Roughing

He pulled the same Greek-lettered shirt his brothers wore from the waistband of his black basketball shorts. As he wiped his face with it, I couldn’t help but stare.

“Sorry,” the boy grumbled.

Luca folded his arms across his chest, engaged in a stare-down with the crazy person in front of him, before turning toward me. “What kind of man would I be if I let him talk to a woman like that? You shouldn’t settle.”

“I’m not,” I snapped back. “I know how to choose my battles, and this isn’t one of them.” I waved my hand at the stranger. “Apology accepted. Just go!”

Luca cocked an eyebrow at me. The guy might have been an ass for almost running me down, but he did not deserve anything Luca had in mind. I knew all about his family an

d their connections. If the guy had even a hint of who Luca was, he would have kept his mouth shut. Nobody stepped up to a Marchese unless they wanted to end up at the bottom of the Delaware River. By shooing him away, I might have saved his life without him realizing it.

Smart enough to leave this time, the boy started walking toward his car.

With wide-eyed curiosity, Luca took a step back. “Looks like you owe me now, princess.”

At the sound of his husky voice, I stopped in my tracks. I wasn’t about to owe the son of the most dangerous man in Philadelphia a thing.

His brothers didn’t even pretend not to stare down my shirt, but that wasn’t what angered me.

“I don’t owe you shit.” I crossed my arms over my chest, deciding whether I wanted to walk away. But I could not let him win on principle alone. “How much did you give him? My wallet is in my car.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he said, unaffected. “You can find another way to show me your appreciation.”

“Che schifo!” I damn near spit on the ground, throwing my hand out at him in disgust.

“Babe, I’m not that bad.” He stared at my thighs and flashed a panty-dropper grin. “Trust me, I don’t repulse you. Not even a little bit.”

I sucked in a deep breath and blew it out my nose. “Think whatever you want. I don’t need your charity. I’m good for it.”

He smirked. “I know you are, princess, but I don’t want your money.”

“Fine,” I huffed, not the least bit entertained. “I guess I’ll have to find another way to pay you back. Come by Mickey’s. I’m going there with some friends later.”

His smile widened. “It’s a date.”

“Nope, not a date. Just paying off a debt. I sure as hell don’t want to owe you of all people anything.” Despite my anger, I felt an odd sense of arousal from this argument.

He stepped forward, his brothers making room for him to pass. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You know what I mean, Luca.”

He shot me a look, as though I’d piqued his interest. “So, you do remember me.”

“We’ve had, how many classes together? How could I not? No one can miss the skank parade you bring with you.”

His cocky smirk set my skin on fire.

“Don’t think I give a crap about you, you stubborn ass.” I rolled my eyes. “You can go home and stroke your ego, but keep me out of it,” I said, making a jerking motion with my hand.

Luca laughed, but it came out more like a snort. “I can’t wait for tonight. You’re a mystery, Isabella Rinaldi. Always have been.”

I wondered why I’d invited him to the bar with us or why I kept talking to him. Stupidity, I guessed.

A small part of me, the side that had zero willpower, wanted him to do unspeakable things to me. My brain screamed for me to retreat.

“Next time, try not to be such a dick. It’s not flattering.”

He nodded, and then, I spun around and walked away from him.