Page 51 of Ruined By Blood
"And that makes you better?" I ask, not accusingly but genuinely trying to understand.
"Not better. Different." Enzo's expression hardens. "We hurt people who deserve to be hurt. People who've made choices to enter our world. People who understand the risks."
He takes a sip of his coffee, his eyes never leaving mine. "Your father hurts anyone who can make him money. That's the difference."
I absorb this, trying to fit this new information into myunderstanding of the world. Of my father. Of the man sitting across from me.
"So the Ferettis are what? Honorable criminals?" I ask, unable to keep the skepticism from my voice.
"We're businessmen who operate outside the law," Enzo corrects me.
CHAPTER 19
Ifinish my last call with Damiano around four-thirty, rubbing my eyes as I disconnect. Three hours on the phone between him, Alessio, and our contacts has left me with a throbbing headache and too many problems without solutions. Sterling's search for his daughter has become more aggressive. The bastard's even reached out to the Sartoris for information. My jaw tightens. He won't find her. Not here. Not ever again.
I stretch, muscles protesting after being hunched over my laptop for too long. Sienna told me she needed rest after our conversation about her father's true business. The revelation that he traffics people seemed to hit her hard, thoughsomething in her eyes made me wonder if she already knew more than she let on.
The cabin's quiet as I head downstairs around five. The soft glow of a reading lamp draws me to the living room where I find her curled up on the sofa, legs tucked beneath her, head bent over a book. My mother's copy of "East of Eden."
I clear my throat, not wanting to startle her.
She looks up, and what happens next catches me completely off guard. She smiles—a real one that reaches her blue eyes, transforming her face entirely.
"Truth or dare?" she asks, her voice carrying a playful note I haven't heard before.
I laugh, the sound startling even to my own ears.
"Truth," I say, dropping into the armchair across from her. "Though I'm starting to think I'll regret this game."
Her fingers fiddle with the corner of the book's page, a habit I've noticed when she's thinking. "What's your favorite breakfast food?" she asks, her eyes studying me with unexpected warmth.
That's it?
I consider her words, leaning back in the chair. "Cornetto and espresso," I finally answer. "But when Ettore makes his lemon ricotta pancakes..." I close my eyes briefly, remembering the taste. "Those are worth killing for."
She marks her place in the book and sets it aside. "Your turn."
"Truth or dare?" I ask.
Sienna's fingers twist together in her lap, her eyes dropping briefly before meeting mine with a flash of determination.
"Dare," she answers, the single word hanging between us.
My heartbeat quickens. I hadn't expected that choice from her. She kept choosing truth so far.
"Kiss me," I say before I can think better of it.
Her eyes widen, lips parting in surprise. For a moment, I think she'll refuse or run. Instead, she looks down at her hands.
"I've never..." she begins, then stops. "I mean, not really." She looks up, vulnerability raw on her face. "You might be disappointed."
Of course she hasn't. Not after what she told me this morning.
My gaze drops to her lips—full and pink, slightly chapped from nervous biting. They remind me of ripe peaches, soft and sweet, untouched despite everything she's endured.
"If that's your only hesitation," I say, "I can show you how."
I wait, giving her space to refuse, to retreat. I've pushed too far, too fast—I know this. But I can't bring myself to take back the dare.
