Chapter 40 Chapter 41
Luciano’s POV
The past week has been one of the busiest weeks of my life.I had to leave town to attend several important matters concerning the business meetings that simply could not be postponed. Normally, work like this never bothered me. I was used to the pressure, the endless travel, the negotiations that stretched late into the night.
But this time was different.My mind had not been at ease for a single moment.
No matter how hard I tried to focus on the business deals placed in front of me, my thoughts kept drifting back to one person.
Valeria.Her face lingered in my mind like a stubborn shadow that refused to disappear.
Even now, sitting in the back seat of the car as we drove through the city streets toward my next meeting, I found myself thinking about her again.I had almost asked her to come with me on this trip.
Almost.
But something told me she would refuse. Valeria had a way of rejecting things before I could even finish offering them. I could already imagine the look on her face, those sharp eyes narrowing slightly, her voice calm yet firm as she told me she wasn’t interested.
It would probably have irritated me.And yet, strangely enough, that was one of the things I admired about her the most.
Valeria had the rare ability to push my patience to its absolute limit, and somehow I still found myself drawn to her.
She challenged me.And for a man like me, who was used to everyone bending to his will, that alone made her different.
Still, something had been bothering me during this entire trip, Leah.I knew exactly what kind of woman she was.And I knew she wasn’t the type to simply accept rejection and walk away quietly.
It was only a matter of time before she began stirring trouble.
Leah had always been persistent, and persistence could be dangerous when mixed with obsession.But perhaps Just perhaps, I could use that to my advantage.
A small smirk formed on my lips at the thought.
If Leah kept pushing herself into my life, maybe it would force Valeria to confront the feelings I knew she was hiding.
I had seen it in her eyes.Every time we stood close to each other, every time our gazes met for just a second too long.
She was fighting it, fighting me.But all I wanted was for her to stop running from the truth.If she would only accept me…
I would gladly lay down my life for her.
Valeria had no idea how much she meant to me.
She was the quiet world I had secretly built in my heart for years, a place no one else had ever been allowed to enter.And anyone foolish enough to try and take that away from me, Would fall. Still lost in my thoughts, I slowly turned my gaze toward the man sitting beside me.
Damien.
He had been silently reviewing a file on his tablet during the entire drive, but I knew he had been waiting for me to ask the question.
“What details did you find about her?” I finally asked.My eyes remained fixed on the view outside the window as the city lights flashed past us.Damien cleared his throat slightly before responding.
“Leah, boss,” he said carefully. “I think she came here with a different motive.”That immediately caught my attention.I slowly shifted my gaze toward him.“What do you mean?” I asked.Damien hesitated for a moment before continuing.“Strangely enough, I couldn’t find anything suspicious about her records,” he explained. “I even hired some of the best investigators available, but everything about her background appears perfectly clean.”
He shook his head slightly.“Too clean.”
My jaw tightened.
“That’s exactly what worries me,” Damien added. “People like her usually have something hidden somewhere, but in this case… there’s nothing.”I leaned back in my seat, my fingers tapping slowly against the armrest.Something about this situation felt wrong.
Could Valeria’s father have something to do with this?The thought crossed my mind immediately.What if Leah was just a pawn?A carefully placed distraction.
A bait designed to lure me into something bigger.
My eyes narrowed slightly.Yes… that possibility made far more sense.Leah’s sudden appearance in my life was not a coincidence.Someone had planned this.
Someone was watching.Someone was waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
But I wasn’t worried.
Time had a way of exposing even the most carefully hidden secrets.And when the truth finally came out I would deal with it personally.The car slowly came to a stop in front of a luxurious hotel.
“We’re here, boss,” Damien said.
The driver quickly stepped out and opened the door for me.I straightened my suit jacket before stepping out of the car.
The evening air was cool as I walked toward the entrance of the hotel. Damien followed closely behind me as we entered the grand lobby.
I had a meeting scheduled with an important client upstairs.But just as I was about to continue toward the elevators, someone suddenly stepped in front of me, blocking my path.
My brows furrowed slightly.I slowly removed my sunglasses.Then a smirk spread across my lips.“Well, well…” I muttered.“Long time no see, Noah.”
My voice carried a hint of sarcasm.
But I could already tell this encounter was far from friendly.
Noah stood there staring at me, his posture stiff.There was something strange about the way he looked at me,Something tense.Something calculated.He slowly began walking toward me.I could feel the shift in the atmosphere around us.
Most people would have ignored it.
But I never ignored my instincts.
I was fully aware of my surroundings.
Men like me didn’t survive long without developing that habit,I knew I had enemies.Too many of them.And I also knew some of them were patiently waiting for the right opportunity to strike.
So I stepped closer to Noah, closing the distance between us.My hands remained casually tucked inside my pockets as the smirk on my lips widened.Then I leaned slightly closer to him and whispered quietly into his ear.
“Don’t think I’m stupid enough to come here alone.”I tilted my head slightly toward the lobby.“There’s a man sitting in the corner,” I continued.Noah’s eyes instinctively shifted in that direction.
A man sat there with a newspaper raised high in front of his face.To everyone else, he looked like an ordinary guest reading the news.But I knew better.
“You see him?” I asked softly.“He’s the best shooter I know.”I straightened up again.“And trust me,” I added calmly, “he never misses.”I patted Noah lightly on the shoulder.“So if you and your men decide to do something stupid tonight…”My smile sharpened slightly.
“Don’t blame me for what happens next.”
Before he could respond, I burst into laughter and walked past him.Noah remained frozen where he stood.As I stepped inside the elevator, my gaze remained fixed on him.Then I lifted my hand and gave him a slow, mocking wave.The elevator doors slid shut.And the smirk never left my face.