Icy blue eyes

The first thing I heard after getting my senses back was the beeping of some machine. Blinking against the bright light, I opened my eyes. A silent groan left my lips at the pain that shot through my head as soon as I tried to move.

White walls. Blue curtains. A doctor stood at the corner of the room in her white uniform, explaining something to a nurse.

Hospital? 

Why the hell I was in a hospital?

The pain in my head… Then memories from earlier the day rushed in. The court, Todd Samuelson and then the… accident!

Frantically, I tried to feel every inch of my body. Other than my head, thankfully everything seemed alright.

"Cassie! Oh thank God! I was getting crazy thinking why you aren't up yet!" Beth's voice snatched my eyes to the door.

With a cup of coffee in her hand, she rushed in. Only then the doctor noticed that I got my consciousness back. 

"How are you feeling now, Miss. Brooks?"

Beth sat on the chair beside the bed.

"My head is throbbing," I croaked out.

"You have hit your head on the car window pretty hard. But don't worry. Luckily there are no internal injuries. But the pain will take a day or two to go away because you have a slight swelling on your head."

"I hope I don't look like a cartoon with a hump on her head," I mumbled.

She let out a chuckle.

"No, Miss. Brooks. You look fine. The swell isn't visible. Anyways, I'm giving you a pain killer and some meds. They will help you with the pain. And take rest. You need it."

As the doctor and the nurse left the room, I turned to Beth. 

"Did I ruin your lunch date?" 

Her hazel eyes rolled. "No, you didn't. We were just watching a movie when I got a call about your accident." A sigh left her. "Thank God, Mr. De Sylvano was there by a sheer coincidence and saw you. He brought you to the hospital immediately."

My heart skipped as at the mention of him.

That pair of intense icy blue eyes.

I couldn't see his face, but I knew whom those eyes belonged to. Those eyes were not something to forget.

Duncan De Sylvano.

The hot mysterious Italian billionaire.

The man who often knocked on my dreams for the past few months. Years to say. The man who saved me from falling from the stage five years ago. Whose unmoving gaze on that night was engraved on my mind.

My heart beat started to race without any reason. Stupid heart!

Don't forget he was the same man who had ignored you like a plague on every Valencian party you met!

My lips pressed tight.

"You should thank him, you know? He only left when I arrived and the doctor said that you were fine. That's so kind of him!" Beth's voice pulled me back from my wandering thoughts.

He stayed here for me for that long when he barely knew me other than his close friend's family friend?

I thought he hated me. 

Well, I hated him too. 

Except his eyes.

And sinful looks.

And…

Okay, stop it!

"Yeah, I will if he will talk to me."

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Nothing." Getting up, even with the throbbing in my head, I grabbed the coffee she brought. 

"I hate it when you don't share things with us." She referred to my other best friend. Emerald Hutton, now a happy Valencian. "And that's my coffee."

"I tell you when it's important. And it's not," I said, taking a sip. It immediately warmed my senses. 

"You should lie down. You had an accident!" 

"I just hit my head. Not injured or dead."

Her gaze narrowed at me. "You're cranky today. Since this morning. What's up? I like my fun Cassie, you know?"

That brought a smile to my lips. 

"Nothing. I was just stressed over the case." 

Even if she and Em were the only people I could call my own, as my family, sharing my personal problems with them or anyone else never have been my thing. I wanted to, but I couldn't. 

Because letting people in meant letting them peek into my past. And that was the last thing I wanted.

The door opened again, interrupting us.

Mason walked in with an awkward smile. Adjusting his glasses, he cleared his throat.

"Hey, Cassandra. How are you?"

I rolled my eyes, getting a slap on my arm from Beth. 

"Be nice!" 

"I don't like him." 

My gaze fixed on Mason who shifted on his legs.

"Cassie!" She glared.

When I didn't apologize, an exasperated sigh left her.

"He has changed, Cassie. He clearly told his mom that he wants to be with me. Whether she likes it or not. And he is going to move in with me next month."

I raised my brows. 

So he finally got some balls?

"You aren't gonna chicken out before your mom, will you?"

His shake of head was immediate. Walking closer, he put a hand on Beth's shoulder. "I love her. Yes, It took me some time to stand up for our relationship. But I realized that I can't stay without her. So I'm not letting her go whether my mom likes it or not. You can trust me with your best friend, Cassandra."

At the certainty in his voice, blush coated Beth's cheeks. Happiness sparkled in her hazel orbs.

A smile tugged on my lips. She has been through a lot in these past few months.

"As long as you don't hurt her, you're safe from my hands," I shrugged. "And you can call me Cassie from now on. Welcome to the family."

A relieved grin broke out on his boyish features. "Thank you! So you won't ditch any lunches or dinners if I'm attending from now on?"

I laughed, wincing at the same time from the pain. "What about hitting the club tonight?"

A gasp came from Beth. "Absolutely not! You're directly coming to my place and taking a rest as long as your head doesn't get better."

I waved her off. "I will take some painkillers. I will be fine. I put Todd behind the bars today, so I need some alcohol in my system to celebrate."

I needed to get wild to forget about everything. The break was needed.

"But…"

"You can come with me if you want. But I'm going, and that's final." 

Her shoulders slumped. "I wish Em was here. She could put some sense into you."

She is six months pregnant now and currently in New York with her husband, Achilles Valencian, enjoying a short vacation. I was sure, if she got a sniff about it, she would run back here taking the next flight.

"It's good that you didn't inform her. Now get me out of this hospital." 

Then something clicked in my head. The room I was staying in looked like it was made for some VIP. That Italian brought me to an expensive hospital, didn't he?

"God! The bill is going to empty my bank account!" I cursed under my breath.

Of course, that multi billionaire wouldn't go to a cheaper one. It would be against his prestige.

"Oh, don't worry about it. Mr. De Sylvano already sorted it out. You don't need to pay anything," chirped Beth. 

I gaped. 

He paid the bills for me?

But why?

That man was confusing me.

It seemed like It was time to meet him. Cassandra Brooks didn't keep anyone's favor.

***

"My my, is that Mr. Green I'm seeing here?" 

The bartender in all black and lean body turned to me. Pale green eyes widened as soon as they landed on me.

"Cassie! What a pleasant surprise! When did you arrive?"

I was a regular visitor of the club he used to work at. I needed to get wild every other day to keep myself sane, though it was fun.

"Just now. When did you join this one?" My gaze roamed around the place. "Managed a lavish one this time."

"Yeah, I guess I got lucky. Just joined last week." Chuckling, he glanced over my shoulder and raised his brows.

I turned to Beth and her very uncomfortable boyfriend. Belonging from a conservative family, girls with barely dressed, intimate dancing between some couples and not mentionable doings at some corners put a look of constipation on his face. 

But he didn't complain.

"This is Beth, my best friend. And that's Mason, her boyfriend. And guys, this is Pete."

"Hello, guys! Nice to meet you!" He greeted them with a polite smile. "So? What can I get for you people?"

"My regular."

He nodded. "Dirty Martini it is!"

"Same for me," said Beth, glancing at Mason. "And just a glass of orange juice for him please."

Nodding, Pete went to make our drinks.

After some glasses of Dirty Martini, much to Beth's dismay, I ordered another one. It was reaching to my head and I liked it.

A tall bulky man suddenly appeared beside me, his shoulders touching mine. 

A smirk was next to come.

"What's up, babe?" Bloodshot eyes filled with lust roamed over me. Well, the tiny dazzling black dress that ended right on my mid thigh did grab a lot of attention around me. "Wanna dance?"

Irritation crawled up my skin. Men!

But instead of kicking his ass, I planted a sweet smile on my blood red lips. My favorite color.

His extremely strong perfume made me internally cringe.

"Sure, why not? But I'm a messy dancer, you don't mind, right?" I blinked twice, my voice dripped with seduction.

His eyes lit up. "Of course, I don't mind as long as I get to dance with a beauty like you."

I was never insecure with my features. With natural strawberry blonde hair, which I dyed into honey, amber eyes and the right amount of curves in the right places, many thought I was a born model. Compliments were a regular thing. 

But honestly, I didn't get flutters in my tummy or blush when someone called me beautiful. 

Because I hated it when someone called me that.

My thoughts got a break when that man gave me his hand. "Let's go."

Beth grabbed on my elbow. She shook her head, warning me.

But I just winked at her before walking away with that man. 

Once reaching the dancing crowd, we started to shake our bodies with the beat even though my head pulsed. Loud music, flashing lights, drinks and dance. My temporary escape from reality.

And of course, hurting some men's ego and ruining their expectations, especially a man like this one, it felt good.

Coming closer, he put his hands on my hips. "You have got some good moves, babe."

"You think so?" I screamed over the music.

Nodding, as his hands slowly traveled to my butt, my heel not so mistakenly stepped over his feet.

"Oww! Fuck!" he let out a curse.

"Oh my! I'm so sorry! I told you I'm a messy dancer. Are you all right?" 

He quickly recovered and pulled me closer. "No worries, babe. You can kiss the pain away if you want though."

I would have kissed him if he wasn't a dick and a low grade pervert.

Honestly, I didn't want to ruin my mood by kissing another new guy and not going anywhere. Because it never got past kissing and light touching. 

My body didn't allow me.

Instead of feeling tingles and lust, the only thing I felt was… panic. 

I had a good amount of boyfriends. But no one could take my V card yet. No one could make the feeling go away. No one attracted me enough to make me forget the world for some time. Forget myself. 

I shook my head, taking a deep breath. 

You're here to enjoy, remember, Cassie? So don't think about them.

"What say?" Breath that reeked of alcohol entered my senses. 

Only then I realized how close he was to me. His lips hovered over mine.

No. I didn't want to disappoint myself again.

He came closer. 

And before I could say no to him, he was suddenly snatched away from me.

And the next thing I knew was that pervert was groaning in pain with his hand covering his jaw. Before he could step away, he was held by his collar.

That guy's eyes went as big as saucers as they stared at the enraged man before him. 

My heart skipped.

Duncan De Sylvano?

My lips parted in surprise at the scene before me.

With his hands tightly clutched around that drunkard's collar, his furious icy blue eyes cut him into pieces. He growled out something which I couldn't make out under the loud music. His sharp angular jaw clenched while his nostrils flared.

He was… furious.

The crowd around us stopped moving. All eyes were on the powerful man in the middle of the dance floor who was set to tear someone's limbs from limbs. Dramatic, yes. But it seemed like it.

I almost flinched as he raised his hand for the second time. 

But before he could break that man's jaw, another man appeared on the spot and stopped him.

"Duncan, stop!" His shout reached my ears.

That drunkard clearly recognized who De Sylvano was as he profusely mumbled something. From the fear on his face and tense shoulders, I could tell he was apologizing. 

What's happening? Why is he so mad?

The other man, who must be a friend, then stepped closer and said something to Duncan's ear while those furious eyes were still on that poor guy.

But whatever that man said, seemed to work as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. His sharp jaw was still tight.

Without my permission, my gaze traveled over him. Donning a black Armani suit, he looked as sinful as ever. With a tall frame and well-built broad shoulders, he stood over most of the people around us, radiating an aura that screamed danger.

As soon as those intense, still flaming icy blue eyes opened, they snapped to me.

My eyes widened.

And as if my legs had their own mind, they turned around and started to walk away. Why? I didn't know.

I just wanted to stay away from that lava. Beautiful lava.

Wait, shouldn't I thank him for what he did? 

Not tonight.

I wanted to be sober for that. 

The world around me seemed slightly blurred.

Letting out a hiccup as I looked around for Beth, a big rough hand grabbed my wrist before starting to drag me away.

"What the…"

Words got stuck in my throat as soon as I saw the back of the man who dragged me behind him. Far away from the crowd. To a secluded place.

Once we were away from people's eyesight, I was pressed against a cold wall. 

A gasp slipped through my lips.

With his one of his hands holding my arm, firmly yet gently, the other was on the wall right beside my head. The intoxicating masculine crisp cologne of his filled my senses, engulfing me into it. My skin tingled where his his skin touched mine.

"What are you doi…"

"I thought you were told to get rest! Then WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?" Icy blue eyes were dark, flaming. His deep Italian accent was filled with rage. 

My heart did some weird flip flops. Butterflies danced in my tummy.

"I- I'm…" I stutterd. 

Well, let's admit it. This man made me nervous for some reason. Whenever he was around, my heart felt like it would have a cardiac arrest. And when those intense icy blue eyes would watch me, I seemed to forget where I was.

I cleared my throat. 

No, Cassandra Brooks wasn't weak. No man could make her feel weak.

"I'm here to do what everyone else is doing here. To have fun." I finally managed to speak. "And who are you to ask me that? Pressing me against the wall?"

A muscle of his jaw ticked. With his overwhelming eyes watching me closely, he reduced an inch of the distance between us. 

I gulped.

His scent and proximity was tempering with my nerves.

Why did this infamous Italian billionaire suddenly have me pressed against a wall when he clearly ignored me for months?