She reaches past the object, to retrieve a large tan rubber band, and I relax. My brows knit tight and I watch her, confused, but then it all registers. Arloe secures her hair into a messy ponytail.
“Go,” she shrugs with more attitude than I like toward the door.
But I do as she instructs and hold it open for her, a grin on my lips as we slip into the crowd.
Chapter Eight
Easton
The rest of the night has been uneventful. I’ve shaken hands, made small talk, and watched Arloe. You would think she’d be more relaxed after coming all over my hand, but her feisty attitude hasn’t left yet.
Everything comes to an end, and my brother makes one last thank you announcement, I take that as my cue to leave. “Come, amore,” I say and lead her toward the entrance.
Once we make it outside, I wrap my arm around her shoulders and we wait for my car to be brought to the front. The night air has turned bitter and cold, and all it makes me think of is my father. The thought of him alone pisses me off because here I am, a beautiful woman in tow, and he still assaults my mind. His requests, his rules, his fucking voice.
“Are you going to tell me what lies behind those curtains yet?” Arloe asks from beside me, pulling me back to reality.
I shake my head while staring into the distance. “No.”
Her huffs are drowned out by the loud roaring of my engine as the valet parks it in front of us. I step forward and open her door, ushering her inside, before I close it and round to the driver’s side. I slide into my seat then throw it in drive and speed away from Delirium.
The drive back to Arloe’s is quiet, and I’m sure it’s because she doesn’t know what to say after what transpired between us. Normally, I would press her. Make her talk to me. But I’m basically in the same boat. She was never meant to see what she did at my store, and furthermore, I should have let her be. I had a feeling my dad would try and use her against me in some way.
He’s good at that. Taking anything you slightly show interest in and bending it to fit his own agenda. It’s one of the main reasons none of us have found love.
I almost laugh out loud at the word.
Love.
It’s a concept that no Ciccone has grasped. We’re bred and raised to steer away from it. Kenley, my sister, may be the only exception to that. But then again, the only reason she has Courtlin is because of my dad. He forced the girl to befriend my sister and make her fall in love. Why? Because he wanted Kenley to start doing more for the family without an attitude. Without talking back.
Living the life we do, we have everything we could ever want—money, cars, you name it. What we don’t have is…love. And good ol’ dad uses it against us. It’s the only thing we know we can’t obtain without complications because of all we do. As long as we do what he wants and keep marching in line like the perfect little soldiers he raised, he’ll make sure we get it.
It’s a fucked-up family dynamic, but it’s ours. And it’s the norm. Our norm.
I slow to a stop in front of Arloe’s apartment and push the thoughts of my father away. She exits before me and hurries inside, almost like she’s trying to get as far away from me as possible as quickly as she can.
By the time I turn off the car and get out, I have to rush inside after her. The elevator doors start to close with me on the other side and she looks up at me. I grind my teeth and wedge my foot between them, forcing them open again.
“Not so fast, amore. I need to make sure you make it up safely.”
I enter but she puts herself in the corner to stay away from me. “Why? I’m a big girl and can make it inside alone just fine.”
I laugh. That may be true, but she doesn’t know how my father or his goons, aka my brothers, are always watching. “Let me be a gentleman and walk you to your door.”
She crosses her arms with a sarcastic smirk. “This gentlemanly version of you would have been nice to see at the party.”
As the doors open, she steps out and hustles toward her door. When she stops in front of it to unlock it, I lean over her shoulder and whisper in her ear, “Are you telling me you didn’t enjoy our time in my brother’s office? Only caring about your needs seemed very gentlemanly to me.”
Her body stiffens, and her breath catches in her throat, but she doesn’t reply.
That’s what I thought.
She pushes her door open then turns to me. Her eyes bounce around everywhere before finally landing on my face. Finally, the scowl is gone, and her face is more relaxed. “Thank you for tonight, Easton.”
I lower my eyelids and smile. “Are you thanking me for the actual date or for making you come?”
She tucks her bottom lip between her teeth, and I can tell she thinks on her answer for a moment. “I’m not sure.” She shrugs.
“Well…” I grip her chin between my thumb and pointer finger. “There will be more of…” I cut myself off and refrain from kissing her how I want. Instead, I kiss the corner of her lips. “Make sure to lock your door behind you, amore.”
Her eyes swim with questions. “Why wouldn’t I?”
“I’m just making sure. Wouldn’t want any monsters like me creeping in while you sleep.” I drop my hold on her and step back.
“Maybe you’re the kind of monster I want to let in,” she whispers. She isn’t even sure of her own words.
I ignore her statement because she doesn’t understand that’s the last thing she should want. And I’m actually okay putting my own desires to the side if it means keeping her safe and keeping her away from my father. I should have been stronger earlier, but I wasn’t. It’s time to make up for that.
“Goodnight, amore.” I turn on my heel and head back to the elevator.
The entire ride to the bottom level, I tell myself not to turn around. I can’t. I need to try to keep this shit as professional as possible. I can’t get attached. But that’s all wishful thinking because I can already feel it happening. I think about her constantly. She’s different, making me think about things I’ve never cared about.
And the fucked-up thing is, I’m not the only person to notice it. The moment I sat down in that office, my father and my brother saw right through me. It doesn’t matter that I asked Baby to keep what we learned about her father a secret. Papa Ciccone is always a step ahead. Shit never stays buried in this family, so I don’t know why I thought this would.
Somehow, he knows about Arloe and her family’s wealth, and has tasked me with a job. But it’s not enough for him to just order me to do things, he wants me to care about her. He wants me to fight with myself on whether I’ll go back up to her floor and claim her the way I’ve wanted to since the moment we met.
It’s all in his plan. He needs me to feel something for her so I’ll follow through with getting information on her father. To bring him to our side of business.
The lift bings, and the doors open. I walk out then push through the doors and go back to my car. Once again, I slip inside and start it, then ride back to my house.
When I pull into my drive, I release a breath. It’s always nice coming home to my own space. A space I don’t have to worry about anyone else invading.