Chapter Twelve
LEONI
His stupid, smug smile pisses me off. It’s cute and relaxed. And way too tempting.
I turn my back to him and stare out of the window. It overlooks the carpark and the back of a takeaway.
I feel him approach, his arms wrapping around my waist. “I didn’t like the way he stood over you, like you belonged to him.
” His voice is barely audible, like it pains him to speak the truth.
I stay quiet, giving him a chance to get it off his chest. “And you looked up at him like… like you wanted him there crowding you.”
I swallow the guilt in my chest. Maybe I did want Erik there. He’s easier than Warren. Less intense.
“He’s a playboy,” I mutter. “I’d be an idiot to go there.”
He stiffens slightly. “But you’ve thought about it?”
I shrug, “Does it matter?”
He spins me to face him, backing me up against the window. “It matters,” he hisses, his nose brushing my cheek. “Am I wasting my time here?”
“No,” I whisper. Then I shake my head, breaking his spell. “You’re my boss, Warren,” I remind him.
His hand slips under my dress, his fingers brushing my entrance. I jolt against the contact, still sensitive after two mind-blowing orgasms. “You weren’t saying that when you were riding my cock.”
I break away, moving around him and rounding the bed to put distance between us. Every time he touches me, he sends me crazy with need.
“I don’t understand what’s happening between us,” I admit.
He moves towards me like a panther about to pounce. “I’ll make it clear,” he says, his voice smooth. “You’re not single anymore, Little Dove.”
As he closes the gap between us, I try to pass him.
This time, his hand dashes out, catching me by the throat.
It sends a thrill straight between my legs, like a jolt of lightning.
He drags me closer until his mouth is to my ear.
“You belong to me now.” A breathy sigh escapes me.
If Court could see this now, she’d be drooling.
It’s like Warren Baxter jumped right out of a romance novel, not the sweet kind, but the dirty-talking, neck-squeezing, Book Tok kind.
My knees go weak, and this time when his hand slips under my dress, I don’t bother to argue.
And when his fingers push into my mouth, I suck them clean like a dirty bitch. Because deep down, I want him.
All of him.
His moods. His jealousy. And his red flags.
I wake with a start, pushing to sit up, only to find the room in darkness. I reach for the lamp just as the hotel door opens and Warren enters, holding a large paper bag. He smiles wide when he sees me. “I thought you’d be hungry,” he says, closing the door and setting the bag down on the side.
I arch a brow. “You went to get us a takeout?” It’s so far from the Warren I’ve grown to know.
He opens the bag and peers inside. “I sent Anthony to get us something from my favourite restaurant.” I laugh, heading over to where he is and peering inside the bag. “Yeah, didn’t imagine you’d go and queue in a takeaway.”
“I got us a selection. I wasn’t sure what you wanted, and you looked so peaceful sleeping.
” He presses a kiss to my forehead, his hand cupping my backside.
“For the love of God put some clothes on before I take you straight back to bed.” He shrugs out of his shirt and hands it to me.
I slip it on, leaving it open at the front as I reach into the bag and pull out some crispy rolls.
“Does Anthony live with you?” I ask, taking a bite and groaning in pleasure as I sit by the window.
“What makes you think that?” he asks with a laugh.
I shrug. “He’s always around, waiting to fetch things for you,” I say, holding up the crispy rolls as an example. “Doesn’t he have a life or time off?”
“He has a very good life, I pay him extremely well to hang around and fetch me things,” he says, smirking as he sits on the end of the bed.
He watches me eat for a few minutes before I place the carton down on the side and cross my legs. “Aren’t you hungry?”
He shakes his head. “Not for food.”
Seriously, the guy’s got the stamina of a bull.
“What do you like to do?” I ask, taking a bottle of water from the mini fridge beside me.
He takes it from me, unscrewing the cap before handing it back. “What do you like to do?” he counters.
I sigh. “I’m trying to get to know you here.”
“I work. I eat at nice restaurants. I enjoy red wine and occasionally, I visit other countries and do all that stuff there instead.”
“Don’t you have hobbies?”
He looks amused, the corners of his eyes creasing. “Work is my hobby.” His gaze dips to my mouth. “And you…” He closes the space between us, brushing his lips against mine. “You’re my new one.”
His kiss is long and slow, the kind that curls my toes and blurs every rational thought. Which is exactly why I break away, pressing a hand to his solid chest.
“Easy, Romeo. A girl’s gotta refuel.”
“I have a business trip,” he says, like it’s nothing. “A few days in Italy.”
My stomach sinks. I’d quietly hoped he’d be around—mostly so I didn’t have to go home.
“We fly tomorrow afternoon.”
“You want me to come too?”
“Of course.”
“But… what will your father say?”
Something flickers across his face—annoyance. “It’s a business trip. I need my secretary.”
The stupid part of me deflates. Right. Work. Nothing more.
“I have something important to do in the morning,” I tell him. “And I need to go back to my apartment to pack and get my passport.”
“Anthony has already packed for you.”
I blink. “What?”
He nods, completely unfazed. “He’s got everything you’ll need. He’ll also take you wherever you need to go tomorrow.”
A slow chill creeps through me. “What business is it? There’s nothing in the diary about Italy.”
“Something private.” He doesn’t meet my eyes. “Eat something. Then we’ll head to my apartment. You need rest.”
I bite back the words gathering on my tongue. Part of me likes not having to think for once—after years of looking after Mum and my brother’s, the idea of someone taking control feels… safe. Comforting.
But the other part? The louder part? It’s a warning red flag.
He crouches in front of me, like he can hear the argument raging in my head. “Let me take care of you.” His hand cups my cheek, and I lean my face into his touch, briefly closing my eyes.
“Okay.”
WARREN
We make it back to my apartment, shower, and fall back into bed. This time, we take it slow. Our connection feeling deeper, the kind that leaves her boneless and half-asleep before I’ve even finished catching my breath.
By the time she settles under the duvet, she’s exhausted from my constant need to be inside her.
I watch her for far too long, tracing a thumb across her cheekbone, brushing her hair off her forehead, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head. She murmurs in her sleep, reaching instinctively for me, and something tightens in my chest.
It’s only when Anthony slips quietly inside that I finally rise. I close the bedroom door behind me and step into the lounge, where he’s tapping away on his laptop. He looks up, then snaps it shut.
“I’ve found someone to watch Leoni,” he says. “He’s good. Worked with plenty of high-profile clients. Discreet. She won’t have a clue he’s there.”
“Good.” I sink into the armchair, stretching the tension from my hands. “Send me his profile. I’ll review it.” My jaw clenches. “She’s visiting her father tomorrow morning. I want you to drive her.”
Anthony arches a brow. “What if he tells her everything?”
I scoff. “They’ve got too much history to get through before they even think about discussing her job. And he’s not about to confess his sins to his grieving daughter.” My lips curl, humourless. “He’s a lot of things, but honest isn’t one of them.”
Anthony nods. “True.”
“Bring her straight to the airport after. The plane leaves for Italy at noon.”
My eyes fell on the bag Anthony packed for her.
It sits neatly by the couch, and I stare at it for a moment before picking it up.
I carry it back to the bedroom. She’s still asleep, curled on her side in my sheets, hair spilling across the pillow.
It punches the breath out of me. How small she looks.
How breakable. And how much I love seeing her here, like she belongs.
I set the bag on the edge of the bed and slowly unzip it.
Clothing. Heels. A few folded tops I’ve seen her wear to work. And then my jaw tightens.
Her underwear.
Lace, satin, soft fabrics she should only ever have bought with me in mind.
A low burn lights beneath my ribs.I sent Anthony to do this. He followed instructions. Efficiently, as always. But the thought of his hands on her things, her clothes, her lingerie, hits a nerve.
I swallow hard, fingers brushing the edge of a delicate black pair. Too delicate. Too intimate. Too personal.
He shouldn’t have seen this.
The irrational anger pulses through me anyway. I close the bag with a sharp tug. She shifts in her sleep, and instantly the anger dissolves into something else—fear, maybe. Or the beginnings of it.
This is happening too fast. Dragging her to Italy. Keeping secrets from her. Pulling her into a storm she doesn’t know exists.
But slowing down isn’t an option. Not when she’s already in danger. Not when the truth about Mick is pushing up through the cracks and threatening to take her from me before she ever truly becomes mine.
I sit on the bed beside her, my hand hovering above her shoulder but not quite touching.
“It’s all moving too fast,” I whisper under my breath. “But I won’t lose you. Not now.”
Her breathing stays steady. She doesn’t stir. I shift down the bed and wrap my arms around her, falling into a troubled sleep.
I breeze into the office, freshly showered and braced for whatever mood my father throws at me. He doesn’t disappoint—he storms in the second I close my door.
I smile. “Good morning.”
“Italy?” he snaps, one brow arched. He’s angry and trying to hide it, but failing miserably.
“Yes. I have a project to oversee. I told you about it.”
“And it just happens to be in your Uncle Toni’s town?”
I loosen my cuffs, taking my time folding each sleeve with surgical precision. When I finally meet his eyes, he looks… ruffled. Flustered. Nowhere near the controlled tyrant he usually is.
“Why does that matter?” I ask lightly.
He exhales a shaky breath. His composure is slipping. “Do you plan to see him?”
I shrug. “I haven’t decided. I’m sure he’s busy.”
“My brother will use any chance he gets to divide this family,” he spits. “You know exactly how I feel about him.”
I take a seat behind my desk and lean back with a relaxed grin in place. “As I explained, I have business there. It’s unavoidable.”
“We have dinner plans with Nancy and her father. Which you’ve already managed to rearrange twice.”
“Take Erik.”
“I spoke with him. He tells me you’re winning the girl over?”
I bristle at his words. “I’m sure he did. You should be pleased. I’m going along with your stupid plan even though I have no idea what it is you want with her.”
“It doesn’t concern you, just like your business in Italy apparently doesn’t concern me.” He exhales, his eyes still burning with rage. “She has feelings for you,” he states.
“So?”
“You can’t afford to let this get messy, Warren. There’s Nancy to consider.”
“I’m doing what you asked me to do,” I snap. “She’s seeing her father today.” The anger falls away, placed with shock that he’s not quick enough to hide. “So, whatever I am doing, is working, wouldn’t you agree?”
He gives a stiff nod.
“Now, if you don’t mind, I have things to do.”
He heads for the door, pausing as he reaches it. “I forbid you from seeing your uncle, Warren.” And then he leaves.