The first day he met her, she looked really bothered. He'd been watching her before they both fell in line and when she turned to look at him with her dreamy eyes, he was immediately smitten.
But there was something lurking in her eyes: Fear, apprehension, angst and the need to escape. He knew it was coming from an external force and when he looked around, he noticed that she was being followed by a man.
That had been his opportunity to help her escape her killer. When he'd asked her if she was okay, she'd nearly burst into tears and the sheer thought of seeing this angelic woman cry drove him to madness.
He had suddenly been overcome with this desire to protect her, the desire to kill anyone trying to harm her and while she slept on his shoulder, he was filled with dread at the fact that he had fallen for a total stranger. It wasn't his thing to do and luckily, he had gotten a call that had him leaving at the next stop, not failing to drink in the details of her beautiful face before he left her.
But he couldn't get her off his mind. The next few days had been filled with memories of her face, her eyes…those mesmerising eyes, the look of helplessness and sheer horror.
The next day, he'd given his private investigator a call, with a scanty description of her, promising to pay his private investigator double for the stress.
For the next six months, all of his efforts turned out futile but he still couldn't forget her until he caught sight of her stepping out of a Maserati and walking into the club.
He made his findings and realised that she worked for his rival, Drake Trevor. That had triggered the protective clause again as he knew how dangerous and utterly manipulative his rival was.
Giovanni's plans had fallen into place. She had fallen right into his trap and he wished he could tell her why he'd done this but he couldn't. At least, not yet.
"Giovanni, I don't think it's a good idea to take one of Drake Trevor's escorts," his right hand man, Geraldo said as he paced around his office with worry. "You know how evil that conniving bastard is and you know what he did to us in the past."
How the hell could Giovanni forget? Drake Trevor had killed one of his best escorts, Gina, after kidnapping and torturing her till she was unable to even move a fucking limb. Giovanni had found Gina on the road half dead, ribs and bones dislocated with deep wounds that had her bleeding out hours before he could save her. That had been the start of their war.
"Geraldo, nothing is ever a good idea with the fucking bastard," Giovanni hissed, his body consumed with anger over and over again. "I don't care about revenge right now and that is not why I am taking his escort."
"So what do you want to do with her apart from having her tortured and killed?"
Giovanni stood to his feet. "And whenever did I mention having her tortured and killed, Geraldo? I have had her followed for over six months and I have my reasons. There's something about her that intrigues me."
"And you want to put your life and that of your faux sex workers on the line because of her?"
"Nothing is going to happen, Geraldo. You need to take a chill pill. You'll know everything in due time."
Geraldo didn't take his boss' words for it but he could at least count on him for protection. "Whatever interest you have in her better not drive us into a war with that fucker."
Giovanni was done with this topic. "Have some men go to my suite and pick her up. You know what to do."
******
Serafina was fuming. Giovanni had left her in his hotel suite, doors locked so she couldn't escape and with every fleeting moment, her hate for him grew.
He had also taken her purse along with him and it contained every crucial thing she needed for escape. Her phone, bobby pins and anything else to pry the door open.
"Fuck!" She cried out in anger and kicked the edge of the bed, yelping in pain when she stubbed her toe.
She paced around his room, staring out into the city down below from time to time and wondering how everyone was casually living their lives while she waited for Giovanni to return back from his so-called meeting.
"You're going to wait here till I return and we can discuss." He had told her before he left. "Don't even think of escaping. I have you tracked."
She placed her finger on the back of her ear, directly on the tracking microchip he had planted into her skin. She hadn't realised he had done that until he tapped it and told her it was going to explode if she moved five hundred metres away from his suite.
Serafina wasn't ready to die. At least, not yet. She didn't come all the way from Italy, running for her life to die in the hands of a perverted stalker who had had her followed for six good months.
She heard movements in front of the door and stopped walking, her ears perking up in alert and when the door beeped, she grabbed the lamp on the bedside table and hid behind the door, waiting for it to be open.
She crashed the lamp into the body of the man who walked in, confusing him for a moment and just as she was about to slip right through the door, another hefty man stood in the way and blocked her before grabbing her off the floor.
"Let me go, you fucker!" She screamed as she got carried down the hall. "I'll make sure I rip your fucking dicks out before having you killed. Drop me now if you care about your life because you don't know how dangerous I am!"
None of her threats worked. Who the hell were these men and why wasn't Giovanni here to drive her to her new home? Had he sent them here?
As she was carried down the hall, into a stairwell, she screamed and kicked to no avail. The men were unmovable. They finally got out into the afternoon sunlight.
"Help me, somebody!" She screamed, glad that they were outside where people could see her. "I am being kidnapped by these men! Help me, please!"
The men stopped in front of an SUV door that opened immediately. She was tossed into the car and before she could scream out again, large hands covered her mouth with a kerchief and slowly, she lost consciousness before blanking out into oblivion.
Serafina's eyes fluttered open and she sat up immediately to realise that she was no longer in the SUV she'd been thrown into. A splitting headache banged away at her head, causing her to wince painfully and when she finally got a hold of herself, she realised she'd been leaning against a car. Memories of the past hour came rushing back and she glared at the men standing before her with so much hatred. "Did I really have to be drugged for me to get here?" The men gave her no reply. She was pulled by the arms and led into large, wrought iron gates like a criminal being led away to prison. But this prison was paradise. Was it possible for a penthouse mansion to have such a spacious compound because she'd never seen one before? At the far end of the large expanse of land sat a tall mansion, a huge percentage of it made up of glass. The concrete walls were either looking like they were made out of stone by expert masons or painted in white. A fountain was situated in the middle of t
Giovanni shut the door to his study, breathing as a smile creeped into his face. His plans were going smoother than usual and at this point, it had him worried. He wasn't supposed to be doing this. Hell, he didn't want her working for him as a faux seductress. The idea of her seducing another man infuriated him. He knew how many times he'd wanted to stop her from signing the damn contract and telling her the truth. But not yet. He wasn't ready to tell her why he was doing this. "I see why you couldn't just leave her be," Geraldo said as he shut the door behind him. He must have seen her in the living room. "I see why Drake made her special. She's so beautiful, fuck." "Stay the hell away from her." Giovanni growled, feeling a need to get every man out of her way. Geraldo laughed and raised both of his hands in surrender. "You must have forgotten that I am married to a lovely wife with kids who I cherish so much. She's turning you into something else, Giovanni. When was the last t
"Thank you," Serafina smiled softly at Geraldo. They had finally gotten to the estate she was going to be living in after a long ride and he offered to take the chip off her skin. "I wonder why I didn't explode into bits because I have moved more than five hundred metres away from his suite." Geraldo laughed and she wondered what was funny about her statement. But she didn't care. As long as this chip was out of her body, she could escape easily. She didn't trust Giovanni. She also needed answers from Drake. She needed to know if a wager had been placed on her head. All she needed was one night to escape and find out. Geraldo continued his drive into the estate, only stopping when two hefty men in suits and dark shades stopped before him. "When does it begin?" "Today," Giovanni replied. "He wants it to be acted on with immediate effect." They nodded and stepped back and Giovanni continued his ride. "Who are those men?" Serafina asked as she watched them climb into their car.
"My name is Sigrid," The cook continued. " I'll be taking care of all your meals." Sigrid looked to be in her late twenties. Definitely older than Serafina but she was polite. She had Norwegian features. Her hair was of a light, flaxen hue, falling in soft, silken tresses down her shoulder, her eyes were as blue as the seas and she had a well defined jaw. She was a few inches taller than Serafina and had an athletic build. Serafina was pushed to ask why she wasn't playing a sport but she clamped her lips shut and smiled at the lady. "Nice to meet you, Sigrid. My name is Serafina and it's nice to meet you." Sigrid smiled. "I was informed of your arrival so I decided to put something together for you. I made stir-fry pasta. Would you like to have some after you are well rested?" Serafina hadn't eaten a thing all day. The day hadn't even ended and a lot had happened already. From Giovanni blackmailing her into working for him to signing a contract to this and all she wanted to do
"You're evil and manipulative. I think you're doing this to punish me for trying to steal from you this morning." "Then you're wrong, Serafina." "I already told you I hate being called that. It's Marcia." She gritted, her eyes wide in anger. "I don't care what you hate. I am going to call you what I want to call you." Giovanni replied in a cool voice. "What do you want from me?" She cried in frustration. "I think I made it quite clear earlier today. I want you to work for me," He replied, his grey eyes undressing her. "Need me to shed more light on it again? I don't mind." Serafina bit her lower lip in frustration and turned away from him. She walked to the bay window at the other side of the spacious living room and stared at the other building directly after the pool. How did it come to this? If she'd known, she would have just slept with him and left the next morning. But she wanted more. She always did. It was becoming a terrible habit. She ignored the fact that she wa
Serafina sat in silence for the whole drive. Giovanni didn't say a word either. Instead, he turned up the radio and focused his attention on the steering wheel. They finally got to the clothes store. It was one of the most expensive stores in downtown New York and Serafina could tell that it was from its building alone. It towered high, a mini skyscraper mainly composed of silver sheets on its walls and double glazed floor to ceiling windows. On its roof was a silver logo, emblazoned on the wall. From outside the car, Serafina could make out low hanging chandeliers reflecting pale gold lights and shiny furniture. Impeccably dressed staff walked around, all looking like they were made for that setting. Giovanni stepped out of the car and adjusted his shirt before running his fingers through his hair and once again, Serafina was reminded of how attractive he looked. A fucking woman magnet even if she hadn't experienced it in real time. She followed behind him, suddenly aware of
The next hour was spent going from section to section in search of dresses and lingeries and after making her choice, Giovanni made payment and the bags were taken to the trunk of his car. Giovanni was gentlemanly enough to pull the door open for her. She smiled at him but he didn't even return it. She huffed and closed the door before he could. Just as he was about to slip into the driver's seat, a lady from a black Audi rolled down her window and honked at him. A blond haired beauty. She looked like a supermodel. Serafina could tell from the shape of her face and how thin she looked. Call her judgemental but Serafina knew she was that thin from her collarbone. Gosh, she'd promised never to project her insecurities on other women to make herself feel better. "Hudson!" "Hudson?" She reiterated. "That's your name?" Ignoring her, he shut the car door and crossed over to where she was parked. Serafina watched as he leaned down to her level and planted a kiss on her cheek. It was
Giovanni once again teased her, leaving her empty and without a kiss. It annoyed and fuelled her desire for him. How could one man incite two different feelings in her? Just when she thought he was going to kiss her, he backed away from her, his eyes still filled with lust as he told her to go upstairs so she could get dressed. She had walked back to her room, angry and in a hot, needy mess, hating that she had allowed him to even get close to her. He was toying with her and no, she had no feelings for him. It was all lust and desire, one she believed would have faded after their night of explosive sex but it was still there, like a fire, inextinguishable and Giovanni kept fuelling that fire. She had thought of masturbating to satisfaction but thinking about it was frustrating. She knew masturbating to the idea of a man she so wanted was going to leave her wanting more and make her a frustrated mess. So she ditched that idea and decided that she was going to pay