Page 81 of When She Tempts (The Fallen)
I drop my hands and fold them on my lap, my gaze jumping to Allegra’s.
She clicks her tongue and gives her head a shake. “That boy. He’s gotten himself in a lot of trouble now.”
“It was my fault as much as his.”
Allegra rounds the table, putting a plate of sauce on the other side of my plate. “You shouldn’t have left, but you wouldn’t have been able to go anywhere if Polo didn’t take you. I might not know the details of the things Giorgio is involved in, but I’ve never made the mistake of questioning his judgment. If he tells us you are not to leave the property, it means he’s got a good reason for it.”
I drag my teeth over my bottom lip. “What is Giorgio going to do to him?”
“I don’t know,” she says, widening her arms before dropping them back down to her sides. “But he’s very angry. I only hope this will be a lesson for Polo not to do something this stupid again.”
She leaves me to my dinner, but I barely taste the food. My mind is preoccupied with my role in this ordeal. I feel guilty for getting Polo into this mess, but I hardly had to convince him to take me.
It’s almost like he wanted to piss Giorgio off.
* * *
The next day, in my eagerness for another self-defense lesson with Giorgio, I head down for our class a little early.
Okay, I’ll admit it’s not so much eagerness for the class as for the man himself. Our encounter in the car yesterday plays on repeat every time I shut my eyes, and with it comes the uncertain sensation of being close to getting what I want.
The truth is, I’m walking into completely unknown territory with him. I’ve never tried to seduce another man, if you can even call what I’m doing seduction. There’s no rule book for me to follow, so I’ve been relying on instinct alone.
I could be making a fool of myself, like he keeps saying, but the words that come out of his mouth don’t match the message I’m getting from his body. And the promise of what lies on the other side of his resistance is tantalizing enough for me to keep going.
While I stretch in the empty gym, I eye the clock. Our usual time comes and goes, and Giorgio doesn’t arrive.
Fifteen minutes pass. Why isn’t he here? At breakfast, Allegra told me he wasn’t planning on leaving today, so he has to be somewhere in the castello.
Irritation bubbles beneath my skin. Is he just giving up on our classes then?
When the hand of the clock reaches the twenty-minute mark, I go looking for him.
My steps take me directly to the door of his office, and I give it three firm knocks.
The door jerks open to reveal Giorgio. Suit jacket and tie missing, he’s in a crisp white dress shirt and dark-gray pants.
Clearly, he had no intention of training me when he got dressed this morning.
“These lessons were your idea, and now that I’m actually starting to enjoy them, you decide to flake out on me?”
Giorgio gives me a blank look before crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m busy right now.”
“Are you? Or are you just avoiding me? And even if you are genuinely busy, have you ever heard of giving people a heads-up? Basic courtesy. Don’t they teach you that in Naples?”
Something amused passes over his expression. “You’re angry.”
“I waited in the gym for you for twenty minutes.”
“I’m sorry, did you have something more important to do?”
My mouth parts. Is he actually being this rude right now?
“Fine. If you don’t want to work out with me anymore, I’ll work out on my own.”
“I didn’t say that. I said I’m busyright now. We can resume tomorrow.”
“What are you so busy with?”
