Chapter One #2
The door of the house in front of me opens up and a man steps outside. A much younger man than the one holding me. His wavy brown hair and strong jaw makes him handsome. So handsome that it steals my breath away.
He looks between me and the man with a frown. “What is going on out here?”
“Help me,” I beg. “Please. Please.”
“Let her go,” he demands of the man behind me.
The man hurting me does as the young one says and walks away without a word. I frown. That was… strange to say the least. The way the man chased me, I wouldn’t have expected him to give up so easily. And yet… he did.
“Thank you,” I breathe out to the handsome man.
His eyes look me over with curiosity. “Who are you?”
“My name is Emma Greco. I need help. I… don’t have anywhere else to go.”
He stands up taller after I say my name, though I’m not sure why. “You need help?”
“I do. But not like that man. I don’t want help like that.”
“What kind of help did you need then?”
“I need water. I’m so thirsty.”
“Then let me get you some water. Come in.” He opens the front door wider. When I hesitate, he smiles and it reaches his eyes. “I’m not going to hurt you. Not like that man.”
My body relaxes a little. “Thank you.” I step foot into the nice, large house. The inside is somehow even nicer than the outside. Dark, hardwood floors and soft lighting. Cream colored walls. A large foyer with a large staircase leading up to a second floor.
The smell of something delicious in the air.
“What is that?” I whisper, my voice echoing through the large space. “That smell.”
“It’s vanilla. Have you never smelled vanilla before?” He points at a small container with a flame in it. “The candle.”
“Candle?” I test the word on my lips. “I’ve never heard of that before.”
He frowns. “You’ve never heard of a candle before?”
I flush. The last thing I should do is give away how na?ve I am to the world. I don’t want this man taking advantage of me. “I’ve never used one before.”
“Right.” He looks me over once more, giving me the chance to do the same to him. Black pants and black button down shirt make him look expensive. All of my clothes were ratty and covered in holes and stains from working on the farm. “You don’t look at all like what I expected.”
“What does that mean?”
He shakes his head with a charming smile. “I’m Leo Detti. I hadn’t introduced myself before.” He offers me his hand and I slowly take it. “You haven’t heard of me?”
After a beat, I take my hand away. “Should I have?” Is this man famous?
He chuckles. “No. That was presumptuous of me. Let me get you that glass of water. You can come into the kitchen.” He leads me into a gorgeous kitchen with a soft wood ceiling and beautiful countertops colored white and gold.
“Here.” He pours me a glass from a pitcher he takes out of a large refrigerator. We had a small one growing up. It barely contained any of our food.
I take the glass and chug down the water before I realize what I’m doing.
“Your thirsty,” he comments. “You look like you ran a marathon.”
“I did in a way.”
“Where did you come from?”
The last thing I want to mention is my mother. “From a farm. Far away.”
“And now you’re in the city. For what purpose?”
“To live a better life. Make money somehow. Live here forever.” Away from my mother.
“You’re not here because of any family?”
Technically I am here because of my mother but I shake my head. I don’t want this handsome, kind man to know about her. It would spoil everything.
“It’s just you?” he asks in disbelief.
“Yes.”
“Well… you’re going to make this easy for me.”
I frown. “I don’t understand.”
He flashes me another kind smile. “I know we just met but I can assure you, I am not going to hurt you. You’re tired. I can tell. Why don’t you sleep in one of my guest rooms for the night? You can take a bath. Eat. It’s clear you need it.”
I sag against the counter. “You would do that? Really?”
“Yes. You’re a surprise… Emma.” He says my name like he’s testing it on his lips.
“Thank you.”
“Let me show you to your room. You can stay the whole night. I’ll give you space. I don’t want to scare you.”
“You don’t scare me,” I blurt out. “You saved me. You’re a kind man. I knew kind men existed.” Despite what my mother would have me believe.
Leo’s smile wavers for just a second. “Yes, well…” He clears his throat. “Let me show you to your room.” He leads me upstairs to an elegant bedroom with a large white bed. It’s more nice than my own small bedroom back home. That place had a small cot that would hurt my back every night.
“The bathroom is in there.” He points to a room attached to the bedroom. “I’ll see you in the morning.” He shuts the door behind him as he leaves. I breathe out. A good, kind man. Who would have expected I would find one my first night in this city?
I let out a happy gasp and rush to the bathroom where I take a long bath, letting the worries of the past day melt away. I’m being taken care of. All will go right.
I just had to hope and pray hard enough and it worked out for me.
Leo
What would the chances be that the woman I had been searching for would show up on my doorstep, needing my help?
My hand tightens on the glass of whiskey I had to pour after giving Emma Greco my guest bedroom. Emma fucking Greco.
The daughter of Alessandro Greco and niece to Giovanni Greco.
The memory of my boss, Gabriel, shooting Giovanni in the head still lingers in my mind. It was a happy day... until Alessandro Greco decided he wanted to come for what his brother had left behind.
I suggested to Gabriel that we find Alessandro’s daughter and keep her captive to hold Alessandro at bay from attacking us but Gabriel was against the idea. After he fell in love with his wife, he told me he didn’t want to hurt any more innocent women.
But how can the daughter of Alessandro and the niece of Giovanni be innocent? When Giovanni was a monster who killed Gabriel’s entire family? When Alessandro stood back and didn’t stop his brother?
Gabriel may have learned to move on and forget but I haven’t. Alessandro wants to bring a war to our doorstep and I have to do anything I can to prevent it.
It’s fate that the woman I needed showed up tonight. Emma Greco doesn’t know that I’m not a good, kind man. That in fact, I’m a mafia man intend on destroying her life.