Page 169 of Kissing the Villain

He cocked his head to the side, scratching his jaw. “What did you have in mind?”

“It’s been ten years, and in this time, we’ve never dated. We’ve done nothing as a couple except a few dinners.”

“I sent you clothing every morning for years,” he challenged. “I took you to New York, Milan, Paris, and Barcelona for dinner. I have given you everything, yet it’s still not good enough.”

“Luca,” I sighed. “You’re missing the point. When have you ever committed to me?”

“Every summer, when you were in Devil’s Creek. And after you moved to The Hills.”

“We were never dating,” I pointed out.

“You ran from me, Drea.” His words were harsh, like they burned his tongue. “Every time I made an effort, you told me I was cruel. That you didn’t want me. No matter what I do, you still hate me.”

“Because you scared me,” I confessed. “I was only eighteen when we met. You were out of your mind.”

“And now?”

“Even more insane.”

He tilted his head back and laughed like a lunatic.

“You’re only proving my point, Luca.” I crossed my legs and propped my elbow up on the arm of the high-back chair. “We’re not in love. We barely even know each other. I’ve learned more about your family from Marcello in the past few weeks than you have told me in years.”

“What do you want to know?”

“You are so closed off,” I said with a sigh. “It’s like talking to a robot sometimes.”

He sneered at my comment. “We can’t all wear our feelings on our sleeves.”

“I’m not talking about feelings. I want to date you.”

His eyebrows rose. “Are you joking?”

“No, I’ve given this a lot of thought.”

He pushed his palm to the desk as he got up from the chair. A stern expression crossed his handsome face as he moved in front of me. Luca sat on the edge of his desk, his legs spread, staring down at me.

“What about Marcello?” Luca’s fingers clutched my chin, forcing me to look at him. “Are you done playing with my brother?”

I rolled my eyes. “He’s not a toy.”

“Only one of us can marry you,” he challenged. “You can’t have both of us.”

“Are you afraid you’ll lose me to Marcello?”

He snickered. “Of course not. We are part of each other. What binds us will destroy us.”

“Those words no longer mean anything tous,” I countered. “Save that for the Knights. I need more from you. Until you fully commit to me, I’m not letting Marcello go. I need him, too.”

He narrowed his eyes. “I don’t date.”

As a wave of nervous energy shook through me, I leaned forward and clutched my knees. “You’re overthinking this. Stoptaking the word dating so literally. I want to do things together, tell each other things, talk about something other than our family obligations.”

His desk phone blared through the room, interrupting our staring contest. Luca rose from the desk, his gigantic body towering over me. He moved around the desk, and I shot up from the chair.

“No, don’t go.” He beckoned me with his finger. “Come here.”

Luca hit the speakerphone button and muttered words in another language. I understood Italian from years of lessons my grandfather forced me to take, knowing they would eventually come in handy around Luca and his family. He spoke in what sounded like an Asian dialect, though I didn’t know a single word. Rambling in rapid succession, Luca fired back comments to the man speaking to him. I didn’t recognize the voice.

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