Chapter 51 Dress As A Weapon
Evelyn’s POV
“Ms. Martins.” He called out again, like he wasn’t sure he was seeing right.
Diego’s eyes dragged from my face to Patricia's uniform, then back to my face. His expression stayed stiff, unreadable, but something in his stare felt wrong….off, like he already knew what I was here for.
“Um…. D….Diego…” I murmured, moving my hand from my neck to my side.
He stepped inside fully and shut the door behind him. The click of the lock made my chest tighten.
“Why are you here?” he asked quietly. “And….why the uniform?”
I wrapped my hands across myself, adjusting the dress. “I was just taking a stroll.”
He tilted his head. “In the cell?”
My breath cut. “I…Um.” Then I fell silent immediately.
He walked closer, slow, calm, like a man who already knew the truth and was just waiting to hear me lie. “Taking a stroll? In a staff uniform?”
Shit. I’m just a terrible liar.
His eyes flicked toward the cell where Nolan was kept, the one I’d sneaked out from and my heart dropped straight into my stomach.
“Diego…. Please, you can’t tell Lorenzo about this.”
“Ms. Martins, do you realize that if Lucifer had been the one to find you here, he would’ve made our life miserable?”
“I know.” I cut in sharply. “That’s why I want you to help me keep this a secret.”
“But why were you here, exactly?”
My hands shook at my sides. I tried to hide it, but I knew he saw it.
“I….I just wanted to be sure Nolan was okay,” I whispered.
His jaw tightened a little. “Fine, I won’t tell anyone,” he looked at me too long. “But please don’t put us into more trouble, Lucifer almost skinned us alive yesterday for not guarding you.”
“I won’t.” I added sharply.
I had changed back into my dress after sneaking inside the house, secretly hoping, maybe even praying that Lorenzo would still be in bed. But he wasn’t. I couldn’t catch even a glimpse of him, not the shape of his body under the sheets, not the soft sound of his breath.
Nothing.
He was nowhere to be found, and that alone was enough to send my mind into a spiral.
Could he be out there searching for me?
What if Diego told him?
No. He wouldn’t. He promised to keep everything between us. And Diego doesn’t appear as a man who goes back on his word.
I swallowed down the fear crawling up my throat. If I was going to face Lorenzo today, I needed to be steady. Brave. There were too many things I needed to demand from him, and none of them would happen if I showed up acting fragile. Weakness had no place here, not with a man like him.
Before I could even think of asking for Nolan’s release, I needed to find a way to reach Elena. I couldn’t get Daisy out of my head, where she was, if she was somewhere safe, what Elena might be going through from all I have put her through.
The cold water from the shower had awakened my body, freezing every frantic thought long enough for me to breathe. It was exactly what I needed after everything that had been spiraling out of control in my life lately.
I stepped out of the shower and slipped into a sleeveless yellow floral dress, the one I had intentionally chosen when Lorenzo’s shopper displayed the options for me. If I was going to get what I needed from a man like Lorenzo, I had to use what I had. And right now…. This dress was my weapon.
I walked over to the mirror, and the reflection hit me. The fabric clung to my skin like it belonged there, barely holding my breasts, hugging every curve, and stopping far too high on my thighs to be considered anything close to modest.
But I didn’t care.
There was no way in this universe that Lorenzo would see me like this and still had the strength to say no to anything I asked.
My plan for today felt simple, maybe even reckless, insisting on returning to my job as a nurse. From there, I could get close enough to see Elena and finally find out if Daisy was safe.
I know Lorenzo would not give in easily but I will make him.
When I finished brushing my hair and fastening my jewelry, I took a shaky breath and headed for the stairs. My heartbeat climbed with me, pounding so loudly I could feel the sound in my ears.
Breakfast first.
Then my mission.
Lorenzo sat across the table, too composed, like a god who knew the world would bend for him. He didn’t look up when I walked in. He was focused on the newspaper, his eyes trailing each line with calm precision, a cup of coffee resting beside him as he drummed his finger nails on the handle.
But the second I stepped fully into the dining room, it was as if he sensed me.
He lifted his head, slowly, calmly. And when his eyes finally landed on me, his mouth parted, his gaze widening with a hunger so raw it sent a shiver down my spine.
He didn’t move.
Didn’t blink.
He just stared, like my presence had knocked the breath out of him.
My legs almost buckled, but I forced myself to keep walking until I reached the table.
I offered a small, practiced smile. “Good morning.”
He swallowed hard. “Same to you….. too.”
He folded the newspaper with a careful, distracted slowness and set it on the table, but his eyes never left me. He was practically devouring me where I sat. I pretended not to notice, even though my skin felt like it was on fire.
A moment later, Patricia and the other staff came in with trays of food, plates of rich oats, fried eggs, and fresh fruit. The smell alone made my stomach tighten painfully. I hadn’t had anything close to a meal yesterday.
I didn’t wait for permission. I started eating immediately, and Lorenzo didn’t say a word. He didn’t even move.
It wasn’t until I felt the edge of fullness that I finally broke the suffocating silence.
“You don’t plan on watching me all day, do you?”
He didn’t even pretend to look away.
I tapped softly on the table. “Lorenzo.”
His body jolted slightly, like I’d pulled him out of a fantasy. “Yeah….you were saying?”
I rolled my eyes and tilted my chin toward his untouched plate. “You haven’t touched your food.”
A faint smirk curved his lips as he leaned closer, invading my space with the kind of confidence he always put on. His voice dropped into a whisper, low, warm, dangerous.
“Let’s just say I got full…..just from watching you eat.”
A blush shot across my cheeks so fast it almost burned. I hated that he could still do that to me, make my body react before my brain caught up. But I still lifted my chin, pretending it didn’t affect me. Because the last thing Lorenzo needed was more ego.
“I have a request… and I really hope you’ll consider it.” I said casually.
He lifted his coffee, raising it with a slow, gentle frown that made my pulse skip. He took a sip, never breaking eye contact, not even for a second.
“And what will that be?” he asked, his voice calm, curious.
The way he looked at me made my breath catch. It was the kind of stare that stripped away every layer of confidence I had carefully built this morning. But I straightened my back anyway, pretending his gaze didn’t shake me
“Um… I need to resume work…”
The words barely made it out before he slammed his cup down on the table.
The sharp sound tore through the room making my whole body jerk backward, breath hitching in my throat. For a second, fear crawled up my spine so fast I almost lost my voice. But I forced myself to keep going.
“I….I mean my nursing job,” I corrected quickly, swallowing hard. “That’s what I’m asking for.”
“Never!” He gritted through his clenched teeth. “There is no way I’m letting you escape from me again.”
“Please, Lorenzo.”
My voice came out lower than I intended, almost a whisper. My hand shot out on instinct, landing gently on his arm. I smoothed my palm over his skin, trying to quiet the rage tightening every line of his body.
“Please,” I repeated, softer this time. “You can even send your men to watch me. They’ll report to you if I try something stupid.”
His jaw tightened, eyes darkening in a way that made it impossible to tell if he was angry, offended or something far more complicated.
But I held his gaze anyway. Because this was the only way to get close enough to Elena. The only way to know if Daisy was still safe. And I wasn’t backing down, not now!
I let my fingers trail slowly down his forearm, grounding him or maybe grounding myself. “I just need to work,” I whispered. “That’s all.”
“I have enough money, you don’t need to stress yourself.”
“I know.” I lifted my eyes to his gaze. “But this is not just about the money, it’s about passion. What I love to do, going to work everyday is the only thing that can keep me sane right now.”
His breathing deepened, not from calm, nothing about him was calm, but like he was fighting the urge to react in a way he shouldn’t. His eyes dropped to my hand on him, then dragged back up to my face with a heat that made my stomach flip.
Whether he was angry or moved, I couldn’t tell.
But he was listening. And that was the only opening I had. I arched my neck to meet his gaze fully and found his eyes melting.
“Fine,” he breathed. “But I’m coming with you.”
Relief burst out of me before I could stop it. I threw my hands up excitedly. “Aye, sir.”
His jaw twitched, annoyed, amused or both, but I didn’t care. He had agreed. That was all that mattered.
I’d expected his condition, it wasn’t surprising. Lorenzo never let me out of his sight for long. But this time, his possessiveness worked in my favor.
All I needed was access.
A chance.
One step close enough to reach Elena.
And once I did, I’d finally know what happened to Daisy.