Page 17 of Dangerous Games of Trust

“He doesn’t, but it’s making him irrational and more aggressive than normal. I talked to Maddox this morning. I need you to convince Geovani it’s a good idea to meet with them on neutral ground. He’s desperate to see you. Everyone is concerned he’s going to do something stupid if he doesn’t.”

“Oh great, how am I supposed to do that?” I throw my hands up in the air, stepping out of his hold and heading to the edge of the balcony. Looking out over the view below, cars race by, the beep of their horns and the hum of engines a whir of energy I long to be a part of. I can’t stand being stuck in this place, locked up in a tower just watching the world go by. Having to ask for permission just to leave.

I feel his arm press into mine as he leans into the balcony. “Use your charm, little sis. You have four grown men wrapped around your little finger. I’m sure you can work out how to make it happen.” I feel his shoulder stiffen, something shifting in his demeanor.

Glancing over my shoulder, I find Geovani standing in the open doorway with his arms crossed over his puffed-out chest. We’ve clearly taken longer than we should. “I’ll see what I can do,” I mutter over my shoulder as I wander back toward my furious boss.

I go to pass him so I can get back to work, but he snatches my wrist, pulling me back to face him. His lips drop to my ear. “First warning, Red. Trust me when I tell you, you don’t want to get to three.” He sounds really pissed, and I don’t think it’sfrom how long we took. Nope, he was fucking listening to our conversation, and he knows I want to run. Asshole!

My eyes meet his, and just for fun I run my tongue along the bottom of my lip seductively. He shouldn’t say stuff like that to me if he doesn’t want me to mess with him. He might be pissed with me, but I’m furious with him for invading my privacy again. “I look forward to pissing you off some more and finding out,” I throw back at him, pulling my arm free as aggressively as I can. Fuck him.

“You just earned yourself a second.” He sneers, looking all too pleased about it.

“Oh goodie, I’m getting closer then.” I flip him the bird and smirk as I walk away. I don’t miss the way his lips twitch at the sides. I’m pushing him, and he fucking loves it. I really do have issues with authority and bossy assholes who think I have a daddy kink. I mean, he’s almost old enough to be my daddy, but the last thing I need is some other asshole bossing me around. I get it, he’s trying to protect me, and he’s pissed because the first thing I wanted to do when I heard how much money we now have is run the fuck away from this place.

I sit back at my desk and let my fingers glide over the keypad. I want fucking answers, and since I now have access to the internet, and no one will fill me in on anything of importance, I intend to find them myself. The first name I type in is Enzo Moretti.

Chapter 9

At night this apartmentfeels too big. When I lie in my oversized bed all alone, I can’t switch off the crazy thoughts trying to corrupt my brain. I have tossed and turned trying to process everything I found on the Moretti family today.

Enzo might be married to Valentina, but he’s a massive player. He’s been photographed with many attractive young women over the years, they all seem to be aspiring actresses or models just starting out in their careers. From what I can tell, none of them have made it big in any way. They were pictured with Enzo at some big event, a charity ball or fashion show, then they just vanish. There’s no way that could be a random occurrence. I wonder if Valentina works it out and puts a stop to the affair along with their career. I wouldn’t put it past her to be that evil.

My search didn’t give me much more than a write-up on the casino and Enzo the philanthropist and high-profile businessman. Every story boasted about his amazing contribution to Ravens Hollow’s economy. His online presence is as fake as the man himself. Valentina was the same. Everystory I found painted her as a saint, giving back to the less fortunate through her various charities. They’re like a mafia power couple.

Sick of tossing and turning, I throw my covers back, quietly sneaking down the stairs. The apartment is covered in shadows, the only light coming from the neon signs of the casino and the adjoining shops that never seem to close.

I make my way down the hall to Geovani’s office and spot him fixated on his massive monitor at the other end of the room. As I approach, I see he has headphones on. He’s watching something, maybe surveillance? Different images are displayed with various camera angles. I can’t help but gasp softly when I realize what he is watching.

After our conversation the other night, I had my suspicions, but seeing it firsthand is confronting. Among the screens, one of them is my room in this house, my empty bed with the covers pulled back just how I left it minutes ago. It’s exactly as I thought—he can see and hear every single thing that I do. But it’s the other various screens that captivate my attention the most. They’re from the boys’ safe house, their gorgeous faces filling the screen. A small ache forms in my chest thinking about them.

As I approach him, he senses my presence, even though his ears are covered, and he swivels around in his roller chair to face me. He looks like some evil character from one of those spy movies, flashing a cunning smile for being caught in the act. He shoves the earphones from his head and waits for me to react.

My hands fly to my hips in outrage. “So, this is why you don’t sleep.”

“What are you doing lurking around here at this hour, Red?” he asks, way too casually for someone who has just been caught spying on people.

“I woke up, didn’t know where you were,” I throw back at him, my attitude bitchy as hell. But it’s what he deserves.

He motions for me to join him.

I’m angry but also curious about this set-up he has going on, so I go to him, slipping onto his lap. “Don’t stop your stalking on my behalf,” I huff.

“It’s hardly stalking, these are just some of the measures I’ve implemented to keep you safe,” he mutters like it’s no big deal, but we both know this is a total invasion of all our privacy.

I wonder what other measures he’s been going to in order to keep me safe. Are they as fucked up as stalking people? Maybe I don’t want to know. The more I find out about this man, the more psycho he looks. But I’m the one here sitting on his lap, ready to indulge his sick habits, so what does that make me?

“I think placing cameras inside the Moretti safe house is a little extreme, don’t you?”

“Not my cameras,Enzo’s. All I had to do was hack into his server. Now I can see everything the boys do.”

A shiver runs down my spine, and I give him a look likeoh fuck. Them being Enzo’s cameras is even worse. I always knew Valentina knew way too much about what was going on with me and the boys. This must have been how. A wave of nausea fills me knowing what Alessandro’s parents would have seen. “This is depraved. We have to warn the boys.”

“We can’t, Red!”

“What? But it’s dangerous for Enzo to overhear what they’re talking about; it could get them killed. If we can’t tell them, can’t you block what he’s seeing?”

He brushes my hair away from my neck. I glance over my shoulder at him. “What’s your obsession with those boys?”

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