Chapter 22

Unspoken Desires - Chapter 22

Demetrius

As I pull up to the DeLuca house, Matteo and Gabriella were just pulling out. We nod as we pass at the gate. No need for anything more.

“I’m heading in,” I say into the comms, flipping the mic on.

“Gotcha,” Matteo replies. “Gabby thinks she saw Santino in the upstairs bedroom. He looked a bit battered. See what you can find.”

“Copy that. You want me to keep comms on when she’s blowing me, or you good with a pause?” I smirk, already halfway up the drive.

Silence. Not even a grunt.

I park in my usual spot, tucked along the side where the cameras can’t catch me. After months of coming over to ‘take care’ of my boss, she made sure no one saw me coming. Or leaving.

The door swings open before I reach it, and there she is, standing in a silk robe that barely qualifies as clothing. My own personal Mrs. Robinson.

I step inside, turning to lock the door behind me. She doesn’t waste time.

“Good afternoon, Demetrius,” she purrs, eyeing me like I’m dessert she’s been craving for months. “I was wondering where you ran off to without saying goodbye. Didn’t even have the decency to leave me a note or a voicemail.”

“Oh, Mrs. D,” I say with a slow smile, letting my eyes drift down her curves. “You look absolutely delicious.”

“I know I do.” Her tone sharpens. “But that doesn’t answer my question.”

She saunters closer, the sway in her hips practiced. “You left me. You never came back, until today. No calls, no messages. Nothing. What could possibly be so important?”

“Matteo sent me to New York,” I lie smoothly. “Wanted eyes on a situation. You know how he is. It’s Camorra business, so you know I can’t give you details, there was no time for goodbyes.”

She stops right in front of me, her hands gliding up my chest and curling around the back of my neck. I know what’s coming. She pulls me in for a kiss.

I pull back. Just enough.

“Not here,” I say under my breath. “Someone could see. Mr. D’s cameras are still up, right? Meet you in twenty? Pool house?”

She laughs, a low, sultry sound that’s pure wickedness. “There’s nothing to worry about anymore, darling,” she whispers. “Alessandro won’t be bothering me. He’s… ‘tied up’ with business. Gone.”

I stiffen just slightly.

“Alessandro won’t be bothering us anymore,” she repeats, brushing her lips against mine. “We can do whatever we want. Wherever we want.”

The kiss deepens, her tongue insistent, claiming. I let her for a moment, playing the part.

But I need information. I need to know who else is here. “What about Santino?” I ask as I break away slightly. “Is he around?”

She rolls her eyes. “He’s in his room. He won’t be interrupting. Either you make up for that year you abandoned me… or walk out that door.”

Her hand drifts downward, nails grazing my skin, and then she kisses me again. Hard. Hungry.

“Mrs. D, I’ve been craving your touch for over a year now,” I murmur, letting her press against me, “but before we go any further, I need to ask you something.”

I guide her deeper into the house, not because I’m being romantic, but because I’m not about to get caught screwing her on the goddamn doormat.

We make it into the front sitting room, all marble floors and cold elegance. She drops into an armchair and crosses her legs with a knowing smile.

“What is it, Demetrius?” she asks, a hint of edge beneath her silk voice.

“You look incredible, Mrs. D. Better than I remember,” I say, eyes roaming the length of her. “I just need to ask if I can rejoin your security detail?”

She lifts a sculpted brow. “Security detail?”

“Matteo’s busy chasing something, so I didn’t get another assignment. Says he doesn’t need me right now,” I say smoothly. “But you… you could always use the extra hands. Just until Matteo calls me back in.”

She leans forward slowly. “Well, I do have Cesare helping keep me safe. He’s also working on something important.“

Bingo.

“But I could always use your hands, darling,” she continues, her voice dropping low, sultry, “as my personal guard. Late nights. Early mornings.”

The comms in my ear flicker on and Matteo’s voice, clipped and sharp. “Ask the cougar what Cesare’s working on.”

I smile like I didn’t just get an order through my skull.

“So… you and Cesare…” I say casually. “Is it just business? Or are you working together the way you and I used to?”

She tilts her head, lips curling. “Are you jealous, darling?”

“When you left,” she says, drawing closer, “I was devastated. Alone with no one to fulfill my needs. Alessandro had just tracked those pathetic twin daughters of his and they both showed up here. You left and I needed someone. Cesare… he was available.”

I don’t respond. Let her fill the space.

“But,” she adds with a shrug, “he wasn’t you. Not enough stamina. Not enough size. Not enough… fun.”

She’s in front of me now. Her robe slipping slightly, lips parting. I lean in, letting her kiss me again. Deep and possessive.

Mid kiss, her phone rings. She groans, pulls back, and checks the screen. “Cesare,” she mutters.

“I need to take this in private, Darling.” she says, suddenly business again. “Go get reacquainted with the house and new staff, I will meet you in my room in twenty. We can start working, right away.”

I nod, stepping back. “Of course, Mrs. D.”

As she turns away, I reach into my jacket, unclip my button mic and set it quietly on the glass coffee table by the flower vase. Max and Damian would hear everything. But I’d be flying solo until I could pick the mic back up.

“Don’t take too long,” I say with a wink.

Then I head up the stairs, on the hunt to find Santino.

—————-

Gino

Svetlana and her animals, finally left the room. But the stench of them lingers. The echo of what they did still hums in the silence.

Constance is barely conscious. Blood on her face, lying on the floor. Alexandra and Sophia are with her now, doing what they can. Thank God Alexandra packed extra supplies. Bandages. Meds. She always thinks ahead.

Me? I couldn’t move. Couldn’t even get off the damn ground.

I heard everything. Saw it all. And I just… sat there. Like a useless old man waiting to die.

I wanted to get up. Every instinct in me screamed to throw myself in front of them, to stop it. But my body betrayed me. It should’ve been me.

Sophia stood in front of them. My twenty-year-old granddaughter; scared, but standing. Speaking up. Brave. She did what I should’ve done.

And that… that shames me more than anything.

I’ve faced down monsters my whole life. Built an empire. Buried men with my bare hands. But today, when it mattered most… I couldn’t protect the people I love. That’s the part that’ll kill me.

“Grandpa, are you okay? You seem kind of dazed,” Sophia says gently, kneeling beside me. Snapping me out of my despair.

I look up at her and try to manage a smile. It doesn’t quite reach.

“Connie’s okay,” she adds quickly. “She’ll be fine. Nothing’s broken. But that… that was barbaric. Hitting a defenseless woman like that.”

She trails off as the door creaks open again.

The guard, the same bastard who laid his hands on Sophia earlier today. He walks in, a smug grin on his face. He’s carrying two large paper bags.

“It’s lunchtime,” he says with a smirk, dropping the bags on the floor like he’s feeding dogs. “You should eat. Need your strength, right?” He looks at Sophia as he says it. Doesn’t even pretend not to.

McDonald’s. The smell hits me immediately.

No one moves. Not yet. Not while he’s still in the room.