I did exactly what I was told. I owned that fucking room. I’d even danced with a couple of guys who eye-fucked me daily in some of my classes. But it didn’t last long. Inside the limo on the way back to the castle mere hours after I arrived at my senior prom, I let a few tears fall. Ray was decidedly cold. I knew enough to realize it was against his nature. He didn’t want our relationship at first, but he was as equally involved.
It was impossible he felt nothing for me.
Impossible.
Even with the distance he put between us, something was there. He never strayed far from home for more than a few days. There were no other women. And he fed on me like an addiction.
Pissed off and anxious to finish our conversation, I hit the top of the stairs, prepared for war. I entered his bedroom, and when I saw he wasn’t there, I moved to find him in his office when I heard his cough.
“Nice and easy,” Olivia’s voice sounded from his bathroom. I moved toward his en suite, my heels silent on the carpet, and saw Ray sitting on his toilet seat with an oxygen mask on his face. Olivia spoke in a soothing tone as she pressed the end of a stethoscope to his chest.
“What happened?!”
Ray looked up, and his eyes narrowed. “Get out.” It was weak.
I ignored his order and rushed forward just as he jutted his foot out and kicked the door closed.
“Lock it,” I heard him tell Olivia.
“Please, just tell me what’s going on!”
“Fuck off, kitten.”
Angry tears burned my cheeks as I sat on the other side of the door. “I hate you!”
The plane touched down in Florence and jolted me awake. I discarded the onset of fear of what lay ahead and made my way to the rental counter to secure a car. I’d gotten the loudest car imaginable: a canary yellow hatchback with a navigation system. I wasn’t there to hide.
It was around 2:00 a.m local time when I sped into Barga a few hours later. The sleepy town was the perfect place to hide the bad guys. I was clueless to where I was going, and it seemed the whole town was shut down. I needed daylight to begin my search. Daniello’s descriptions of his home were my only guide. I dialed Cedric as I began to circle a shopping area.
“Where are you?” I could hear the grudge in his voice.
“I just got to Barga. I don’t think I’m going to find a place to sleep tonight.”
“Find a shopping center and park there and get some shut eye until morning.”
“I’m already working on it. I just got a crash course in European driving. I’m a fucking fan.”
“Speed demon.” Cedric chuckled. “Feeling a little out of place?”
“That’s an understatement.”
I spotted a row of specialty shops and parked directly in front of a bakery—Pasticceria Celeste Heavenly Pastry—and got out of the car. I looked over the glass and gold-framed menu with satisfaction and returned to my lemon-yellow hatchback.
“I think I’ve found something. He grew up here, so it’s only a matter of finding someone who knows him or his family.”
“It’s not too late to turn around.”
“Drop it.”
Cedric sighed. “You’ll have mail at Ville Le Pergola in about eight hours. I’ve booked you a room with my card.”
“I’m not hiding, Cedric, but thank you.” We sat in silence for a few moments. “How is she?”
“She’s still asleep.” I heard the hesitance in his voice, and dread coursed through me.
“Tell me.”
“She’s had another surgery.”