The first thing I registered when I woke up next morning was soreness. I couldn't move an inch. Every muscle of my body ached and there was a numbing pain between my legs.

My eyes squinted as I tried to lift my head up, but a hand pushed it down and patted me like child.

"Go back to sleep."

I groaned and tried to move my hands. Instead of a mattress, I found myself touching a perfectly built chest. Events of last night came back flooding in my mind and my face flushed red. But when I saw a very naked sleeping figure right below me, my entire body flushed.

"What part of 'go back to sleep' do you not understand?"

"I... umm..." I made an attempt to roll over and failed. "I am sorry," I blurted. "I slept on you all night."

"All night?" His voice was hoarse, deep accented and groggy. "What I recall is that we did not sleep all night."

Oh, I definitely recall that. Many times we woke each other up, only fall back into deep slumber after feeling satisfied with our bed activities and repeat again till we passed out in exhaustion.

Blushing, I thumped his bare chest. "Stop it now. I am serious."

He placed his arm over his head and sighed. "So am I."

Not in mood to say any comebacks to him, I accepted my defeat and closed my eyes. "Are you not comfortable like this? I am sandwiching you."

"I believe I had the most comfortable, best sleep ever. It comes in my top three."

"Top three?" I asked. "Do enlighten me about this."

"Not surprisingly, all three of them are with you."

"What's the first?" I drew imaginary circles on his chest with my thumb.

"Your balcony. I had to carry you back to your own bed, remember that?"

I smiled. "Yeah."

"Then it was in your hotel room. I'm going to be honest about this one but I purposely left my key card in Adrian's bedroom."

"I knew it!" I laughed.

"And I had my second best sleep ever," He added. "Third was last night though I would rank it as first."

"I don't mind. Besides you pulled very cheap tricks only to get close to me and you succeeded."

"I did that on purpose too."

"I know."

Our bodies were covered in a thin grey sheet and our legs tangled. My hair was sprawled all over his chest and he was playing with it. I yawned and rubbed my eyes.

"What... What time is it?"

"Eleven." He answered after a moment of silence.

My eyes shot open. "Oh."

We skipped dinner. We skipped breakfast. He's late for work and I'm late for my duties. Do we care? No. We don't.

"I have never stayed in bed with a woman till morning after a wild night of sex."

I blushed at his blunt words. "T-Then what changed?"

"I fell for one."

I tried to crawl up and kiss those damn lips, but I was so sore everywhere that I ended up reaching his neck only and groaned in pain.

"As much as I wish to give you a giant smooch, I can't. I can't feel my body."

"But I can." He dipped his head down and captured my lips. "Buongiorno, amore."

"Buongiorno, capo." I moaned.

"How are feeling?"

"Sore everywhere." I answered honestly.

"I will not apologise for that." He replied smugly.

I groaned again as I craned my neck to the other and saw myself mirror which was right beside us. "I look like a zombie."

He saw me in the mirror. "We both do but you are hotter version of it."

"Shut up." I muttered. He is lying straight on my face.

"I mean it. Under this thin blanket is a woman's natural body worth drooling for."

"Very funny." I eyed him dryly. "Now shut up."

"You do not believe me?" He faked a gasp.

"No."

"Then you should see it for yourself."

I screamed in shock when he threw the sheet on the floor and flipped me to face the mirror fully. I squirmed and covered my chest with my palms, my eyes squeezed shut, avoiding his lustful ones on the mirror.

"C-Capo..."

"Look at this. Look in the mirror, Amy." He whispered seductively in my ears. My cheeks heated up as I slowly opened my eyes and squirmed again when I saw myself in my birthday suit. Leonardo was right behind me, his one hand on my waist and other firm on his head, supported by his elbow. "I very much like what I see. Perfect waist, perfect hips..." His hand travelled down to my hips and I gasped when he smacked it. It's stinging sensation made me wince yet I felt something tingling between my legs. He ventured his exploration downwards. "Long legs which grip me so tight when I slam so hard, so deep, so fast inside your tight, little..." From my legs, his hand travelled front ahead and slipped right in between my legs.

"Leonardo," I cut him off with a moan. "W-We shouldn't. It's aching everywhere. I'm too sore."

"Oh, I know." He grinned devilishly. "Besides, I ran out of condoms. I'll have to buy more for myself."

"Leo," I moaned in protest as he brushed his fingers over my sore heat.

"I know, I know." He assured and pressed his lips on my neck. "I am just showing you what you are worth of. As I was saying about slamming hard and fast in your tight, dripping wet cun—"

"Leo!" I shouted, embarrassed by his choice of words.

Jesus Christ. He talked too dirty. This was a different side of him on bed. A naughty side to be exact. He had no filter over his words nor shame over his actions.

"What? So now I cannot describe how beautiful you are when you are bare in my arms?" He asked innocently and withdrew his hand from my legs then moved it upwards.

"You can but control yourself!" I could feel that certain anatomy of his poking my hip, hard and ready for another round.

"I do not want to do that. You are very responsive when I touch you and I love it. It makes me want to do things with you. Naughty, dirty things which will make you come hard over and over again." He purred in my ears and slowly pulled my hands away from my chest. "Don't hide these from me, amor. Only I have the right to see and touch these."

I moaned as he showered my face and neck with soft kisses and traced all my curves. "Oh, Leo..."

"Do you see it now?" He asked, his gaze fixed in the mirror. "Do you see how stunning and beautiful you look? You are glowing, Amy."

I did. This was something which had never happened before. There was a very strange shine on my face and I did look beautiful regardless of my nude zombie attire. Nevertheless, Leonardo was admiring it with touches and caresses. I realised that life doesn't always go as you have it planned. He wasn't a part of my plan but he became a very important part of my life, scratch that, he became my entire life in a span of almost ten and a half months.

I love him. He loves me. That's it. We are great together and we will be great together in the future.

He placed a chaste kiss behind my ear and whispered. "Ti amo, Amelia."

All of my senses jump started with a new energy as his words kept repeating in my head. Somehow, I wasn't annoyed by his change of language nor I needed a dictionary or my laptop to translate what he just said.

I love you, Amelia.

It's crazy what love can do to an individual.

Wincing in pain, I faced him and touched his jawline.

"I lov—"

"You bastardo!" Adrian shouted from outside. "You filthy piece of shit. Figlio di puttana! Get the fuck out of your room right now or else I'll break your door!"

Hello there, outside world. Long time no see. I haven't seen you since... I shut you out last night.

The Agostini son groaned in annoyance, gave me a quick peck on my cheek then got up from his bed. My throat went dry as I watched him bend down, his cute naked butt visible for me to ogle, and picked up his jacket. He then searched its pockets and pulled out his phone. In two taps of his thumb, he pressed it on his ears.

Two taps? Aw, he has his brother in emergency dial too.

"Why the hell are you calling me, huh? You shithead. Do you know what the time is? You are late and it is your first day. Everybody at the company has been waiting for you for the past two hours!" He yelled and banged the door.

"He is angry."

He cut the call and dialled it again. "Not angry. He is mad at me. You have never seen an angry Adrian."

"Ooh, what's he like?" I asked with an amused smile.

"Dangerous." He answered with a serious expression on his face.

My face fell. It was clear that he has seen his brother in an angry mode, but I could never imagine Adrian as a dangerous man.

"Ahh, finally. Fratello..." Capo started talking in hushed voice and in his country language. Love sure is a crazy thing. I understood when he professed his love for me in Italian, but now I don't understand a single word he is speaking.

I heard Leonardo say my name on the phone and from outside, I heard Adrian shout.

"Hey, Amy! I hope you made sure that my brother used protection!"

My eyes popped out of their sockets and my face became red in embarrassment. "Shut up, Adrian!"

Leonardo gave me a bored look. "He can't hear you from inside. The room is soundproof."

"Then he must have heard me from your phone."

"I did! Nobody wants little Leo's and Amy's running in the halls for now."

For now? Oh, my God.

"Adrian, get lost!" I shouted. "Did you tell your brother that we...?"

"No. Of course not." Leonardo scoffed. "But I do believe that the act which you pulled last night gave everybody a very pretty clear impression of it."

I covered my face in shame and mentally sulked while Leonardo kept talking on the phone.

"Si, wait. Let me just ask my woman."

That did caught my attention. "Huh?"

He turned around and shamelessly flashed his frontal body to me. I gawked at his semi hard and erect anatomy, his V line, abs, broad chest, tattoo then my gaze dropped back to his anatomy. Naughty manners, Amy. Very, very naughty manners. A night ago, if he had pulled such a dirty act, I would have kicked him out of the room and later scolded him a lot.

Now, I'm thinking of every possible way to snatch him back to the bed and do some more bedding activities irrespective of the soreness and aching I am feeling.

"Adrian wants to know how long will it take for me to leave my room. I am not leaving you alone in this state."

I licked my lips and eyed him as if he were a piece of meat. He is a piece of meat. He is my meat.

His eyes darkened in desire. "Amelia, do not look at me like that."

I can't help myself drooling over him. Here he is, standing stark naked in front of me, a phone in his hand and a jacket under his strong, muscled arms. I can't think straight.

"Amelia."

"Hmm."

"Look at my face."

"Hmm." I kept staring at his male anatomy.

"Adrian, give me one more hour."

I heard lots of Italian curses from outside accompanied by a kick on the door.

Joy bubbled in my laugh when he tossed his phone on the table and towered over me.

"What are you staring at, huh?" He nuzzled my neck. I moaned and grab hold of his shoulders, feeling him poking at my stomach. "You like what you see, don't you? You like it very much. I'll see if you like it when I'll take you harder and faster than last night and in positions you had never dreamt about in your wildest dreams."

"Leo, we shouldn't." I gasped as he sucked hard on my sweet spot. "Y-You... You are late for your first day."

"I know and you are sore." He cooed.

"Very sore, capo. I am sore everywhere." I moaned.

"You stink too. We both do. We reek of sweat and wild sex. How about we start this day with a nice hot bath and shower?"

We? Does he mean we take a bath together? Only thinking about it made my thighs clench oh so slightly. It felt intimate other than what we had shared last night.

I nodded shyly. "If you can help me walk to the bathroom."

"Walk?" He smirked. "Who said anything about you walking into my bathroom?"

I screamed when he scooped me up in his arms, making me wrap mine around his neck. A twinge of sharp pain shot from between my legs, my eyes snapped shut and I hissed. "I-It hurts."

"There, look outside. See all that white snow. Nice, right? See there!"

I sniffed, slowly adjusting to the shear, numbing pain and my eyes fluttered open to see what he was talking about. I saw a plain white ground. Everything was white. It was breathtakingly mesmerizing. Looks like it snowed all night.

"I'll give you an A grade for making an effort to divert my mind." I mumbled and hid my face in his chest, breathing in his deep, manly scent.

He laughed. "I deserve an A plus."

"This somewhat feels familiar."

"What?"

"Me being in your arms like this." I mumbled, feeling slightly confused.

He cleared his throat. "Well, um... I believe it has happened twice already."

"Twice? How so?"

"First time was the day I shot you. I carried you to the infirmary. Second time was in your balcony. I had to carry you back to your bed."

I blinked. "Oh."

"Si. Now, I'll carry you to the bathtub and if you behave... I'll let you touch me at places which were inside of you last night."

A blush adorned my cheeks and I looked away, but then the colour of my face drained when I saw red patches on his bed.

"B-Blood?" I whispered in shock.

Leonardo winked. "The only kind I like."

After a forty five minutes long warm water bath and shower together which included occasional soft kisses and our hands touching at places we wanted to be touched and massaged at, I found myself wearing only a large white half buttoned shirt which partially covered my hips and watching Leonardo getting ready for work.

"You know, I still haven't said it."

"Said what?" He was making his tie.

I grinned. "Three words. Eight letters. Two spaces in between."

"I hate you? You say it almost everyday."

I threw a pillow in his direction and he dodged it easily. "You know it's not that, August-mini. And I hate you for saying that."

He snickered and wore his suit. "If that's the case, how about you say it now or you hold yourself for a few more hours and when I come back, I will take you out again."

"Like another date?" I asked excitedly.

"Si." He turned around and faced me. "Maybe we can pop open another bottle of grape wine, enjoy the snowfall and celebrate us. You can say it that time to make it extra special at the moment. How does that sound?"

"That sounds amazing."

"Or you can say it now because that plan for tonight is now fixed."

My smile faltered a bit when I remembered something. "Won't you be coming late? You are a busy man now. Everything is in your hands."

He shook his head, his expression becoming serious. "I'll be back early evening. I need to have a word with padre about everything he has done to my famiglia and everything he is planning to do. After that, we can leave."

My mood dropped when I remembered my dance with his father. "Oh. Okay. I'll be the girl in grey hoodie and winter boots."

"And I'll be the man with a Harley." He smirked.

"Harley? You have a bike?"

"Er, I have many things. A bike is one of them."

"I don't think it's safe to ride a bike in this weather." I mumbled sadly.

"Don't worry. It will be a twenty minute ride and the roads will be clear."

"Okay then." He walked into his not-so small closet and came out with a suitcase in his hand and a Bluetooth on the other. He attached that device to his ear.

"How do I look?"

I cringed. "You look... ew. Get out of here!"

He chuckled. "Thank you for your honest compliment, signorina Jones. What are your plans for today?"

"Nothing much." I shrugged it off. "I limp when I walk so I'll probably stay in your room for an hour or two, sleep then go back to mine, change my clothes and get myself to eat something. Do some cleaning, if I can. Attend a class. You know my usual agenda."

"Okay." He nodded and opened the main door. "I have to go. I'll see you in the evening. I love you."

My heart fluttered and I grinned mischievously. "You want me to say it now? Okay. I—"

"Just get some rest, Amy. Ciao." He cut me off mid sentence with an amused shake of his head and closed his bedroom door, leaving me alone with feelings for him.

"—love you too, you idiot."

*****

Evening came in earlier than I expected. Or maybe it was because I spent the whole day sleeping in my room, giving my body the rest it needed after last night activities.

I slept in capo's bedroom for another hour, awkwardly got out of his bedroom, ignoring the shocked stares of two women who were mopping the floor, went into mine, changed my clothes, got out of my room and limped my way to the kitchen where I found Rylie smirking at me the whole time as I ate my lunch with her in silence and limped back to my room where I fell asleep again. Not to forget that word in this mansion spreads like wildfire yet nobody comments or gossips behind my back because... surprise, surprise, nobody is allowed to. Everybody knows that something is going on between capo and I.

I gave a last brush to my hair and wore my winter boots. They weren't much but they were the only pair everybody got. We don't walk out to sweep the ground or mend the garden during snow season, but we always had an emergency pair for a safe side.

This second date did call for an emergency.

With a huge smile on my face and excitement bubbling in my stomach, I walked out of my room and knocked on my neighbour's door.

"Capo? You in there?"

To my surprise, I found the door open. When I walked in I saw the room was neatly arranged. Bedsheets were changed, the clothes which we had discarded and the necklace he had tossed in a heat of passion were arranged neatly on his chair.

It was clear that the housekeepers had cleaned his room.

Gosh, I don't even want to think what they were thinking while changing that bed sheet which had the proof of my innocence.

"Leo?" I called out his name in the empty room.

Nothing. Maybe he hasn't come back yet. With all that added responsibility he was talking about, I did expect him to be a busy man. Not to forget that he did leave the mansion very late on his first day of work.

I closed the door and roamed around the corridor, in search of a man in suit; any man in suit who can tell me about their boss's arrival time.

"Hey," I stopped a familiar looking man and tried to remember his name. "Antonio. Please tell me it's Antonio, right?"

"Si, signorina Jones." He smiled genuinely. "How can I be of your help?"

"Do you know when capo is coming back from work?" I asked.

"I saw capo and signore Agostini arrive at the mansion almost an hour ago. They are at the top floor."

Oh, shit. I forgot about his little chat with his father poking his nose in his personal life and asking about his mother's whereabouts.

"Thank you, Antonio."

"Is there anything else you wish to know, signorina?"

"No, please. Carry on with what you were doing." I waved him bye and stopped by the staircase.

Top floor. One hour. Both of them. I am not allowed to roam over there. That's the only rule Leonardo gave me. I remember Adrian telling me to avoid it all costs, but now both of them are over there probably picking up a fight with their father.

Should I go up?

No! Where did that thought come from? He made that rule to keep me safe and away from his father. I must obey that. It's for my own good.

Since when did I started following the rules he gave me? I'm a woman of my own. I will go wherever I wish to go. No. No. I should not. I must not. I could not. This is bad. If he finds out, he will get really upset with me. Respect and trust, that's what we have for each other now. I must keep it safe.

Will you stay with me after that? His words echoed in my head. He said the same back in the hotel room and I remembered how I promised to be there for him.

Time to be there for him, right? Yeah. I should go up and see how he is doing there. See if he found something about his Mama or a way to stop him from interfering between us.

When I reached the top floor, I didn't see many people. Mostly men in suits going inside a room and a woman packing up her cleaning items. Soon, they were all gone and on a far end of the corridor, away from his father's office, I saw Adrian pacing with his phone.

"Adrian." I said.

His head snapped in my direction and his eyes widened in shock. "Amelia! No. No, you are not supposed to be here."

"I-I know, but I have to know what's going on. Is everything alright? You look... worried."

"Because I am. Go back to your room. We'll talk there later." He said sternly which made me frown.

Then I heard two voices shouting from his phone. Capo and his father.

"Adrian, I will not repeat this again." I said very cautiously as I heard them arguing in rapt Italian from his phone speakers. "Is everything alright?"

"Amy, leave." He gritted. His change in attitude confirmed that something was definitely not right.

"You know I can't do that now. Not after hearing that." I jumped slightly when I heard a crash. "Adrian, tell me please."

"I suppose we both know why he wanted to talk to padre, right?" I nodded in response. Adrian sighed. "Let's just say it's not turning out good. First day of job and he is already fighting. They are releasing years of frustration and anger on each other."

My breath caught in my throat when I heard another crash and lots of shouting in Italian. "How... How are you being able to hear them?"

"Capo kept me on dial before he went in. In case something goes wrong, I can intervene." He explained.

"Don't you think you should be going inside now?" I asked.

"Not yet."

I heard them quieten down for a moment then I heard Leo's father speak something in a firm, authoritative tone. In between his long Italian speech, I heard my name from him.

"Adrian, what is he saying?" I whisper yelled.

He cursed under his breath. "I knew it. I was seeing this coming."

"Adrian, you are scaring me. What's going on? What did you knew?" I asked desperately. Something dreadful had already settled in my stomach and I don't like how this evening is turning out.

He turned off the speaker, pressed the phone on his ear and listened very intently then started shaking his head while. muttering something in Italian. "... No. No. Fratello, non sono d'accordo..."

... No. No. Brother, don't agree... don't agree on what?

His shoulder tensed and his eyes widened as if something like a bucket of cold water was poured over him. Very slowly, he faced me and looked straight into my eyes.

"Amelia... run."

"W-What?"

His jaw clenched. "Don't ask questions now. You don't have the time to ask. Run!"

I took a few steps back. "And w-where am I supposed to go? Adrian, what's going on? What is it that you are not telling me?"

He grabbed my wrist and we began to walk, almost running. "There have been certain change of plans now. I want you to run back to the staff quarters, ask someone over there to find Louisa. Stay in your old room and keep it locked till she comes."

"L-Louisa?" I stammered in anxiousness. "Adrian, why would I—"

"No questions, Amy!" He yelled. "I have to keep you safe from him and you being with her is the best option now. The only option."

I stopped in the middle and snatched my hand back. "Unless you tell me what's going on here, I am not going anywhere. I am scared as shit here and you are not telling me anything!"

He groaned loudly and gripped his hair in frustration. "Amelia, please you have to trust me for once. You need to get into safety first."

"I do, okay? I do trust you, but you are not giving me the answers I need to know right now! Why do you have to keep me safe from your father when Leonardo is with him, taking care of the things he has been doing?"

"I am not talking padre here, Amy."

My heart dropped to my stomach when I realised which 'him' he is trying to keep me safe from.

"Leo?" I whispered, my eyes brimming up.

As if on cue, a door which was a couple of feet away from us burst open and the Agostini son stepped out of it.

I swear I heard my heart crack when I saw the anger burning in his eyes not subside. The man I had fallen in love with is slowly turning into a monster he once was to me. I fear that my darkest fear is now coming true.

"I am so very sorry, Amelia. So sorry." Adrian whispered softly in my ears. "Remember what you promised me last night. Never give up. Survive first. Trust yourself and your instincts. No matter what situation you are in or how alone you feel. Keep that promise for me, Amy."

I sniffed. "A-Adrian, I'm scared. I can't do this."

"I have to go. Do some... arrangements and take care of things."

I grabbed him hand and squeezed it tightly. "Adrian, no. No! D-Don't leave. I can't face him like this. He had hurt me badly last time."

"You have survived far worse than that. You can survive this." He chuckled humorlessly and touched my hair, his smile dying down. "I told you not to let your hair down for Mama Gothel."

"Signore Adrian." A terrifying voice called him from behind. It turned out to be his brother. "Your work here is over. You may leave."

He faced him, his expression blank. "Don't do this, capo. We both know it is not the right decision. Loss from both parties."

"It is for the best."

"You are not thinking straight!" He hissed. "You don't care about yourself but at least think about her."

"I always think of her..." His fury eyes met mine and I gulped. "... and this is for her own good."

"Leo, you will regret this. Just like him." Adrian growled. "You can change your mind and we'll think of something else. All three of us."

His eyes narrowed. "Leave. That's an order."

The brothers had a very intimidating staring competition which actually made me feel low of myself then Adrian scoffed, gave me a last look and mouthed. "Take care."

His brother shot him a glare and Adrian walked away.

Then it was just me and him.

"What are you doing here?" He snapped.

"I came here to be with you." I snapped back. "Just like I promised, remember? Or you forgot after drinking coffee with your father? Do tell me, did you take chili instead of sugar? Because your face is red."

He stood tall in front of me, invading my personal space. "You are not supposed to be here."

"Too bad for you that I don't follow rules, right?" I said sarcastically.

"No. You just made it a lot more easier for me." He said blatantly. "You have to leave."

"Tsk. Tsk. Sorry, capo. I can't do that unless you tell me what nonsense your father brewed in your coffee."

He grabbed my wrist with a tight grip and pulled me down the stairs with him.

"Hey! You are hurting me!"

"Ouch! You're bruising me again!"

"Let go of me!"

His grip around my wrist tightened infinitesimally and I hissed. "What is wrong with you?!"

"Shut up!" He shouted and pushed me ahead in the hall. I heard lots of gasps around us.

I stared at him in disbelief. "How dare you!"

"I gave you one rule, Amelia. Only one rule!" His strong voice boomed everywhere. "Stay away from the top floor and this what you do. You back answer me and disrespect me and my padre while being on the top floor!"

"That's because you asked me to be there for you after everything is over, you idiot!" I shouted back. "So instead of creating a scene in front of everybody, why don't you tell me what went wrong in there? Why are you behaving like this? We can about this privately."

"There is no need for that. I have had enough. I want you to leave."

I flung my hands up in the air I exasperation. "Fine! You want me to leave? I'll leave. We can just take some time off. I'll stay a few nights back in my old room while you set your mind straight because you are behaving like a jerk!"

"You are not moving back to your old room, signorina Jones." He said coolly. "It is for your own good. There are enemies of this famiglia which are always lurking in the corner, waiting for a moment of weakness and strike. It is too dangerous for you to be here. As the head of this famiglia, it is my duty to ensure everybody's safety, including yours. You have to leave."

Enemies lurking... Too dangerous... Leave... I have heard these words before. Yes, a long time ago. Way before everything happened. Before I met him.

Realisation hit me like a slap on my face and tears rolled down, my heart now broken in pieces. "No. No, no, no! You can't do this! You're... kicking me out?" The word left a sour taste. "Are you even listening to the words coming out of your mouth? You can't do this to me, to us!"

His face remained blank as always. "My word is final. You have to leave. I am not... kicking you out. I am politely ordering you to leave my home, my famiglia for your own safety."

"Oh, my God. You know this is exactly what he did to your mother!" I cried. "Did he threaten you? Would he shoot me if you don't do this? Sell me like a piece of rag? Tell me, Leo!"

Only last night I was guessing what stupid tactics his father would pull on us where I guessed he would remove me from the picture just like he did to his wife.

Who knew that his son would be the one to do it?

"You will not speak ill about my padre, signorina Jones. Do not test my patience." He warned.

"The hell I care!" I yelled. "This is not you talking. This your asshole of a father stuffing words in your mouth. I will not tolerate this anymore. I don't care about what he said to you about me. I'm going to talk to him."

"Last warning. You will not speak such crude words about the retired head of my famiglia! Nobody will!" He declared, eyeing every man and woman present in the hall then landed on me. "And you just crossed a limit, signorina Jones. I have run out of patience now so I will give you two choices. Either you leave on your own or I force you to leave."

"Forcing a person to leave is just a formal word of kicking out, you son of a bitch!"

His nose flared in anger. "Do. Not. Insult. Me. Consider me merciful enough for not putting two bullets in your head for all these intolerable months!"

"Intolerable months?!" I faked a gasp and clapped slowly. "My goodness, look who's speaking. You forgot that you were the one who did all of this and it's still you! I kept reminding you that it's all you and I tagged along because you asked me to. Now you are throwing it back on my face and guess what? It's still you!"

"If that's the case," He cleared his throat and sighed loudly. "Then you, signorina Jones, are free to leave. I am giving you what you always wanted from the beginning; Freedom from this 'hell house' as you used to call it."

My breath hitched. This isn't the man I love. He would probably throw me over his shoulder and trap in me in a bedroom. Nor this is the boss everybody looked up to. This is a monster who is another monster's puppet.

If someone would have told me that I was free to walk out of this place years before or only a year ago, I would have made a run for it. Two months after that, I would have been dying to get out of here because by that time, I would have already met him and his brother. Fast forward to four or five months, I would have given it a second thought after finding out that my loved ones think of me as runaway and a girl who is dead to them. Six months ago, I would still give a second thought about starting my own life without them.

But what I didn't realise is in all these months, I was getting attached to the family I once wanted to run away from. Something which I never did before I met Leonardo. Though I never asked for that too, I was grateful for it. The women weren't allowed to get too attached with each other but we did look after each other. There are restrictions for us. The men who work for the now Agostini boss, they are bad alright but they listen. They do care.

While I was making efforts to run away from here and reunite with my family, subconsciously I was getting attached to another and slowly I did get attached to another when I finally stopped making efforts.

I looked around everywhere and tried to find a familiar face when my gaze fell on a small mirror at the far end of the hall.

I looked like a mess and I didn't care. My face was flushed red in half anger and half disappointment.

I continued my search to find her and when I realised that she wasn't here, I turned to another woman who was standing in a corner. Carina.

"Take care of Rylie for me." A tear slipped from her eye as I mouthed her these words then she stormed into another hallway which led to the indoor swimming pool area.

I closed my eyes, remembering all the good times I had shared with Leonardo, his brother and the others and said. "No. I'm not going anywhere. Do what you want to do now. Drag me out of here or shoot me if you want. I don't care. You are not your father, Leo. You never were. You better than him, you are stronger than him. Always remember that." I sniffed and choked on my sob. "But also remember how you felt when your father forced your mother to leave and try to imagine how she felt and what she went through if you ever find out from your father or maybe you already did. I don't know. I'll never know."

As usual, his face remained void of any emotions as he commanded something in Italian. When nothing happened, he shouted the same command and my arms were grabbed by two men.

"I thought you loved me." I whispered hoarsely.

His cold hard steel eyes softened slightly. "I still do, but this is for your own good. To keep you safe. I love you. Always remember that."

I scoffed, ignoring that pang in my chest. "I guess that second date is not going to happen anytime soon."

"No."

"Did last night not mean anything to you? If it did, you wouldn't be doing this. You'd fight for us."

"It did, Amy." A bitter smile appeared on my face when he called me that. I always love it when calls me that. "It meant everything to me."

"Don't do this, Leo. Please, please, please." I begged, crying. "Whatever he said to you, we will figure it out. T-Together. You don't have do this. Please."

"It's for your own good. To keep you safe."

"Stop repeating the same sentence again and again!" I wailed. "I don't want it. I-I just want you. Oh God, I had just got you and y-you are..."

"But that is all you have to know." He said calmly.

"W-Was last night not enough?" I sniffed. "Was it not enough to show you how much I..." No. I will not say it. He doesn't deserve to hear it now. Not after this nonsense act he is pulling on behalf of his father.

– And wasn't that a perfect slap on his face.

"Take her out of here." He ordered monotonously.

"NO! Leo! Let go of me! I am not done with you yet!" I began to scream and thrash around everywhere as the two men dragged me out of the main door.

Cold air hit me like an iceberg and my teeth chattered.

"LEO, NO—Mmmh!" My eyes widened when I felt a strong smelling cloth cover my nose and dizziness washed over me in an instant.

Oh dear God, not with this again!

I heard Rylie's scream and saw Leonardo's retreating figure on the staircase as the owner of a pair of baby blue eyes removed the cloth from my nose before the house of Agostini shut the door on my face.

Then I passed out.

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