Semua Bab Devil You Hate: A Dark Mafia Romance: Bab 21 - Bab 30

Time ticks away like a bomb waiting to detonate. I pace across the room, checking the door again, hoping by some miracle that they left it unlocked this time. It’s not, but I spend a moment pressing my clammy forehead against the cold wood and grip the handle tighter, willing it to open for me.The door handle rattles under my palm, and a gasp escapes through my parted lips. Like a skittish newborn calf, I skitter away until the bed comforter brushes the back of my thighs. I expect him to walk through the door, but when I see that it’s just the housekeeper, Sarah, I let out a sigh.As always, her hair is pulled back into a tight bun, her features set in a scowl. She refuses to meet my eyes as she sets a tray on the bedside table. “Some water and a late-night snack. I’m sure he’ll be up to talk to you soon.”Her words make me flinch, dread bleeding into my veins. I don’t want him to come to me with bloodstained hands and gloat. All he is going to do is rub in my face that even my fianc

Puzzled, I cock my head to the side and stare at him, a bit confused. What more could there be? Dropping his hands, he fists the edge of my dress. I’m still wearing the plain cotton panties he’d given me, and I think I know where this is headed. Gripping the edge of my panties, he easily peels them down my legs, kneeling as he gently lifts one foot at a time to remove them.“I didn’t say you could wear panties tonight.”I swallow thickly and to my utter shock, not completely out of fear. Staring down at him, the hard lines of his face and the flare of his wide shoulder away from his neck entice me in ways that I never found attractive in Marco. It’s not just his body. It’s the damn arrogance wafting off him like he owns the world and damn well knows it.He pushes upward again, trailing his fingers from my ankle all the way to the cusp of my thighs. I try not to flinch as he eases my legs open enough to cup my center.“What are you doing?” I whisper.I’m trembling now, and if he doesn’

NicSoo comes strutting into my office and tosses a stack of paperwork down on my desk before I’ve even had my coffee. I scowl at him, but he takes it good-naturedly, as always, and throws himself into a chair in front of my desk. When he tosses his boot-clad feet upon my desk, I shove them over the edge. His feet hit the ground with a thud that leaves him smiling at me. The fucker sure knows how to be annoying.I shuffle around the papers to put them in order. “What the hell is all this?”He lays his hands across his belly, relaxing deeper into the chair. “It’s a list of everyone who has paid the auction deposit. Rumor mill is churning, Nic, and everyone is whispering that you’re auctioning off a woman soon.”The conversation takes a sudden turn of interest, and I toss the papers to the corner of my desk to deal with later. “Well, they’re not wrong. Anything out yet about who the woman is?”“A few whispers, but I squashed them, since I know you want it to be a surprise. Also, to det

“Bring my baubles to reel in the members of the five families? That’s what you want from me?” Lucas asks.I nod. “Yes, and to stay the fuck away from the girl because if you don’t, brother or not, I’ll cut your balls off and feed them to you.”He flexes his fists, as if he’s imagining another showdown with me. Soo would intercept him in a heartbeat. The only reason he didn’t the first time was that no one was expecting his dumb ass to go off his rocker.“You sure are putting a lot of effort into protecting her.”I let him hear the edge in my tone. The one grown men usually piss themselves when they hear. “So you say.”Lucas isn’t fazed. He looks death in the eyes and smiles. “You can’t protect her forever. Before the auction, during the show, and after… she’s going to come face to face with her own version of hell on Earth, and you’ll be right at the center of it. How do you think that’s going to make her feel?”I don’t even entertain the idea. I narrow my gaze. “Get to the fucking po

“Is every single word you utter complete bullshit, or do you tell the truth on occasion too?”I attempt to jerk my hand back, but he maintains his tight grip. The hard edge of his tone is one I recognize from him accosting me twice now. Even as afraid as I am of him, I don’t want to be seen as a pushover. I stand tall and straighten my spine.“What do you want me to say? I don’t want to be within two feet of you because I know you’re counting the seconds until you can kill me. I’m pretty sure the only reason I’m alive right now is because Nicolo intends to use me for some purpose that may, or may not, include selling me to make a lot of money.”He shifts and gently places the locket on the bedside table, letting the locket hit the dark wood before slowly lowering the chain on top of it to obscure the engraving. It’s an act of patience, of mercy, of love. So at odds with his collage of tattoos and menacing demeanor. I don’t even know Lucas, but I do know he is violence and rage wrapped