“Baby B,” Vincent tutted. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“Getting dressed for his majesty.”
“I said red, not black.”
I shrugged. “Maybe I’m a glutton for punishment.”
A wide smile spread across Vincent’s face as Levin let out a sigh.
“You’re in for a world of hurt.”
I sashayed to my bathroom. “I expect nothing less.”
“Then that’s what you’ll get. Be ready in five. I can’t wait to see the look on Dom’s face.”
I closed the door and took off my uniform.
Truth be told, I couldn’t wait either. If I couldn’t get answers, then at least I could piss Dominic De Santis off. A girl had nothing if she didn’t have her pettiness.
Thirty-Two
Dominic
I knew she’d defy me. Silently, I stared her down as she stood in front of me in her little, black dress, her blonde waves hanging to nearly her waist. Her eyes were red, which I was sure had something to do with Levin. He’d been bitching enough lately about having to follow her. So much that I’d almost told him to fuck off about it and leave it to me and Vincent.
“Knees.” I pointed to the floor in front of me.
Her lips drew into a tight line before she folded to her knees before me like a good girl.
“Why aren’t you in red?”
“Because, respectfully, fuck you,” she said softly, her eyes downcast. “Your majesty.”
Vincent let out a soft laugh from the edge of my bed. Levin remained wordless.
I drummed my fingers on the arm of my leather chair as I surveyed her. I’d have gutted anyone else who spoke to me like that, but Bianca had a way of making my lips quirk upward. I didn’t hate that. “You’re upset. Why? You’ve been given what you asked for. Are you not protected? Safe?”
“Safety is a matter of opinion,” she answered, still staring at the floor.
“Whose?” I reached for my whiskey and swallowed down the contents of the glass, waiting for her answer. I was buzzed from drinking so much that afternoon and not really in the mood for much of anything.
“Yours. Am I dead? No. Has Hail hurt me anymore? Not yet. But I’m not safe from any of you, the guys who said they’d protect me. You talk mean to me, hurt me, humiliate me. It gets worse when you’re pissed off at me. Levin tried to kill me. It’s no secret that he hates me. Vincent sees me as some…toy to be played with for his amusement.” She clenched her hands into fists a few times before blowing out a breath. “I know I don’t mean anything to any of you. And that’s fine. I get it, but I’m a person. I don’t want to be treated like something you stepped in just because of my last name. I didn’t get a choice in that. I’m Bianca Walker, not Bianca D’Angelou. I asked for your help. But it’s like I fell out of a hornet’s nest into a pit of vipers.”
“But you’re safe.” I surveyed her for a moment then leaned forward. “Look at me when I speak to you.”
She slowly lifted her head so her blue eyes were on me. I swallowed as the jolt in my chest sent an electric current throughout my body.
“Good girls get rewards. You haven’t been a good girl,” I said gently, reaching forward to cradle her face. “You don’t come into my life as anything. You earn your place at my side. Is that what you want? To be the girl at my side?”
“I want my life to matter.”
“You want to live?” I studied her, watching as her eyes glistened.
She nodded.
“Speak,” I said softly.
“Yes.”