Page 55 of Ruined By Blood
Inside, I close the door and lean against it, finally allowing myself to brush my fingertips over my cheek. The skin feels warm, sensitized. Nothing like the revulsion that usually follows a man's touch. There's no need to scrub myself raw in the shower, no desperate urge to erase the memory of contact.
Instead, I want to preserve it.
I cross to the bed and sit on the edge, wrapped in confusion and longing. For years, I've trained myself to be numb. To survive. Now, feeling rushes back with such force that tears prick my eyes. Not from pain or fear, but from the simple wonder of wanting to be touched by someone who doesn't make me want to vomit.
Is this how it's supposed to be? This warm, aching need? This hunger that doesn't feel like violation?
I lie back on the bed and stare at the ceiling, my fingers still tracing patterns on my cheek where his hand rested.
For the first time in years, I feel something like hope.
CHAPTER 20
Istare at the ceiling, fighting the urge to follow Sienna upstairs. The taste of her lips lingers, sweeter than any liquor I've ever had. With each kiss, her hesitation melted away, replaced by something eager and curious that made my blood run hot.
"Fuck," I mutter, dragging a hand down my face.
I shouldn't want her like this.
I fish my phone from my pocket, noticing three missed calls from Damiano and four from Noah. Shit. I'd silenced it during our game.
I push myself off the couch and head to the kitchen before returning the call. The last thing I need is for Sienna to overhear something that might frighten her.
Damiano answers on the first ring. "About fucking time."
"What's happened?" I keep my voice low, leaning against the counter.
"Sterling reached out this morning." Damiano's tone carries the weight of bad news. "Someone spotted you putting his daughter in your car outside the casino. He called asking if we knew anything about where she might be."
Ice slides down my spine. "What did you tell him?"
"That we don't make a habit of kidnapping women, and if he lost his daughter, perhaps he should ask himself why she ran."
I close my eyes. "And?"
"And he didn't appreciate my suggestion." There's a pause. "He's getting desperate, Enzo. He knows you took her."
"He doesn't know for certain," I cut in. "And we're secure here."
"Maybe. But your cabin isn't exactly Fort Knox if he brings enough firepower."
I push off from the counter, tension coiling through my muscles. "I'll call Noah, see what he's uncovered about Sterling's movements."
"Do that," Damiano says.
I immediately dial Noah's number, pacing the kitchen floor while I wait. Each ring stretches my patience thinner.
"Took you long enough," Noah answers, his deep voice lined with irritation. "I've been trying to reach you for hours."
"I was occupied. What do you have?"
"Sterling's got all his men looking for his daughter. He's not being subtle about it either—threw a desk through hisoffice window when someone suggested she might have run away voluntarily."
"Any indication he knows she's with us specifically?"
"Nothing concrete. But there's chatter that he questioned the guard who saw you getting her in the car. Guy went missing yesterday afternoon."
"Fuck." I run a hand through my hair. "What about Cortez?"
