Stolen Seconds (Tethered Fates #2)

Prologue

IRINA

O ne Year Ago

Appearances were a deception. One could alter it and hide what was inside. Emotions were the same. It was easy to manipulate and control them, swallow them into the depths of your soul.

Feeling had only ever caused me pain and the only way I avoided it from consuming me was to let it die inside of me, in the hollowness of my chest where it yearned to be fed.

Over the years, it became easier to bear, yet I sensed the strain chip at me bit by bit.

“Are you almost done?” My best friend's soft voice filtered through the door. “You never take this long getting ready.”

With one last glance in the mirror, my hair pin straight and face marked with makeup, I pinched out a smile and exited the bathroom .

“Oh, yeah?” I cocked an eyebrow at her. “How would you know now that we live miles and miles apart?”

Aurora scowled at me, green eyes narrowing in distaste. Although she knew my joke was lighthearted, it was a bitter one.

My partner in crime had the misfortune of dealing with circumstances she couldn’t avoid or change. Hence, why she moved back to her hometown in Italy, married to a made man, no less.

It was my first time in the colorful country and when I arrived a week ago, tension I had thought would diminish from seeing her, only intensified with the horrible situation she was in.

“Too far?”

“Miles and miles,” she sighed.

It was my last day with her before I flew back home to New York and I intended to make the most of it.

Home hadn’t been the same since Aurora left. She was a constant in my life and possibly the only one capable of stitching that hollowness inside my chest. And as soon as I understood that, I held on in hopes of one day waking up to feel normal .

“Well, I’m ready for the spontaneous day ahead of us.” I linked my arm with hers. “Shall we?”

Aurora huffed incredulously, trying and failing to appear annoyed, but I spotted the slight grin stretching across her face.

She patted my arm. “The only thing that bastard of a man did right was allow you to visit.”

Bastard of a man, being her husband, Roman Mancini. Don of the Cosa Nostra .

That would’ve scared an ordinary person, but I truly gave zero fucks about who he was. Besides, I knew of Aurora’s upbringing, her past, and family. I was only sorry that she was sucked back into this world that she worked hard to escape.

“Key word being bastard.”

The morning and afternoon were spent stuffing our faces with Italian delicacies and shopping at luxurious boutiques.

Italy was utterly breathtaking; the landscapes of the cities and ancientness of its architecture were awe inducing.

It was how I ended up dragging Aurora to a private event. It beckoned me to have a peek inside.

The white building was ethereal, enticing me with its gold detailing to enter.

“Irina, we can’t cut in line!”

Aurora never took risks unless I forced her into it. Considering where she was at this point in her life, a small act of mischievousness would do her good.

I admit, adrenaline gave me a high that I constantly chased. It grounded me, allowing me to block the impending spiral of chaos. Every fix left me wanting more, eager to numb the empty space between my ribs.

“Sure, we can,” I retorted. I usually got my dose from less respectable places, but this would do.

However, the hostess in front seemed to have caught sight of it with the attitude she presented .

“Can I help you?” the pristine hostess asked with a tone that had me opening my mouth to serve her the same generosity .

“We’re here to attend the event,” Aurora blurted out, her attempt at trying to diffuse an impending argument.

She knew I hated disrespectful people and one day, my tongue would be my downfall, but until then, I’d continue to reciprocate.

“My name is Aurora. Aurora Mancini .”

The dark-haired woman’s eyes widened slightly as she glanced down at the list in front of her before looking pointedly at my best friend. “Do you have identification on you to prove that?”

I couldn’t blame the woman for being difficult. I knew it had everything to do with me cutting the long line of people who were actually on the guest list.

“You’re holding up the line, Alicia. What seems to be the problem here?”

The voice was a deep timbre that touched me deep into my bones.

Alicia—the hostess—wasn’t the only one who stiffened. I too stiffened behind Aurora from the sheer power of the stranger’s masculine tone.

“Sir, these ladies want to enter, but they’re not on the list. One of them is even claiming to be a Mancini,” she mocked as her face turned a shade of beetroot red.

I bit my tongue before I said something that would surely dig us into a deeper hole. This man was undoubtedly the owner and with it being my last night in Italy with Aurora, I didn’t want it to end with us in jail.

Not sure how her husband would react to that, either. Perhaps ban me from the country itself.

Aurora tensed. “We were leaving, actually.” She laughed uncomfortably.

Did she know him?

I might’ve agreed to leaving if it weren’t for the hostess smiling at us with arrogance.

Peering over Aurora’s shoulder, I smiled back at her. “No, we weren’t. . . ”

The rest of my words died down when I caught sight of the beast standing near her. He was bigger and taller than any man I’d ever seen.

His hands were hidden in his pockets as his gaze flickered to me, head tilting and assessing me as if I were his own source of entertainment.

“Irina,” Aurora hissed at my defiance, but I ignored her, held captive by rich caramel-brown eyes.

I realized this was a silent battle when the man’s mouth curled into a smirk.

As a Russian, I was taught to never break first in all aspects of life and I sure as shit wouldn’t start now.

The man had a perfect appearance, freshly shaven, sandy-brown hair trimmed and styled, and a black leather jacket that clung to his biceps as if it were tailored for his body.

Raising a brow at him in challenge, I waited.

The male species always referred to themselves as dominant and superior compared to a female.

Me? I was out to knock down their pedestal till they were on their knees before me.

“Let them in, Alicia. ”

I thought so.

The hostess hesitated before she moved aside.

My gaze locked with his as Aurora and I moved past them. Something untamed flashed across his features, his jaw clenching tightly.

A literal creep.

I clasped Aurora’s hand and led us inside.

It was an art museum, a magnificent one, with exquisite art pieces decorating the walls and a few statues standing tall along the center.

The environment was spacious, lit up by chandeliers as guests softly murmured to one another and admired the view.

The further we walked around, the more my stomach turned into knots.

These art pieces were erotic. Displays of sensual desires and pleasure.

The one in front of us, in particular, was a skewed painting of vibrant colors. An intimate clashing of bodies and dimension.

“Anyone could create this.” I felt a knot twist in my gut. “What’s so artistic about two people ravishing one another?”

Aurora glanced at me with pinched lips, and I hated that my expression must’ve told her I regretted dragging us in here.

It was the smell of musk and spice that hit me before his words. “What unfortunate thinking, piccola ribelle .”

I refused to give his unwanted presence attention as I stared at the painting, hoping he would go away from the lack of it .

And when his scent continued to invade my space, I did what I do best. “You’re part of the male population; of course, you’d think that way. And I don’t speak Italian, mudak .”

When I felt his breath, warm against my ear, I stiffened. My hands clenched into fists, hard enough to draw blood as my nails dug into my palm.

“Your tongue will get you in trouble, piccola ribelle. ” He dragged those two words, unfazed by my earlier statement. “The next time you call someone an asshole, be aware of who’s on the receiving end of it.”

With that, he stalked off. His physical presence might’ve been gone, but his words and scent clung to me as if they were staking a claim.

I exhaled harshly, unaware that I had even held my breath when he was near. And something strange happened.

This wasn’t the fix I expected, and yet it happened unintentionally.

Nausea flooded my senses.

It couldn’t have been because of him, could it?

I refused to believe that a strange man invoked a rush of adrenaline in me.

“What did he say?” Aurora whispered beside me, bringing me away from my turmoil.

“ Nothing ,” I grumbled. “Now, let’s go.” Before that creep came back. “This place wasn’t as great as I thought.”

She turned, heading toward the exit. “Mhm.”