Page 131 of The Mob: Shio Cuppacio
“The gun.”
Rushing from the closet, my bare feet slapping against the wood floors, I went to the dresser. It was the same dresser Shio had been getting pleasured near when I’d first arrived. I remembered he had pulled a gun from behind it and was hoping he’d put it back. Using the little strength I had, I pushed the dresser forward and saw a gun tucked in a holster attached to the back of the mirror. I didn’t know how to use or hold a gun, but I wrapped my hand around it and pulled it to my chest. After opening the door, I stuck my head out to look down the hall and noticed one of the paintings was crooked.
Trying to remain as light on my feet as possible, my breath seemed to have solidified in my throat. I clenched the gun in my hands as my chest pounded so hard that it pained me.
Clank. Thump.
The sounds were coming from his office. Blinking, I nervously bit my lip as I approached the room. I pointed the gun at the room’s doorway and pulled the trigger as soon as I stepped inside. The gun made a clicking sound, but nothing came out.
“Solana?”
The thrill of frightened anticipation touched my spine, but when I saw who it was in the room, I dropped the gun.
“Solana…”
My pulse beat erratically at the sound of his deep voice. Shio looked like he’d been through hell and back. His clothing—whatever the hell they were—had been torn and ripped. He had some hideous sandals on his feet, and I could see sand in his toes. He was leaning against his desk, and his eyes looked cloudy. It was like he was looking at me, but he wasn’t. He tried sitting on the desk, making it shift, knocking the money counter and the worn leather notebook onto the floor.I’d been curious about that same notebook when he taught me to count money yesterday, but I wouldn’t dare disrespect him by snooping. Looking from the floor back to him, I gasped as realization hit me.
Shio had clearly been hurt.
Rushing to his side, I grabbed his muscled arm to stop him from toppling over.
“¿Shio? ¿Qué pasa? ¿Quién te hizo esto?(Shio? What’s the matter? Who did this to you?)”
He winced as I held on to him. Still, he looked so sexy even in the state of distress.
“Solana… English, baby. I can’t fuckin’ think right now.”
“Okay.” I sucked in air, trying to gather strength to steady him.
The muscles of his forearm hardened beneath the sleeve of his torn, cropped shirt. The thought of the Rodríguezes getting to him made my mind flutter with anxiety.The thought of what happened to the bottom half of his shirt and all the dried blood on his skin had me thinking the worst.
“Help me… Help me get to my bathroom. I came in here to disable the alarm. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
A pulsing knot within me demanded more of an explanation than what he’d given me. I needed to know if he was in danger. I needed to know how this had happened. Instead of asking, Itook his left arm and draped it around my shoulders since there was a gold box in his right hand. I swallowed underneath him but still pressed a hand to the side of his abs. He smelled of sweat, mildew, and heat. Still, a hint of his signature scent was lingering, and it was a delicious one.
Once we got to the door of the office, he paused. When his mouth lifted into a crooked smile as he looked down at me, my heart pounded. There was definitely something wrong with his eyes, and it made my chest feel as if it was about to burst. What had they done to him?
“I gotta teach you how to use a fuckin’ gun, Solana. Lesson number six: take the fucking safety off before making your presence known. Aite?”
Batting away tears, I nodded. “Si.I mean… Yes.”
Using his top teeth, he scraped his bottom lip before we continued our stroll to his bedroom. He hadn’t put any of his weight on me. No matter how much I tried to get him to lean on me, he wouldn’t. He wasn’t even letting me guide him, moving from memory of his home by heart as he navigated us. Still, I remained at his side.
I poked my head into his bedroom this morning, but I didn’t go inside. I’d seen how massive it was last night but had opted to remain outside the doorway then too. Now, as I walked through the space, a sense of tranquility washed over me. It smells like Shio, and the entire room felt like a comforting hug. The only thing out of place was one side of his Alaskan king-sized bed, where I could tell he’d been lying. The same brown, green, cream, and wood-grain theme from the rest of the house carried into his bedroom, and some classical music played somewhere in the distance.Floor-to-ceiling panels covered his windows, and since they were shut, I couldn’t see outside. His room looked like something a mobster would live in. It was fitting for a boss.A king. A Shio. Letting my eyes wander around his space, trying to memorize every inch, we made it to his en suite bathroom.
The lights turned on automatically as soon as we stepped inside. Shio moved away from me and headed to the vanity, where his products sat neatly on one side while the other side was empty.There was a shower that could be entered from two sides, two closets existed that were separated by a large tub, and marble floors contrasting with the wood, like in the rest of the home, made up the walls and counters. All of his faucets and dials were gold, like the box he was still holding.
Not wasting any more time, I went to the tub, placed the stopper in, and turned the dials. Letting in more hot than cold but making sure I didn’t make the water too hot, I picked up the bubble bath that had looked more like décor than something he actually used. It was the work of the housekeepers; I knew because they stocked my room the same way. Pumping a few squirts of bubble bath and bath oil in the water, I then picked up the jar of Epsom salt and dumped most of it in the tub. When bubbles began to form and the eucalyptus fumes permeated the air, I went back to Shio.
He had already begun to remove his tattered clothing. Pausing, I watched as he tossed it aside, gawking at the work of art that he was. His muscles were extremely defined in every part of the upper half of his body. I’d never seen a man more attractive than Shio Cuppacio, and I felt terrible for standing here admiring the beauty that he was when he needed my help.
Get it together, Solana.
He turned and reached for his toothbrush, then smeared toothpaste on it. He’d done a sloppy job, which further proved that his eyes were damaged. Since he had it under control, I didn’t interfere with him brushing his teeth. The motor on the electric toothbrush vibrated as he handled his oral hygiene. After about three minutes of brushing, he grabbed a floss pick froma clear jar and ran it between his teeth. Once that was done, he pointed to a bottle.
“Is this my face wash?”
Squinting my eyes, I read the bottle from where I was standing. “Yes… I think so.”
