Chapter Eight
Ella
The distant sound of barking dogs filters into my awareness.
The noise makes my head throb, though it probably would hurt even without it. I try to move, but my entire body aches. I feel like I’ve been dragged through hell.
I’m lying flat on my back in a warm, soft bed.
All of this is déjà vu.
My heavy lids snap open in alarm.
Ohhh…
I recognize the room.
Disappointment hits me like a punch.
They caught me. I’m back where I started.
Tears well up in my eyes. This can’t be happening.
After risking my life, I’m back here. Climbing down that cliff face and the brutal trek along the rocky shore was all for nothing. I cradle my head in my hands and let out a pained groan.
How did they know where to wait for me?
Duh, it was the only place I could emerge, short of climbing up the cliff. And I’m no monkey or mountain goat.
My chin trembles, the lump in my throat painful to swallow.
I failed.
Now what?
Memories of the goons who grabbed me drift into my mind, and I shudder. I lift the blanket to check that I’m still clothed.
I am, but not in the dress I escaped in. That one was dirty and slightly torn by the time I made it to the forest. I’m somewhat cleaned up, wearing a silk nightshirt.
Crap, who did this?
Unease prickles along my skin. I peek down the top of my nightshirt. Phew, I’m still wearing my bra and panties.
“You’re unharmed, princess,” a familiar voice suddenly cuts through the room. “Mariella changed your clothes. None of my men would dare touch what’s mine.”
I shoot upright, clutching the blanket to my chest.
Bad move.
A bolt of pain explodes through my skull, forcing me to freeze as the room tilts. My head feels like it’s ready to split open.
But even through the excruciating throbbing, my attention locks on the man sitting in the chair beside the bed.
For a second, my brain refuses to process what I’m seeing. Then my heart slams wildly against my ribs. My fingers tighten in the blanket until my knuckles ache.
Baroni was telling the truth.
No. That can’t be.
It can’t.
But the evidence is sitting right in front of me.
Calm. Silent. Watching.
I stare at the man I spent some of the most intoxicating days of my life with. The man whose touch made my pulse race, whose smile could light up an entire room.
The man I trusted.
Something inside my chest splinters. The betrayal slices straight through me.
Tiero kidnapped me.
What the hell?
His expression is unreadable. How long has he been sitting there?
Only a few feet separate us, but thankfully he stays where he is.
He leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees, his hands steepled beneath his chin while his eyes study me carefully.
Neither of us says a word.
Unblinking, we stare at each other as the silence stretches between us. I refuse to be the one who breaks it.
God, I’ve never been more disappointed in a person.
He kidnapped me.
But holy shit, he’s still gorgeous.
The thought allows the always-present buzz between us to roar back to life. I try my best to ignore it.
Now is really not the time to be attracted to the man.
Gualtiero is the first to speak.
“We have much to talk about. Unfortunately, the sedative’s side effects take a while to wear off. You’ll feel better after a bath and some food. I’ll get Mariella to bring you something.”
That’s what he has to say to me after putting me through hell?
The side effects will take a while to wear off?
Is he kidding me?
He’s the one who had me drugged. Twice. I cannot believe this man.
I remain silent.
He rises and closes the distance to the bed. I instinctively lean backward.
He shakes his head, faint irritation flickering across his face, then bends down and presses a kiss to my forehead.
I freeze at his closeness, my heart jolting violently in my chest.
Straightening, Tiero walks toward the door.
“Freshen up, princess. Take the ibuprofen this time. They’ll help with your headache. I’ll be back in an hour, and we’ll talk.”
Then he leaves.
I release the breath I’ve been holding and collapse back onto the bed.
Holy shit.
It really was Tiero who kidnapped me.
Now that he’s gone, the jackhammer pounding in my head becomes impossible to ignore. Unbearable, in fact.
I turn to the bedside table, and sure enough, two bottles of water and a packet of tablets are waiting for me.
How very considerate, I think bitterly. They shouldn’t have drugged me in the first place.
This time I take the tablets. Why suffer longer than I have to?
I pull a pillow toward me and hug it tight while I wait for the pounding in my head to subside.
Unfortunately, it also gives me time to think.
I can’t wrap my head around what’s happening.
If Baroni was telling the truth, does that mean I’m really in danger?
But he also said Tiero wants me in his life. He made it sound like what’s between us is something far more serious.
I thought that too.
But how can I be with a man who kidnapped me?
There has to be a reasonable explanation. Maybe I should let him explain and everything will make sense.
Shit. I don’t have the energy or the right frame of mind to deal with this.
But do I have a choice?