A/N: Hi guys! For those who are asking when will i upload Blazing Desire 2; my answer is "soon" so stay tuned. I am trying my best to find time to write. I hope i could start uploading the story before this month ends! For those who are asking if i will translate Blazing Desire 1; the answer, it depends on the number of requests. Anyway, happy reading! 

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MARCO's POV

I was about to knock on the slightly ajar door when I heard the loud voice of Cecile, echoing throughout the whole room.

"Don't worry about Super L, Ms. Lenard. I'll make sure that everything will be jut fine. Just enjoy your vacation...Yes, I'll remember that. Bye, Miss Lenard." My eyebrows creased. Maggie will be going on a vacation that's why she's absent?

I pushed the door open and Cecile seemed to be surprised upon seeing me. "Yes, Mr. Pearce. Do you need anything?" Her voice became extra sweeter than usual.

"Where is Mag—I mean, Miss Lenard?" I asked formally.

She pouted. "Why are you looking for her? If you need help about something, I am here to listen. What is it about?"

"It's not about my job. I need to see Maggie right now." I couldn't hide the impatient tone in my voice.

She looked surprised. "Maggie?" She parroted.

"Yes. I need to know where she is right now. I heard what you've said a while ago. She will go on a vacation, right?"

"Y-Yes. Why do you sound so interested?" Her forehead was crinkled.

"What time is her flight?" I asked without answering her question. Now, she looked even more confused.

"I don't know. She didn't tell me. All I know is, today's her flight. Anyway, why do you sound so interested in her? You even called her by her nickname as if you were close. Are the rumors true that there's something going on between the two of you?"

I scowled at her. "What rumor are you talking about? Where did that come from?"

"Well, I didn't want Ms. Lenard to hear about this because I thought it wasn't true, considering that she has a boyfriend already, but apparently, one of the clerks here saw you giving a bouquet of flowers to her the other day. I didn't believe it when I first heard about it but seeing the way you're acting right now, it seems like the rumors were true after all, is it?"

My jaw flexed in irritation. I didn't like the idea that the employees were gossiping about me and Maggie behind our backs.

"That's none of everybody's business!" I thunderously said and then walked out of there. I didn't go to my post.

"Hey, Marco! Where are you going? The store is already open. You need to go to your post." One of the guards said when I walked past him by the entrance.

"I need to go somewhere. Call someone to replace me." I answered without looking at him and then headed straight to my car. I took my phone out and then dialed Dui's number.

"Yes, frati? Do you need anything?"

"I need you to find out the flight schedule of Maggie today. She's leaving the country and I can't let that happen. I need results as soon as possible." I ordered.

"I can't because I'm in the middle of a meeting right now but I'll send Falcon instead. I'll inform him about this. Just wait until he contacts you for the result."

"Okay." I ended the call. I wanted to pull my hair in frustration. Why didn't I think that she would go away after what happened? She didn't even tell me. Why would she tell you? You're not her boyfriend, right?

"Minchia! I wont let you get away from me, my queen. I promise you that." I then started the engine of my car and then drove my way out of there. I went to my penthouse. While waiting, I took a shower to calm myself down. After more than an hour, my phone finally rang.

"Unu. I already have the information." Falcon said on the other line.

"Okay. Tell me everything."

"She will board on a flight to France tonight at 7 pm. Apparently, she will stay there for a vacation for a few weeks." I gritted my teeth upon hearing his report.

"Vacation, huh? Listen to me carefully, Falcon. I want you to get Maggie." I then proceeded on telling him what to do in order intercept Maggie's flight.

After that, I prepared my things and contacted villa Carmela.

"Prepare everything. I'll be coming with someone by tomorrow morning. Tell Vittorio to come pick us up at the airport."

"Yes, sir." I then ended the call and went out of my suite. I was on the freeway when I noticed a black car behind me. I maneuvered to the right lane to give it the chance to overtake but he didn't. They remained on the left lane, driving a little slower than me. That was when I realized that I was being tailed and I already had an idea who was it.

I sped up, overtaking every vehicle before me but the driver of the black car did the same. Then, my eyes widened when I saw through the rearview mirror that the person on the passenger seat rolled down the window and pointed a gun at me.

I picked up my speed as if I was driving on a zigzag lane as they try to put me down. The person kept on shooting my car.

"Minchia!" I cursed expletives. I looked at my rearview mirror to check if there was a vehicle behind me but it was empty. I stepped on my break which caused my tires to make a squeaking sound. Before the enemies could stop their car as well, I took my gun and then cocked it.

I stepped on my gas and then rolled down my window to start shooting them bullets after bullets. Even though I was driving, I still managed to precisely shoot the driver of the car which caused them to collide on the road guard rail.

The corner of my lips lifted as I smirked. "You have to do better than that to stop me from having her, Apollyon."

Later that day, all my plans of luring Maggie to my plane was a success but of course, she wasn't happy about it.

MAGGIE's POV

I glared at Marco but that didn't seem to affect him one bit. We were now in my first-class suite. He was sitting on the leather couch while me on the other hand was standing with my hands on my waist in front of him. His eyes were sparkling with obvious mischief even though he was wearing a serious face.

"I repeat. Bring me to my destination and I'll forget everything that happened." I said with controlled anger. I've been trying to convince him to bring me to France since a while ago but he refuses to do so.

"And as I've told you a while ago; I can't do that. I've already succeeded on tricking you to board on my plane so why would I bring you there?"

"Alessi Airlines is yours?" I asked in surprise.

"Yes, it's mine." He confirmed casually and then sipped on his champagne. My jaw slacked open.

"How come this is yours? Alessi Airlines is owned by the renowned Alessi family in Sicily. Why do you have to lie?"

"Even if it's mine or not, that doesn't change my plan. I'll take you with me. I already told you before. I will do anything to make you mine. This is my way of courting you. You should've already expected this from the moment you decided to board the f*cking plane to leave the US."

My jaw flex in anger. I felt like hitting him to vent out the frustration that I was feeling. Now, I finally understood why he didn't appear in front of me for a couple of days. He'd been plotting his next move all along. Even though he never absented from work, he didn't come near me. I thought, he already gave up but I was wrong.

"Marco! I'm not playing games with you! Let me go! This is not funny anymore!" I couldn't control my anger anymore and exploded. Instead of getting affected of my sudden outburst, he just chuckled.

"You look hotter when you're angry, my queen." I felt like my cheeks redden because of his compliment.

"You're crazy! You know that this is illegal, right? You're keeping me here against my will!" I shouted at him, uncaring if the cabin crew could hear my loud voice.

He sighed and then stood up. He looked unfazed of my annoyance. I gulped inaudibly when I noticed that the playful gleam of his eyes turned into something else that I couldn't comprehend.

I automatically took a step backwards when I noticed him stepping towards me. "W-What do you think you're doing? Why are you getting closer?" Once again; my heart was beating like a drum in front of him.

"You look scared. Why so? Is it because you're afraid that you might lose yourself again if I do something that could melt your stubbornness?" He asked as he continued approaching. His tantalizing eyes looked at my already slightly trembling lips.

I squeezed my eyes shut when I got trapped between the closed door and his hard body. I could feel his radiating warmth.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Thank God, I didn't stutter. You can do this, Maggie! Don't let him seduce you again, for the love of God!

"Look at me." He commanded powerfully but I shook my head, refusing to open my eyes. His breath was fanning my cheek. I felt like the air between us thickened as my breathing became shorter.

"You're a coward. Why don't you accept the fact that you like me too? You wanted to run away from me because you couldn't accept the fact that you don't love your boyfriend, right? You kept on denying your true feelings."

"That's not true!" I denied firmly but he just laughed.

"Really? Then why do you want to go to France in the first place? Tell me the truth because I want to hear it directly from your lips." He uttered with a husky tone as his hand caressed my cheek gently like he was enticing me.

"I don't need to explain anything to you. It's got nothing to do with you."

"Really?" He cupped my face with his hands and then raised my chin. "I'll kiss you right now if you won't tell me the truth." He warned and the beating of my heart became faster than a while ago. I tried to push him away from me but he wouldn't budge. I felt like I was just pushing a wall.

"Marco, please!"

"I'll give you three seconds to tell me the truth. If you won't tell me the truth, you know what I'll do next." He sounded determined to hear my answer. Judging from his tone, he would surely do anything to make me talk whether I like it or not and that didn't sit well with me.

"Damn you! You don't have the right to do this to me!" I spat at him furiously but he remained unfazed.

"One..." He started counting. I balled my hands into fists as panic started crawling throughout my whole system. He really was serious. I swallowed hard, thinking of a way to get out of that situation but my mind was hazy.

"Two..."

"Marco, wait. I didn't agree to any of these!"

"Just one more, my queen." He breathed the words seductively. I reluctantly opened my eyes and met his gaze. His amber eyes were staring at me full of gentleness even though he was forcing me to answer him. Damn him! He's such a forceful guy!

His mouth opened, intending to continue counting when my mouth automatically opened to speak. "Fine! I wanted to go away even for a couple of weeks because of you!"

"So, you really wanted to run away from me because you couldn't accept the fact that you have feelings for me, is that it?"

"Yes! Are you happy now?!" I snapped at him but when I realized what just came out of my mouth, my eyes went wide. I almost face-palmed. He smirked triumphantly.

"N-No! I didn't m-mean to say that! I—" He interrupted me before I finished.

"—I knew it. You wanted to escape because you couldn't accept that you feel the same way towards me." He said with certainty with a delightful look in his eyes. I was about to falsify his claim but he already closed the gap between us and sealed my lips with a passionate kiss.

I groaned in protest but he didn't give me a chance to push him away. His lips expertly moved against mine, erasing all the hesitations within me just like that. Now, I was certain that his kisses were like a drug that could make me melt in a blink of an eye.

This was the reason why I feared being near him. I tried my best to avoid him but it was so hard to do so, especially that we work in the same place.

He took my hands and clung them onto his neck. "Marco..." I gasped for air when he finally let go of my lips just to claim them again for another mind-boggling kiss. His arms snaked around my waist tightly as if he didn't have any intention of letting me go ever again.

My body temperature went up as my core began getting wet.

He gently bit and then sucked on my bottom lip as if he couldn't get enough of it before kissing his way to my cheek, jaw and then ear.

"I'm addicted to your lips, my queen. Even your smell is like a drug to me." He voiced out full of desire before the tip of his tongue traced the contours of my ear and then gently bit the sensitive part, making me moan even if I didn't want to.

Electric-like sensation crawled up my spine because of what he just did.

I bit my lower lip to prevent myself from moaning again when his lips kissed their way to my neck in a teasing manner, but then, a whimper still escaped from me. He really knows how to make me lose my mind.

I felt like my knees turned into jelly.

"Marco..." I wanted to protest again but my voice came out as a seductive moan. I groaned inwardly. I already promised myself not to repeat the same mistake again but I couldn't fight the temptation. I was like a leaf, couldn't do anything than to go with the flow of the river. Damn! Why does it feel so hard to resist him?!

He rested his forehead against mine while breathing hard.

"Give me time to prove myself to you, my queen. All I'm asking is a chance." He whispered while our eyes were locked.

"I-I already have Keith, Marco. I already told you that we can't be together." I whispered back, trying my best to pull myself together and tell him what's right.

"Why does it so hard for you to give me a chance but when it comes to that guy, you accepted him in your life even though you didn't know anything that much about him? You're being so unfair." He chided full of resentment.

"You don't understand." I gently pushed his him on the chest and I almost sighed in relief when he finally let go of me. He took a step backwards as he raked his fingers through his hair in frustration.

"Yes, you're right. I don't understand your reasoning! I know that you don't love that guy but you still accepted his proposal just like that! Did you do that because you wanted to run away from your feelings?"

"How did you know about the proposal?" I didn't tell anyone about it aside from my family. I noticed him staring at the ring on my finger. I didn't know why but I suddenly wanted to hide my ring from his gaze.

"I always have eyes around you." He sat on the leather seat and then poured a champagne in the champagne glass. He chugged it down with a single gulp. Watching his every move made my throat dry for some reason. I mentally shook my head. Get your act together!

"I accepted his proposal because he's my boyfriend." I squeezed my eyes shut when I realized that I sounded so silly.

"Just admit it that you don't love him." I stared daggers at him. I wanted to yell at him but for some reason, not a word came out of my mouth.

"What? I'm just telling the truth." He said casually when he saw my sharp stare.

"You're really a jerk, you know that?"

"Been one for the longest time." I couldn't take it anymore. I turned around and was about to open the door to leave him there when his felt his arm wrap around my waist and then pulled me until my butt landed on his lap. I shrieked in surprise but he just laughed of my reaction.

"Damn you! You're nothing but a b*stard!" I yelled furiously and pounded his chest furiously with my fists.

"Stay still. There's a turbulence." He said and that made me stop. The plane was indeed shaking because of the turbulence. I bit my lower lip when the turbulence started getting worse. I unknowingly held onto his shoulders.

"Scared?" He teased with a smirk.

"S-Shut up!" I barked at him but he just ignored me. His arms tightened around my waist before be burrowed his face on my bosom just like a baby seeking for comfort.

"Marco!" I rebuked.

"Shhh...Stay put. I like holding you in my arms like this. Well, this is the only place where you belong. In my arms and no one else's."

"You're really crazy, you know that?"

"Of course, I know that. I've been crazy for you for the longest time already." He admitted while his face was still buried on my chest. My cheeks went red of what he said, couldn't find the right words to say. Why do I seem to be always at lost for words in front of him? We remained on that position in silence until the turbulence finally stopped.

I've always been uncomfortable whenever there was turbulence during flights but being in Marco's arms made me forget about that for some reason. Well, he always makes me forget about reality whenever I'm in his arms and that's scary for me.

I've never felt the same away to Keith's embrace.

"Marco..." I called, getting his attention.

"Hmmm?" He groaned before he finally lifted up his face from my bosom. "If you're going to ask me to let go of you; my answer is no. I won't bring you to France because you're going to spend your vacation with me." He then buried his face on the crook of my neck. I bit back a moan when I felt his warm breath against my sensitive skin.

I realized that I couldn't win against him so I calmed myself down and thought of a way to make him stop this insanity. I decided to go away from him and Keith to think things clearly but how could I do that if I would be with Marco?

Then, an idea came into my mind.

"I have a suggestion." I voiced out calmly.

"What is it this time, my queen?" He asked sweetly and that made me feel hot.

"Don't call me that!" I hissed, hiding the real effect on me.

"No can't do." I couldn't take it anymore. I pinch him on his side and that made him laugh. That surprised me. Seeing him laugh heartily like that for the first time made my heartbeat erratically. I couldn't take my eyes of his ruggedly handsome face.

He caressed my cheek gently. "C'mon, tell me about your suggestion. I might consider it."

I took a deep breath. "Let's have a game. If I win, you will let me go and promise me not to come near me again. If you win, I'll come with you without complaints and spend my vacation with you."

His eyes shone with hesitation but there was excitement too.

"And what game will we be playing?"

"Chess." I answered. I chose that game because I excel in it. No one except my dad could beat me to it.

"I'll add a condition then. If I win, you will be forbidden to think nor utter your boyfriend's name while we're together on this vacation."

"But—" I tried to protest but he didn't let me talk.

"—No buts, my queen. You were the one who dared me for a game and I'll accept the challenge." He said confidently and that made me gulp inaudibly. No! Don't be nervous, Maggie! You can do this! You have a big chance to win this game! One side of my brain cheered for me. I hope so. And the other side contradicted. I swore under my breath.

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Who will win the game? Marco or Maggie?

Will this be the start of something new between these two?

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