I smiled. “Good luck with that.”
Luca shook his head again, turned to the man at the door and said, “Stay there.” The man did as he was told as Luca ventured off into my bathroom.
A few seconds later he was back handing me two tablets and a glass of water. “Here, take these for the pain.” I did as I was told, since my lip had started throbbing a little by then. Once I downed them, I looked up to his gorgeous face and scowled. “Now, have a rest. I’ll be back to check on you in a little while.”
My eyes widened. “What? You can’t keep me prisoner here.”
“Oh, you just watch me.” He was soon out the door, making his most graceful exit and leaving me frustrated and angry yet again. When I realized he wasn’t coming back anytime soon, I placed the ice back on my lip and laid my head down on the pillow. I did contemplate trying to leave, but Luca wasn’t stupid. Of course he would have at least one guard outside to stop me from going anywhere. I knew that much. Still, I had to know. I needed to scope out what was happening around me.
With the ice still in place at my lip, I rose from the bed and quietly opened the door. The minute I did, a face appeared. “Can I help you, Miss Murphy?”
As I stared into the eyes of another burly man, I took him in. He was about six foot four—the same as Luca—with the most piercing blue eyes. This was rather exceptional considering he had dark hair and olive skin. I was sure a couple of my girls would go cuckoo over him. I was sure I would have if it wasn’t for the fact I’d seen Luca first.
I smiled sweetly. “Can I have your name?”
He smiled back. “The name’s Alessandro, ma’am.”
“Alessandro, what a lovely name.” Touching one of his arms, I squeezed ever so lightly. “Wow, what big muscles you have.” I was being a damn right hussy.
“All the better to…” With a glint in his eye, he paused a moment and then cleared his throat. “Err… Thank you, ma’am.”
“Now, come on, Alessandro. We’re not strangers here anymore. Call me Clara.” I squeezed his arm again, causing a cheeky grin to rise.
“Clara,” he whispered.
I leaned forward a little. “Yes, Alessandro?”
“As much as I love a beautiful blonde bombshell with the most sparkling blues eyes making advances towards me, I would appreciate it if you stopped.”
I gasped. “Why? I’m only being friendly.”
He looked pained. “I know, but my boss would kill me … literally.”
I sighed in surrender. He was right of course, and I wasn’t being fair. At least this way I knew he wasn’t gay. That was a start. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to get you into trouble.”
Alessandro smiled. “I appreciate that. Is there something else you needed?”
Looking around as much as I could, I shook my head. “No. That’s fine. Thank you, Alessandro.”
He smiled, and I shut the door behind me. Thank God I went out for a walk this morning. I had a feeling I was going to be in here for a while.
At some point—due to my bored state—I must have fallen asleep because as I opened my eyes, I realised quickly there was someone else on the bed with me.
“Hello, sleepyhead.” I quickly remembered where I was and groaned loudly. “You don’t sound very pleased to see me.”
Turning my body over, I stared at the beautiful arsehole’s face. I couldn’t let myself get swept up by him … no matter how much his sheer presence warranted it. “I have clients coming in soon.”
He smirked. “All taken care of.”
I shot up and glared at him. “What do you mean?”
“You wouldn’t tell me where they were, so I had to look through your diary of appointments and cancel them all. I must say they were a little disappointed, but I managed to think on my feet.”
I sucked in a breath. “What did you say?”
“I told them that a nasty bug had infected most of the girls, and you would all be in quarantine for at least two days until it passes.”
I closed my eyes. “You mean imprisoned.”
“Only you—oh, and one other now.”
My heart rate accelerated. “Who?”
“A lovely young girl called Mia.” He saw the look of horror on my face. “Don’t worry, she’s in safe hands. I can guarantee you that.”
I kind of believed him after the way he behaved when Michel hit me, but I still worried after her. “I want to see her.”
Luca nodded. “Very well.”
I was shocked. “What? Just like that?”
“Yes. What makes you think I would want to keep you apart? If you want to speak with her, then, by all means, speak with her, but she’s not staying here with you.”