I sat still, mulling over her words. Outside the bubble that being with Massimo had been, I was learning that I wasn’t actually living a dream or a fairy tale. Massimo’s voice woke me from my pensiveness.
“Dear ladies, it is time for us to go. We have some important business to attend to. Monika, it was wonderful to see you again. I hope you’ll visit us in Sicily soon.”
We said our goodbyes and headed to the exit. Before we left, Monika grabbed me by the arm and whispered, “Remember what I told you.”
Her deathly serious tone terrified me. Would someone really want to kidnap me? Why? But someone had kidnapped her. It could happen to me too.
“Get in, baby doll,” Massimo said, opening the car door for me.
I shook my head, chasing away the worrying thoughts, and did as I was asked.
“You’ll drive? You drank!”
Massimo turned in his seat and stroked my cheek. “You drank. I had one glass of wine. Now, buckle up. I’m in a bit of a hurry to get home,” he said, fastening his seat belt.
The black Ferrari zoomed through Warsaw, and I couldn’t stop thinking about his plans. Various scenarios flashed through my head, only strengthening my curiosity and arousal. We drove into the garage without exchanging a single word on the way. It felt just like that time when we had been shopping together in Taormina. The difference was that now I knew he wasn’t ignoring me. He was just thoughtful. As we left the car, a security guard approached us.
“Miss, there are packages for you in the reception on the ground floor.”
Confused, I sent Massimo a look. He only watched me, narrowing his eyes.
“Not from me,” he said, raising his arms defensively. “All your things from Sicily came here with you.”
We took the elevator to the main hall. The entire space was filled with a sea of white tulips.
“Laura Biel,” I said, approaching the receptionist. “There’s supposed to be a package for me here.”
“Yes. All these flowers are for you. Would you like me to help you carry them upstairs?”
My mouth agape, I looked around. There were hundreds of tulips. I drew near one of the bouquets and snatched the little card attached to it.
Does He Know What Your Favorite Flowers Are? it read. I went to another, reading another card. Does He Know How You Like Your Tea? I grabbed yet another. Does He Know Your Passions? Terrified, I read card after card, crumpling them all into little balls and stuffing them into my pockets.
The Man in Black stood behind me with his hands crossed on his chest, watching me until I read all the messages.
“You know what?” I said to the receptionist. “Send these back or throw them away. Unless you have a girlfriend. She would be happy if you give them to her.” I pressed the elevator button. Massimo positioned himself next to me and went inside without a word. Upstairs, I went to the door and took the envelope that was taped to it. I went inside and sat on the couch, turning the white envelope in my fingers, finally raising my eyes and looking at Massimo. His eyes flared with hate and his jaw was working rhythmically. Terrified, I stood and drew nearer to him.
“He’s disrespecting me,” Massimo said through clenched teeth as I faced him.
“Come on, they’re only flowers.”
“Only flowers? What’s in the envelope?”
“I don’t know, and I don’t care!” I cried, frustrated, flinging the envelope into the fireplace. I grabbed the remote and switched the flames on, incinerating the paper instantly.
“Better?” I gazed at the Man in Black, but he didn’t react. “Shit, Massimo, haven’t you ever fought for a woman? He has a right to try if he feels like it. And I have a right to make a decision.” I lowered my voice a bit, holding his face between my hands. “And I’ve already made it. I’m staying with you. Even if a whole orchestra is going to play me a serenade and he’s going to sing, I won’t change my mind. He’s dead to me, just like that man you shot in the driveway.”
Massimo pinned me with his ice-cold stare. I knew he wasn’t listening. He jerked his head away and pulled a step back, storming off to the bedroom. I heard him getting something from the closet and stomping back. He passed me on the way, loading his gun.
“I’ll kill him,” he hissed, pulling his phone from his pocket.
Terrified by the intensity of his actions, I just stood in place, gaping. I had no idea what to do to stop him.
CHAPTER 15
As calmly as I was able, I picked the phone from his hand and put it down on a cabinet next to the door. I took the key from the lock and put it down my panties, keeping my eyes on Massimo. With a burst of rage, he grabbed me by the throat and slammed me into the wall. His eyes were ablaze with desire and hate in equal measure. Despite all his strength, I wasn’t afraid. I knew he wasn’t going to hurt me. Or, at least, I hoped so. My hands hanging limply, I stood still, biting my lip and staring him defiantly in the eyes.
“Give me the key, Laura.”
“Take it if you want it,” I replied, unfastening the top button of my pants.
Massimo slid his hand into my underwear with too much force, his other hand still gripping my neck. As I moaned, feeling his fingers on my skin, I could see the hatred giving way to the desire in his eyes.
“I think it might be deeper,” I said, closing my eyes.
He wouldn’t be able to ignore that.
“If you want to play it that way, baby girl, I have to tell you, I’m not going to be gentle,” he warned me, rubbing his finger against my clitoris. “All my anger will focus on you, and I’m afraid you might not like the way I’ll treat you. So just let me out of here.”
I opened my eyes and looked at him.
“Fuck me, don Massimo… please.”
Massimo tightened his grip on my throat and pressed himself against me, drilling me with his ice-cold eyes.
“I’ll treat you like a whore. Do you understand me, Laura? And even if you change your mind, I won’t stop.”
It turned me on. His words, the fear, and the knowledge that a man’s life depended on my behavior now. An internal compulsion I felt only stoked my passion, making me want it even more. And the thought of how brutal and ruthless the Man in Black could be took my breath away.
“So do it,” I whispered, pressing my lips to his.
Massimo pushed away, dragged me across the living room, and threw me to the couch. He did it with so much ease—as if I were a rag doll. He pressed a button on a remote, and heavy blinds slid down all windows. Then he went to the wall to switch the lights off. Despite the early hour, the apartment was drowned in darkness. I didn’t know where he was now. My eyes hadn’t adapted to the gloom yet. All of a sudden, I felt his viselike grip on my throat again, and his thumb pressing into my mouth.
“Suck it,” he said, pulling the thumb out and replacing it with his throbbing cock. “You’d like to be punished instead of your lover boy? All right.”
He grabbed me by the hair and pushed himself into my mouth. I wasn’t able to take a breath. He was moving faster and harder, choking me. Then his cock retreated, though only slowly, before sliding back in—slower this time, but also deeper.
“Open your mouth wider. I want to push my prick inside your throat,” he said, leaning my head over the headrest of the sofa and kneeling on the sofa.