I screw the cap back on, my attention turning to her. I know the answer to my question I asked earlier. She accepted her fate because she wanted to protect her father. I suppose I would do the same had I had any known family members alive.
“Dinner. A nice little restaurant in the city. I made reservations and figured you might want to get out of the house for a bit.” All that I have said is true. She has been stuck in the house for weeks, and if I were her, I would’ve been going stir crazy. I at least had a chance to see my cousin Alassandra.
“Awfully sweet of you…” She is mocking me. I know it, as does she.
“See, I’m not always a monster.” Giving me a dirty look she shifts her body away from mine so she can look out the window. It doesn’t matter to me that she knows where we are or how to leave the house. Where she is isn’t meant to be a prison. If she runs, I will kill her, and that much she knows. Except now I am starting to wonder if I really would pull the trigger.
The ride goes smoothly as I pull my phone out, sending Luccio a text to let him know I will be stopping by later. I will find out why he sent a pig to me. I will also inform him that he is now dead, and he can get his men to get his dead body off my property.
“Are you going to kill me after all this?” Bree asks sheepishly as her eyes stay trained on the window. I hadn’t really thought about it, so I don’t actually have an answer to her question.
“I don’t know. Probably not, unless you give me a reason to…” It is an open ended question. This is her last chance to tell me if she will do something crazy—like run.
She rolls her beautiful, brown eyes at me, and my dick grows hard. Her defiance makes me want her that much more. Get your head in the game… Except that’s not that I need to be focusing on. I need to be worried about whatever it is the fuck that is going on around me.
“I just don’t want to die yet. I have so much to live for… My mom died rather young, and I want to fulfill everything before that time comes.” Her words cause a hole in my chest to form. She’s opening up to me about her mother and her death. God, does it make me feel more like a fucking asshole for treating her like shit, for putting her through all of this. It has to be done though, softness is weakness…
“You never talk about your parents, but let me tell you it hurts to lose someone you love like that. It feels like a piece of the person that you were died with them. I miss my mom everyday…” She says all of this innocently without knowing my story. I clench my teeth together as sweat forms on my hands. This is the part that gets me, the part where someone wants to know about my family, or what happened to them. No one asks because they already know, but yet looking deeply into her eyes I can tell she deserves at least a smidge of the truth.
“I know more than you think, Piccolo…” My words are soft as she looks at me with concern. This is the hard part about what I do. Not allowing myself to get close to anyone. It’s always easier if you’re closed minded, and shut yourself out from the world. If I make the rules then I control the outcome. With Bree, I’m starting to wonder if I can control the outcome of all of this.
“Why do you call me that?” Her voice is hushed, and there’s a sense of warmth that fills my bones. She’s too innocent for her own fucking good.
I reach out placing my hand on her thigh. Her skin is warm against my hand, and I stare deep into her eyes, “You’re a little one. Or at least you remind me of one.” She won’t understand what I’m saying, but she’s fragile, tiny in her own way. She doesn’t even realize the power that she contains. I was gone the moment my eyes landed on that picture of her in her parents run down farm house.
The vehicle comes to a stop, and Jared, my driver, is out and opening the door before she can mutter another word. I take the silence as a way to gather my thoughts. So much bad fucking shit is going to take place if I can’t figure out who has set me up.
We slip from the SUV and into the Italian restaurant I had made a reservation at. I had been going to Sangerios since I was a child. I had known almost everyone that worked here, since before I is born. The legacy started with my parents and was carried onto me. We have our own private entrance and table.
“This place is beautiful…” I hear her mumble under her breath. We head to a table outside under the small light that they had hanging above us like a canopy. The moon is shining brightly as the waitress comes to take out orders. I order two of the same thing, one for her and one for me, and then give the waitress a soft smile.