Page 23 of Hostile Secret
In the grand scheme of things, he’s right to put a stop to it. I don’t have any meaningful feelings for him. It would be a huge mistake to give this man my virginity. And an even bigger mistake to idolize him.
I’m not a helpless princess locked in a tower, and he’s not my willing hero. Rather, I'm a cartel associate who’d never truly be free of danger.
After all, I know firsthand how the immoral Souza brothers conduct themselves. They’re bloodthirsty criminals and women are nothing more than playthings to them. Except for me, I guess. Over the years, I had become a female glitch in their masculine world and even more so when my brother died.
Recently, Tomás and André had both found women who fit perfectly into their unprecedented darkness. So, maybe the impossible is actually possible.
I laugh inwardly at that thought. Giovanni is incapable of even mimicking love. What psycho threatens to shoot his own brother's puppy?
And I certainly won’t become a starry-eyed woman who thinks she can melt his frozen heart. I might only be seventeen, but I’m not stupid.
“Get into bed.” With his vicious demand comes an indescribable look, where the secretive beast is barely contained. “You have an early start in the morning, and I don’t tolerate laziness.”
“Sure.” I shrug my shoulders, forcing indifference, even though my core is on fire. “Don’t worry, Gio, what happened on the floor wasn’t athing...” I wave my hand back and forth between us. “I’m not an obsessed teen who has to fuck the heartless guy. I’ve no doubt my new school will be filled with gorgeous boys who’d entertain my whims.”
His piercing gaze sharpens. “These little games of yours are dangerous, niñita. Continue to stretch my tolerance and my good nature will disintegrate. And there’s no coming back from that.”
I can’t quite decipher the subtle change in his expression when he stalks closer. His torso crowds me and large hands clamp my shoulders, driving me backward until my shoulders crash into the wall.
My lungs tighten and I sip oxygen, barely able to breathe.
Taking one final step, his hard body smothers the last wisp of space separating us, his chest pressing into mine.
I blink up at him, my eyes wide, trying to focus on his face while flickering bursts of light surround the circumference of a man whose intimidating aura fills the entire room.
It’s not only his tattooed chest the lightning glorifies, but his rugged features and the angle of his strong jaw. This perplexing man has my full attention.
“If a guy even breathes too close to you, I’ll kill him.” His lips hover over mine. The smokiness to his stern tone sends a shiver right through me. “And that’s not a warning. It's a guarantee.”
“Does that include my teachers?” I taunt, my pulse skipping.
The atmosphere quickly changes. It thickens as if the sea has carried a deadly fog inland to blind my senses. I stare up at him, projecting boldness in our electrified deadlock.
“What the fuck is it that you want from me, niñita?” he snarls, breathing hard.
I stay silent, unable to admit that I don’t know. Other than needing relief from this burning ache I can’t seem to get rid of.
When he looks at me, I feel the hunger tenfold. My body tightens like he’s pulling invisible strings and I’m his little puppet. A silly kid who’d do whatever he asks.
“I want you to tell me the real reason why you’d kill any man who gets this close to me,” I practically whisper.
There’s a subtle movement to his soft looking lips as his perplexing jade eyes confuse me. Jet black lashes lower, his gaze traveling to my exposed breasts tight against him, the sensation of it hotter than the sun rays at midday.
The soles of my bare feet anchor in position. My shoulders press into the wooden ridges to steady myself from the immobilizing rhythm of my heartbeat.
The sound of fiery blood whooshing faster in my skull harmonizes with the raging storm attacking the manor house.
Rather than fight with him all over again, I hold my defenses and wait, all too aware of how his primal demeanor leaves me breathless.
“Because I won’t allow it. End of story. That’s all you need to know. If any man getsthisclose, I’ll slice them up.”
“I have my own daggers.”
“Of course you do. But I excel in Filipino knife arts. One single, well-positioned slash can destroy a man’s fight in seconds.”
“Why would you care?”
“I don’t, but I do take my responsibilities seriously. And that includes you.”
