I nodded, a lump forming in my throat. Luca took my chin between his thumb and index finger, forcing me to meet his eyes. “There’s only you, Aria.” He glanced at his watch, then pulled back. “I really need to go now. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He turned and strode through the crowd that parted for him. Matteo followed after him and Gianna stepped up beside me. “That asshole.”
“Who?” I said distractedly. Grace had disappeared from the VIP area.
“Matteo. The guy has the nerve to tell me not to dance with other men. What is he? My owner. Fuck him.” She paused. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” I whispered. “Let’s go to the bar.” Romero and Cesare fell into step behind us but I turned around to them, feeling on edge. “Can you watch us from afar? You’re driving me crazy.” Without a word they separated and took positions in corners of the club. I released a breath and settled on a barstool.
I ordered two new Gin & Tonics and took a deep gulp from the cool liquid, trying to relax. Gianna jiggled her leg. “You can go dancing,” I told her, but she shook her head and bobbed her head to the music. “In a few minutes. You look pale.”
“I’m okay,” I said, my eyes searching the club for a sign of Grace, but she seemed to have vanished into thin air. There were too many people on the dance floor to find her anyway.
“I really need to go to the restroom,” Gianna said after a while. Her Gin & Tonic was almost gone.
“I need to sit for a few more minutes.”
Gianna gave me a worried look but then she slipped away and Cesare followed at a safe distance.
I put my head in my palm, taking a deep breath. An arm bumped against mine, startling me. I drew back as a man with long blond hair leaned against the counter beside me. He reached past me for a straw. His jacket brushed my breast and I leaned even further back, and glanced away, uncomfortable with the look he was giving me.
“What’s your name?” he shouted.
I tried to ignore him. Something about him was seriously giving me the creeps. I took a sip from my drink and tried to pretend I was busy searching for someone. The man kept leering at me with an ugly smile on his unshaven face. “Are you waiting for someone?”
I turned away, really trying to ignore him and not make a big deal out of this. If I started freaking out, Romero would come over and make a scene. Maybe he was already on his way. My vision started to blur and my stomach gave a lurch. I took another sip from my drink but it didn’t help. I slid off the stool but my legs were shaky and I felt dizzy. I grabbed the counter behind me. Suddenly, the man’s mouth was at my ear, his stale-cigarette breath on my face. “I’m going to fuck your tight ass. I’ll make you scream, bitch.” His grip on my arm was crushing as he tried to drag me away from the bar. My eyes found Romero who was steering toward me, hand under his jacket where his gun and knife were. Impatient by our slow progress, my attacker wrapped an arm around me like a loving boyfriend ready to help his drunk girlfriend out of the club. “I’ll fuck you like an animal. I’ll fuck you bloody, cunt,” he rasped into my ear. I stared at him, my limbs feeling heavy, my mouth like it was filled with cotton. I’d heard those exact words not too long ago.
I forced my lips into a smile. “You are a dead man.”
Confusion flickered across the man’s face a second before it contorted in agony. He released me and my legs gave away, but Cesare caught me, his arm replacing that of the man. My eyes darted around for Gianna. She hovered beside Cesare, face drawn in worry. Romero was close behind my attacker, his knife buried in the man’s upper thigh. “You will follow us. If you try to run, you’ll die.”
“Take her drink,” Cesare said to Gianna. “But don’t drink.”
Cesare half carried me toward the back of the club and down a flight of stairs. He shouldered open a door and we walked into a sort of office. Matteo rose from his chair. “What’s going on?”
“Probably roofies,” Romero said, giving the man he was holding a good shake.
“I’ll get Luca,” Matteo said with a twisted smile. He walked through another door and a moment later Luca stalked into the room, as tall and impressive as ever. I hung in Cesare’s grasp, my face half pressed against his chest. Luca’s eyes narrowed, then flitted between me and my attacker.
“What happened?” he snarled.
Suddenly he was in front of me, lifting me into his arm. My head lolled against his chest as I gazed up at him. He put me down on the couch. Gianna knelt beside me, gripping my hand. “What’s happening to her?” she cried.