thing, the loss of my wife. Did you hire me out of pity?” he expressed.

His words were enough to leave my jaw to clench. I was never the kind of man that did things out ofpity. Doing something out of pity was for the weak. Everyone’s life was pitiful, and it wasn’t my duty to hug and kiss my conscience trying to mend their sob stories.

“No. I gave you the job because I felt like I could trust you. You’ve worked for me for many years, and I know you love my company as much as I do. Don’t think for a second that I offered you this position out of pity. I would never give someone such a high position in my companyjustbecause I feel bad for them,” I spat out.

It wasn’t until after I saw the expression on his face that I realized my frustrations with Christina were beginning to show in my words. Jason wasn’t at fault for the disobedience of his daughter, who could give me a raging hard-on with just one look. It wasn’t his fault that for a week straight, all I wanted to do was hire Christina as an intern just to keep her for myself. Though, itwashis fault for complaining about being afraid to leave his daughter home alone all those nights ago. Itwashis fault for allowing me to be such a great friend by watching over his little girl, who I thought was a child, but turned out to be a full-grown woman. Itwashisfault for ever believing that a man like me could be in that house alone with a beautiful woman like Christina.

I knew Jason didn't allow many people around her. He kept her on a tight leash and pushed away anyone he viewed as a predator. Jason trusted me enough to watch over his daughter, but I fucked around and got addicted to her. With Christina, I wanted tofeel, toburn, and worst of all, I wanted tosin.

“Thank you, sir. I just like the idea of gaining something because I earned it. I’m sorry for disturbing you,” he muttered, clamping his hands down onto the arms of the chair before pulling himself up.

Just before he could walk off, the elevator doors chimed, bringing my attention towards Matteo, who quickly burst in, holding a small file in his hand. “I found her, sir! She works for Liam Franco, CEO of Franco Industries!”

I narrowed my eyes at the cheering idiot as my jaw clenched in protest. Matteo’s brows pulled together as he studied my expression. It wasn’t until he noticed Jason standing right in front of me, looking confused as ever, that he understood how much trouble he was in. So much rage was swimming through my emotions to the point that my sanity was beginning to drown.

“Franco Industries? My daughter has an internship there,” Jason pointed out. I could feel my eyebrows twitching as I plastered a smile on my face.

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