Chapter 170: #3 Chapter 55

Then Vito and Massimo took my former boss away, dragging him toward the stairs, and I was alone with Enzo. Confused and wary, I set the wine glass carefully on a table. He said nothing, merely stared at me, the gold flecks dancing in his deep brown eyes.

Questions bounced in my head, too many to even verbalize. So I blurted, "What the fuck, Enzo?"

He grabbed my wrist and began towing me behind him. I dug in my heels. "Wait. I'm not going anywhere with you."

Spinning, he jerked me toward him and I bounced off his big frame. He cupped the back of my neck, pinning me in place. "Would you rather have this conversation in public, micina? I am very angry with you for putting yourself in danger."

"Angry with me?" I rose up on my toes so I was level with his face. "You have some fucking nerve! I'm angry at you!"

In one motion he bent down, put his shoulder in my stomach, and lifted me off the ground. I nearly choked on my outrage. "Put me down, you dick!"

Ignoring me, he began walking through the VIP section, then down the steps, not concerned in the least that I was yelling and pounding on his back.

Once again Enzo D'Agostino was kidnapping me and there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it.

Enzo

I knew I owed Gia answers, but I was too fucking furious at the moment. What was she doing at this club? Hadn't she been warned that LaCrocq was a piece of shit? What if I hadn't arrived in time?

I ground my molars together as I placed Gia in the back seat of the sedan waiting out front. Her tiny black dress rode up and exposed long legs and gorgeous skin. I wanted to touch every bit of her, bite her and lick her. Tie her down and edge her until she promised never to leave my side. Fuck, I missed her.

I settled next to her and closed the door, then Rico pulled out into traffic. Gia immediately turned on me. "Are you seriously kidnapping me again? My brother-in-law is going to wear your skin like a suit, D'Agostino."

My lip curled. "Ravazzani knows I am here."

She hadn't expected that. Her jaw fell open. "What? You and Fausto made up?"

"We have a truce." I still wanted to kill him, but it was worth a truce if it meant getting my life back.

"I don't understand any of this. Start explaining, Enzo."

"When we get to the hotel." I didn't want to have this conversation in the car in front of my men.

"Oh, you aren't dragging me off to your yacht this time?"

"Eager to return to your cage, bella?"

She glared at me, but didn't argue any more. We rode in silence through the dark streets of Paris, with her typing and scrolling on her phone. No doubt she was telling someone I'd taken her from the club, or maybe letting her co-workers know that she'd gone home. I didn't try to stop her. I was just happy to sit here in relative silence with her, allowing her presence to soothe the chaos in my head. I'd missed her so fucking much.

When we reached the hotel, I got out and went around to her door. "Let's go up to my suite."

Gia didn't move, other than to lift her chin. "I'm not going into a hotel room with you."

I propped my arm on the roof of the car and bent down. "Do you think I won't carry you over my shoulder through the hotel, too? Dai, you should know me better than that."

With a huff, she scooted toward the door and slapped my hands away as she got out. "It's a waste of your time. I don't want to hear anything you have to say."

I put my hand on the small of her back and guided her into the hotel. She wore a tiny black dress that left her back exposed, and her skin was soft and silky, just like I remembered. I never wanted to stop touching her.

Then we were in the elevator. She tried to move away, but I wouldn't allow it. Instead, I pulled her closer. She let out a heavy sigh. "You're such a dick."

When we reached the top floor I nodded to the men guarding my suite. One of them pulled open the door and I led Gia inside. "Would you like a drink?"

She went over to the bar. "If you don't mind, I'll get my own."

That was fair, after what happened with LaCrocq. I poured a scotch for myself and she settled on a bottle of beer from the fridge. "I would never drug you," I said.

"Oh, so kidnapping me and keeping me in a cage are okay, but drugging me is a step too far. Good to know."

With a fingertip, I swept a long strand of hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear. The swift inhale of her breath felt like a caress to my balls. I suppressed the greedy urges telling me to hurry and take. I had to go slow with her. "I don't want you incapacitated. I like when you fight me."

She snorted and moved away to the far end of the sofa. "I bet you do. Say whatever it is you need to say. I'm tired and I have to look for a new job in the morning."

"No, you don't."

"Uh, yes, I do. I can't keep working for LaCrocq."

I settled on the opposite end of the sofa and sipped my drink, studying her over the rim of the glass. "There won't be much of LaCrocq left by the time I get done with him."

She rubbed her forehead like she was exhausted. "Jesus, Enzo."

I didn't want to waste time talking about that pezzo di merda. There was no way to do this other than to beg for her forgiveness. "I am sorry for what I said on the yacht."

Her eyes narrowed. "Which part? You said a lot of terrible things to me."

"All of it. What I said to get you to leave with Fausto."

"Oh, you mean when you said I was just pussy to you and how you ruined me?"

"Yes, and the rest. The video, kidnapping you. Everything. I'm sorry."

She started to speak, then closed her mouth. I could see her thinking, trying to decipher what I was saying, looking for angles. She would find none. What I said was the truth.

After a few seconds, she said, "Thank you. Are we done?"

"No, we aren't fucking done," I snapped. "We are never going to be done."

"There's the Enzo I know. What is this really about? Be honest with me for once."

Leaning forward, I put my glass on the table. Then I rested my elbows on my knees, debating on how to put it. "I miss you."

"Cazzata," she said instantly. "You couldn't wait to get rid of me."

"I wanted to keep you safe. In case I had to blow up the yacht."

Her jaw fell open. "Blow up the yacht? You have explosives on there?"

I frowned. This surprised her? "Of course I do."

"Oh, for fuck's sake." She shook her head and drank some of her beer. "Well, what about before the Russians arrived on the yacht? When you showed me that video and told me you were sending it to Fausto."

Her voice cracked at the end and the sound was like a punch to my gut. "I would never let anyone see that video. I was upset by what happened after my nightmare. I was . . . ."

"What?"

"Embarrassed. I don't like anyone to see me weak."

"You've seen me at my worst. What difference does it make?"

I gave her a look. "It is not the same."

"Because you're Don D'Agostino? Please. I don't care about that."

A gruff laugh escaped my lips. "I am aware. It's part of why I'm crazy about you."

"You're crazy about me?"

"Yes. Haven't I made that clear?"

"No, actually. I don't understand any of this." She stood up and began pacing. "I mean, why the sudden appearance in Paris? You could've texted or called in the last two weeks."

"I heard you came to work for LaCrocq. I couldn't allow it, knowing what he did to another woman."

"What exactly did he do?"

"He drugged and raped her, Gia."

"I've been working there for a week. Why didn't you call me and tell me?"

"I only just found out. And I assumed your brother-in-law warned you."

"You talked to Fausto?"

"I left his home in Siderno about three hours ago."

"You went to the castello? I can't believe he didn't kill you."

I didn't want to get into all that yet. "Did Ravazzani call and warn you about your boss?"

"My sister did."

My voice lowered into a snarl. "And yet you still went out to a club with him and let him get you a drink? Che cazzo?"

"I never had any intention of drinking it. I knew he spiked it."

"You did?"

"I'm not stupid, Enzo. After Frankie's warning, I watched him the entire time. I saw him reach into his pocket and pull something out at the bar."

"And what if he'd forced you to drink it anyway?"

She shook her head and blew out a long breath. "What are we doing here, D'Agostino?"

"I'm apologizing and telling you that I'm not letting you go."

"God, you are the worst. You threw me away, Enzo. Treated me like garbage. You can't change your mind all of a sudden and get me back."

I studied the carpet, my mind swirling. This was going badly. If she had missed me these past two weeks, I could not tell. But then, what had I expected? For her to fall at my feet?

This woman bowed to no one, which was why she was perfect for me. We were alike in that respect.

I wasn't used to talking about my feelings. I had been hurt to ensure I remained strong and never showed any weakness. I was born to be a leader, the boss. To have no remorse, to feel no empathy.

But I was nothing without her. And I had to tell her.

"Gianna, I can't function without you. There's too much up here." I gestured to my head. "I need you back with me."

"You, you, you. Have you even thought about me at all? How I might feel after you treated me like total shit?"

"I am sorry and I will keep saying it until you believe me. Perdonami. I didn't like hurting you."

"Yet you did. Now you expect me to go into hiding with you? To give up everything for you? My God, you are an egomaniac."

"I am not hiding any longer." I watched her digest this news, then continued. "As I said, I went to the castello and struck a truce with your brother-in-law."

"After four years? Just like that?"

"You weren't safe. I had to come to Paris and make sure this man didn't hurt you."

"This is totally nuts," she said. "What if I hadn't started working for LaCrocq? You would still be in hiding, ignoring me?"

"I would have come for you eventually. Perhaps this pushed me into acting sooner, but I knew I had to get you back."

"You never had me. You kidnapped me. I wasn't there willingly."

I couldn't stand it-I needed to touch her. I closed the distance between us and cradled her face in my hands. My heart pounded as I stared into her beautiful eyes, eyes that saw me so clearly. "This is why I am here, to give you the choice. Come to Napoli with me. Let me make you a queen. Stay at my side for the rest of my life."

Her chest rose and fell quickly, and she licked her lips. "No. This is happening too fast."

Wrong. Each second without her felt like an eternity.

Bending, I pressed our foreheads together. "I can't breathe without you. I can't think. Ti prego, amore mio. Come back with me. Let me prove to you that I love you."