Page 69 of Ruthless God

“You always get a say,principessa. You decide how long you want to give me that beautiful control of yours. Hell, even when you want to put a pause on it. It would be up to you. You would essentially be the one with all the power, and I would be nothing more than your willing servant.”

I shot him a look.

I would be the one with the power? I couldn’t imagine anyone ever having any power over Massimo. He wasn’t known as the King of Las Vegas for nothing.

He reached over and cupped my cheek. “What do you say? Do you want to try this with me?”

I licked my lips, suddenly feeling parched. But I had already taken a drink from my glass. And Massimo was expecting an answer.

And… And…

I nodded.

His eyes glimmered in satisfaction, bringing with it the horde of butterflies I had been feeling in my stomach. I squirmed in my seat, somehow feeling like I had just made a deal with the devil, and yet, I couldn’t find it in me to feel even an ounce of regret.

What had I done?

17

LUNA

I smiled shylyat Massimo when he held open the car door for me at the front of the restaurant. He didn’t smile back at me, but I wasn’t offended. I was learning that was just the way he was.

And that was okay because I would much rather have this with him than to have an insincere smile with anyone else.

I pulled my belt on and leaned back against the seat as Massimo walked around the hood of the car to the driver’s side. My heart sped up once he closed the door behind him, leaving us alone in the car.

He turned and looked over at me once and nodded before we were off, driving back to the house. What had felt like a lousy morning was no longer the case. I was… content.

His words back at the restaurant ran through my mind.

Massimo wanted control.

And perhaps, under a different circumstance, with someone different, I might have been scared, but there was a part of me that trusted Massimo.

That probably made me stupid.

I didn’t know.

Trusting someone else never got me anything but a bruised heart, but something in me wanted to try again.

Or maybe I just wanted so badly to trust him.

I shook away the thought and turned to take in Massimo’s side profile. The scars on his face were hidden from me, on his left side, so I got his perfect side.

And he was that.

Perfect.

Full lips, neatly shaved beard, a strong nose, defined jawline… every single feature of his tied together into something that was just so masculine and aesthetically pleasing.

It was no wonder the hostess had looked at him like she wanted to eat him up. The scars on his face did nothing to detract from his beauty. If anything, it only added to this dangerous, appealing allure that most would want to covet for themselves.

I jumped a little when I realized the car had come to a stop and that we were home.

How had I missed the entire ride?

Massimo turned toward me, his green eyes keeping me frozen in my seat.

---