It’s enough to give her space.
“My family,” she says, panting for breath, voice tremulous. “They’re in trouble. You—”
“I’m threatening them, is that it? What did they do? Default on a debt? Steal from me? And you came here to plead for their lives.”
Her brown eyes stare up at me, so ridiculously guileless. “I came here to pay for them.”
My hand fists in all that golden hair, pulling tight. “Oh no, Lucia. You won’t get away from me that easily. One fuck and you leave? A taste of your sweet pussy and then you’ll take it away?”
A moment, her chest heaving.
So pretty with her eyes wide and lost. I almost could have imagined she’d wandered into the wrong place, except that she knew me. She was made for me. She’s the breath of fresh air I needed, and I’m not letting her go.
Her arms push, suddenly, surprising me with their strength. It’s not enough to move me away, but it’s enough to give me pause.
Brown eyes burn with determination. “They didn’t do anything to you. Anything but exist. Anything but inconvenience you, by living, by working for you.”
And that’s when it hits me, where I’ve seen those eyes like sky.
“The textile shop,” I grind out, pissed to hell. The fucking textile shop twenty miles outside the city. The sisters who own it. The profits that didn’t add up.
And the plain little secretary who’d captivated me from the first. The cheap suit she’d worn that day is a far cry from the red dress sliding over her body now. Her ugly shoes so different from the gold heels on her feet now.
I hadn’t even recognized her.
Or maybe some part of me had, because I’d wanted her as soon as I saw her.
The balcony door opens, spilling light and sound over her then. I turn to see Margo Rizzoli, dark eyes blazing with fury. The woman has a lot to answer for, starting with why Lucia seems to believe her family will be killed. And ending with interrupting me when I’m finally going to fuck the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen.
“You stupid slut,” she snarls, eyes laser beam focused over my shoulder.
A guard rushes behind her, eyes hard. “I’m sorry, Mr. Conti. Her sister set up a distraction so she could get out here. I’ll get rid of her.”
“No.” I’m planning to get answers. More than that, I’m going to hold her accountable for whatever fucked-up shit happened in that factory to put fear into Lucia’s vicious eyes.
A rustle of fabric, a brush of wind.
I glance back to reassure Lucia that I’ll fix this. All I see is a flash of honey-gold hair as she slips over the balcony. Her gold heels lay sideways where she stood. “Fuck.”
She might have broken her leg, but by the time I lean over the railing, she’s disappeared. “Fucking hold her,” I growl to the guard, knowing he’ll contact the rest of the team.
Then I drop over the balcony after her. Except she’s already gone.
CHAPTER SIX
Lucia
It takes me longer to retrace my steps to the meeting point than it did to get there. Mostly because I’m barefoot. The terrain had been bumpy in heels, but it’s downright painful on feet that haven’t been outside in years. I wince with every step over stones and twigs. Once I have to hide in a hollow tree while a man with a flashlight and a headset goes by.
Eventually I reach the meeting point, where Jorge’s car waits. His gaze slides over me, insolent and hungry. “Where are your shoes?”
“I lost them. Let’s go.”
Without a word, he pushes off the side of the car and gets in. I swing into the back seat, because he can’t reach me here. I know it’s only a matter of time before he touches me. That was part of the bargain. He helps me in exchange for sex.
I would have had to whore myself twice—first to Sebastian Conti. Then to Jorge, as payment for bringing me here. Except I’m not sure I’ll do either of those things, because Margo’s waiting outside the factory when we show up.
“Fuck,” Jorge mutters under his breath.
I step out of the car on shaky legs. Margo looks more furious than I’ve ever seen her. I won’t get out of this alive. The worst part isn’t my death. It’s that I failed the other women. I failed Tia.
Margo backs me up against the car, grasping my chin, her nails biting into my skin. “What the fuck were you thinking? That you could seduce him? That you could take over?”
“She tricked me,” Jorge says, rounding the car. “I didn’t know where she was going.”
Margo produces a gun—from where, I don’t know. She backhands Jorge, making him swear. Blood drips from his cheek. Then she turns back to me, eyes hard like coal. “Put this slut into the trunk. We need to get her out of here before that bastard Conti comes sniffing around.”
