Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 115400 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 462(@250wpm)___ 385(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115400 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 462(@250wpm)___ 385(@300wpm)
Chiara cringes and glances back over her shoulder, taking in the huddle of women surrounding the bar. There’s a nervousness in her eyes, a look I’ve never seen from her before today, and I realize that she would prefer to face my wrath than a bunch of spiteful women.
“Tell me about yourself,” I say, more than ready to move this along and take her mind off the inevitable.
Chiara glances back at me, fixing a smile across her face, but I’ve come to realize it’s fake. Her true smile, now that’s where her beauty really shines. “I, umm . . . There’s not much to tell,” she says, seemingly caught off guard by my question.
We finally reach our table, and I pull her chair out before helping her sit, and the soft groan that rumbles through her lips tells me that she’s sore from the thorough fucking I just gave her in the supply closet. But she asked for it. She begged me to fuck her, and I don’t do anything halfway.
“Tell me what you feel is worth sharing,” I say as I take my seat beside her, positioning myself in the best seat in the room that gives me a vantage point of the whole ballroom and is closest to the entrance of the secret underground tunnels that lead to a safe house.
“Okay, well, I was a foster kid. I was abandoned by my mother as a baby and dumped at an orphanage without any form of identification. I grew up in the system, bouncing from house to house until I was about fifteen when I finally found a bit of stability. The family I was with wasn’t that great, but they treated me okay and were happy to let me do my own thing, as long as I kept my space clean, maintained my grades, and didn’t get myself in trouble.”
I nod, having known all of this from the information Sergiu found for me. “After that?”
She shrugs her shoulders, looking slightly uncomfortable. “Like I said, there’s really not much to tell. I graduated high school and was accepted into college, and after a few months of working my ass off, I was able to afford a little apartment of my own while also paying my tuition, and since then, that’s what my life has looked like. I work to eat and keep a roof over my head while I go to school . . . at least, I used to.”
“Used to?” I question.
“I’ve been gone from my home for at least two weeks, and I can guarantee that my landlord would have already given me an eviction notice. He’s an ass like that. As for school, I was one year from graduating when I was snatched off the side of the road, and I don’t mean this in a snarky way or anything, but I seriously doubt that you’re going to allow me the chance to finish that.”
“No, I won’t,” I agree. “You no longer require a college degree.”
Chiara nods and forces a tight smile. Disappointment flashes in her eyes, but there’s also an understanding there that gives me just a fraction of hope that we can make this work between us. “I was going to be an architect,” she tells me. “I’ve always loved it, which is why I’m so taken with your home. Whoever designed it has an incredible eye.”
“I believe so too,” I agree. “What about your personal life? Have you left anyone behind that I need to be concerned about?”
“Not really,” she says, squirming in her seat. “With how often I worked, there really wasn’t a lot of time for friends. As for a boyfriend. There was this one guy who I was with on and off for a few years, but we officially broke up a few months ago, and I haven’t heard from him since. In hindsight, I probably should have ended it much sooner. He wasn’t always so . . . nice to me, but I was afraid of having no one, so I stuck it out. Now that I look back, I see how much of a loser he was. I deserved much better.”
“I’m glad you see your worth—” I pause, noticing the way she continues to squirm. “Is something the matter?”
“I’m sorry,” she murmurs, leaning closer. “I’m trying to not make a scene, but I can feel you leaking out of me, and soon enough, it’s going to smear on the back of my dress. Then there will be a whole new reason why everybody is looking at me.”
A smirk settles across my lips, and I lean into her, taking her chin and lifting it just enough to meet her eyes. Feeling the stares of multiple people in the room, I lean just a little closer and brush my lips across her temple. “Go get yourself cleaned up, Angel. I’ll be right here waiting for you when you get back.”