Chase Me

Luca let Sienna walk away but it nearly killed him. He stood in the center of the ballroom long after she disappeared through the terrace doors, surrounded by music and masked strangers while one very inconvenient realization settled heavily in his chest.

  He was completely screwed.

  

  “Wow,” Matteo said, appearing beside him holding two champagne glasses. “You look emotionally devastated.”

  

  Luca took the champagne directly out of his hand.

  

  “I hate all of you.”

  

  “That’s fair.” Matteo studied him openly. “Did she reject you?”

  

  “No.”

  

  “That sounded unconvincing.”

  

  Luca exhaled slowly before dragging a hand down his face.

  

  “She panicked.”

  

  Matteo blinked once.

  

  “Oh,” he said immediately. “That’s worse.”

  

  Luca knew that he was right. Because the almost-kiss had changed something tonight for them both.

  

  He could still feel the warmth of her during the dance. Still remember the way she’d looked at him right before pulling away like she wanted him just as badly as he wanted her.

  

  And that was the problem. Luca Moretti understood attraction, desire and chemistry. But he did not understand why the idea of Sienna being scared mattered enough to make his chest ache.

  

  Matteo watched him carefully.

  

  “You really like her.”

  

  Luca looked insulted. “Don’t be dramatic.”

  

  “You look like somebody just informed you love is real.”

  

  “That’s disgusting. Don’t say things like that.”

  

  Matteo burst into laughter. Unfortunately, Luca barely heard him because his attention had already shifted toward the terrace doors.

  

  “She left?” Emilia asked, appearing beside them.

  

  Luca nodded.

  

  Emilia immediately looked annoyed. “What did you do?”

  

  “Existed too intensely.” Luca sighed

  

  “Well that sounds about right.”

  

  Luca shot her a look but Emilia ignored him completely.

  

  “She likes you,” she said bluntly.

  

  “I’m aware.”

  

  “No,” Emilia corrected. “I mean genuinely.”

  

  That quieted him slightly because he knew how she felt about him, because he was feeling the same. That was the dangerous part. Sienna looked at him like she was trying very hard not to fall for him. And Luca? Christ. Luca was already halfway there.

  

  “This is your fault,” he informed Emilia.

  

  “How?”

  

  “You encouraged her and dressed her like sin itself.”

  

  “I encouraged you and that was just fabric. I didn't change what was inside.”

  

 Before Luca could answer, his phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out. It was just a business email. The disappointment must’ve shown because Matteo noticed immediately.

  

  “Oh, you’re down catastrophic.”

  

  “I’m going to throw you into the ocean.”

  

  “You’re threatening murder again. That’s how we know it’s serious.”

  

  Luca ignored him and looked toward the terrace doors one final time before making a decision. He handed his untouched champagne glass to Matteo.

  

  “Where are you going?” Emilia asked knowingly.

  

  “To find her.”

  

  Matteo looked delighted. “CHASE HER, ROMEO.”

  

  Outside, the ocean air was immediately cooler and quieter than the ballroom. The estate gardens stretched toward the cliffs overlooking Monaco, illuminated by soft lanterns and moonlight reflecting against the water below.

  

  And there she was, standing near the stone railing alone. Luca slowed slightly as he approached but Sienna heard him anyway.

  

  “You shouldn’t sneak up on people,” she said softly without turning around.

  

  “You always know it’s me.”

  

Luca stopped beside her at the railing. Neither of them spoke for a little while and the silence settled around them heavier than before.

  

  Finally Sienna exhaled slowly. “I’m sorry.”

  

  Luca looked at her properly then. “For what?”

  

  She wrapped her arms lightly around herself without meeting his eyes.

  

  “For panicking.”

  

  His chest tightened unexpectedly.

  

  “Hey.” His voice softened instinctively. “Don’t apologize for that.”

  

  That finally made her look at him. The vulnerability in her expression hit him harder than it should have.

  

  “This is exactly why I didn’t want this to become complicated,” she admitted quietly.

  

  Luca leaned one elbow against the railing beside her.

  

  “And yet here we are.”

  

  “That’s not helping.”

  

  “It wasn’t meant to.”

  A reluctant smile flickered briefly across her face before disappearing again. The breeze lifted strands of hair across her cheek and Luca had to physically stop himself from reaching for her this time.

  

  “I scare you,” he realized quietly.

  

  “No.” Sienna insisted, looking horrified. 

  

  “Yes.”

  

  “It’s not like that.”

  

  Luca held her gaze steadily.

  

  “Sienna.”

  

  She looked away toward the ocean again and suddenly he understood exactly what this was. She wanted him and trusted him even. But she didn’t trust what he could become to her.

  

  The realization should’ve made him back off. Instead, it made him want her more and Luca laughed softly under his breath.

  

  Sienna frowned slightly. “Why are you laughing?”

  

  “Because this is deeply humiliating for me.”

  

  That finally pulled a real smile from her.

  

  “There she is.”

  

  “You’re impossible.”

  

  “And yet,” he murmured, stepping slightly closer, “you keep leaving parties with me.”

  

  Her pulse visibly fluttered beneath her throat. Luca noticed. Of course he noticed.

  

  “Sienna,” he said quietly, “I’m not asking you for forever.”

  

  Her eyes lifted slowly toward his.

  

  “I know.”

  

  “But I am asking you to stop running every time this becomes real.”

  

  The words settled between them heavily, too honest and too close to dangerous territory.

  

  Sienna swallowed softly.

  

  “You make that sound very easy.”

  

  Luca’s expression gentled.

  

  “It probably won’t be.”

  

  Sienna looked up at him with that same nervous honesty from the dance floor.

  

  “What if this ends badly?”

  

  Luca stepped fully into her space then and her breathing changed instantly.

  

  “Then at least it was real.” he whispered.

  

  The ocean waves crashed softly below the cliffs as Sienna stared at him like she was trying very hard to stay sensible. Then she whispered the most dangerous words he’d ever heard.

  

  “You should stop looking at me like that.”

  

  Luca’s mouth curved slowly.

  

  “Chase me away properly,” he murmured. “And maybe I will.”