14. Dario
14
DARIO
I lean back in my chair, relishing the drama that is about to unfold. Ginny’s eyes lock onto mine, darkening with pure rage before she turns to her brother, her face a storm of disbelief and fury.
For once, her anger isn’t solely directed at me. Well, that’s not true. I can tell it’s building up, set to explode once she grasps the full scope of the situation.
She’s fuming, her eyes blazing as she storms towards Lorenzo. And she looks so fucking beautiful.
Her hair is wild around her face, and her body vibrates with energy as she gets in his face. Right now, her hazel eyes are a vivid green, flecked with hints of brown and gold, matching her intense fury.
“You arranged this, didn’t you?” she snaps at Lorenzo, her voice sharp and filled with betrayal as she shoves her phone screen in his face. “You actually think I’ll marry him?”
The mixture of shame and guilt on Lorenzo’s face fills me with dark satisfaction. I have to bite my lip to keep from laughing. Last night, I offered Lorenzo a deal he couldn’t refuse. I agreed to pay off all their debts and even lend them enough to get their company back on track, but there was a catch—Ginny has to marry me.
As Ginny stands before him, demanding an answer, I see the wheels turning in his mind. Regret, embarrassment, and remorse are thick in his eyes, but he knows he has no choice. There’s no going back now.
The deal he signed is ironclad—if Ginny files for divorce before a decade elapses, I’ll retract the funds, leaving them in worse debt than they ever were in. But after ten years, she’s free to go. I also made sure Lorenzo signed over the rights of the Bianchi Empire, naming me the sole investor with the highest bid and effectively preventing any other company from legally intervening.
The plan was a strategic play, ensuring no escape for the Bianchi family.
Last night, as I dropped Ginny off, a flicker of guilt crept in. Yes, Lorenzo’s greed was behind the kidnapping and the murder attempt, but I played a part in escalating things. If Ginny had been seriously hurt, I would have felt responsible, and that thought left a bitter taste in my mouth.
Yet, despite that guilt, I feel an unexpected protectiveness toward Ginny. Seeing her bound and hurt solidified my resolve to end the Bianchi family’s torment, even though I still crave revenge. What better way to seek it than by marrying her, the one person Lorenzo would never let me be involved with under normal circumstances?
“Ginny...” Lorenzo chokes, unable to form a coherent sentence. “It’s not like that.”
“Oh my god,” she gasps, her eyes glistening with thick emotions. “You actually arranged this. A part of me hoped you would deny it...that you’d say it was all his doing.”
I roll my eyes as she points an accusing finger at me.
Lorenzo shifts uncomfortably, shame heavy on his face. “Ginny, you don’t understand everything. I’m doing this to protect you.”
“Protect me?” she echoes incredulously, her hands clenched at her sides. “I’m not a child you can lie to, Lorenzo. If this is your idea of protection, then...well, I don’t know what to tell you, Enzo. This is a fucking prison sentence. You’ve sold me to him!”
“That’s ridiculous, Ginny,” Lorenzo scoffs, trying to save face.
I can’t help but smirk at the spectacle. The tension in the room is thick, and I enjoy watching them squabble. Lorenzo, for all his bravery, looks cornered. He runs a hand through his hair, pacing like a caged animal.
“No! You’re the one being ridiculous here,” she screeches. “What did he promise you? Money? Protection? Did he blackmail you? Is that why you decided to sell your sister off like a piece of property?”
“Look at our situation,” he says, voice rising. “We’re drowning in debt, and Dario is the only one willing to help us.”
“So it was for money?” She chuckles harshly. “I guess some things never change. Pimping me off to Rinaldo didn’t work, so you found the next man willing...”
“You think I want this?” Lorenzo yelled. “We have no other choice!”
“Maybe you should have thought of that before making deals with the devil,” Ginny fires back, her voice trembling with anger. “I won’t be a pawn in your game, Lorenzo.”
“Ginny, please,” he pleads, desperation creeping into his tone.
I lean in slightly. “You know, Ginny, you don’t exactly have a choice in the matter,” I say, my voice dripping with amusement. “The contract has already been signed.”
She whips around to face me, eyes blazing. “I will never marry you, Dario!”
Her words send laughter spilling from my lips. The sound bounces through the walls, and her nostrils flare as her anger intensifies.
“Is that so?” I challenge, my smirk fading as I step closer, closing the distance. A rush of adrenaline courses through me as I feel her heat and inhale her scent.
She raises her chin, defiance and anger strong in her features. “You’re a piece of shit, Dario. Forcing my brother into signing whatever this is? That’s a new low, even for someone as despicable as you!”
Every sliver of amusement drops as I take another step toward her.
Without turning back to look at Lorenzo, I order, “Leave us.”
The tone of my voice leaves no room for argument, and he hesitates before reluctantly walking toward the front door.
As the door clicks shut. I step closer to Ginny. “What did you just say? Repeat it,” I demand, my voice low and intense.
She stands her ground. “You’re nothing but a bully.”
“Bully?” I scoff, stepping even closer. “I’m offering your shitty family a way out, and you treat it like a curse? This is the thanks I get? You should know better than to speak that way to someone who clearly holds your future—and your family’s—in his hands.”
“And you should know by now that I’m not scared of you,” she hisses as I continue to advance toward her.
“Really? Maybe you should be.”
A flicker of uncertainty crosses her eyes as she sees that I’m not stopping. She moves back as I march forward. Her eyes dart to the wall behind her, and knowing that she’s about to be cornered, she dashes to the corner.
That’s before I grab her elbow and pull her right where I want her.
“Let me go,” she fumes as I press her back against the wall and position myself directly before her.
“You know, you could be a little nicer,” I snarl, repeating her message from earlier. “Do you think you can manage that, Princess?”
“Fuck you, Dario,” her chest rises and falls.
I’m hit with a thick sense of Deja vu. How many times have I had her close? Felt her warm breath against my skin? Heard her heartbeat thumping beneath her skin, and resisted the urge to kiss every inch of her body? How many times have our arguments turned into heated conversations and restrained lust?
“You shouldn’t say those words to me, Ginny,” I rasp, brushing her cheeks with the back of my fingers. “It always gets me so fucking hard.”
Her breath catches as her lips part slightly, but she says nothing. She says nothing, staring up at me with eyes filled with a mix of anger and something else—something deeper and more intense. It’s a gaze reserved just for me, one that can only be found in the darkest corners of her eyes, hidden within the depths of her soul.
My heart pounds faster as I lean down, my gaze never leaving hers, watching each of the minute expressions flicker across her face, trying to capture them all on paper and memorizing their nuances so I don’t forget a single thing about her.
The deep flush on her cheeks, the pink tinge to her lips, the way her long eyelashes flutter with desire as my face hovers directly over hers.
A small gasp escapes from her parted lips when I slide my hands along her waist, pulling her closer to me. Her breasts brush against my chest, and I inhale sharply when I feel her hardened nipples through my shirt.
“You claim you hate me, yet you respond to my touch,” I murmur, leaning down to kiss her exposed shoulder. “Your body always reacts to me,” I add, sucking gently on the soft spot between her shoulder blades.
She shudders under my mouth, and the soft gasp that escapes her mouth sends warmth down to my dick.
The anger in her eyes is still palpable, but so is the undeniable lust and tension between us. My heart raves with the primal urge to press my lips against hers, taste the passion on her tongue, and hold her firmly while she trembles from the pleasure I could give her.
“You don’t get to decide my future.” She breathes heavily.
Gritting my teeth, I pull away from her, forcing myself to take several steps backwards and create some distance.
“Actually, I do,” I reply, my tone firm. “Starting now, as a matter of fact. You’re moving into my house tomorrow. Get your things ready.”
Her mouth drops open in shock, her eyes narrowing as she struggles to find words. I tug at my tie, feeling the fabric constrict around my throat. The silence stretches, thick with simmering tension.
I can’t shake the feeling that this isn’t just about revenge anymore—there’s something deeper at play. As I watch her, I see the fading bruises on her arms, and anger surges within me once more. The thought of Esteban’s hands on her makes my blood boil, and I wish I could make him suffer endlessly.
“Since you have no objections?—”
“I won’t be moving in with you,” she exclaims.
I pull at my tie again, the tightness serving as a reminder of my resolve. “And I won’t repeat myself. Be packed and ready by tomorrow. Or I swear to god, I’ll make you regret it.”
The finality in my voice leaves no room for argument, but her eyes blaze with a mix of defiance and hurt. Her chest rises and falls with each heavy breath as I turn to leave.
I can’t shake the feeling that what’s coming next is going to be deeper and more intense. As the door closes behind me, I wonder what our next encounter will bring, knowing it could change everything.