"You could still run away," I tell Sophia, but she merely laughs in response, shaking her head.

"Just as I suspected, you understand nothing," she mutters. "I knew you wouldn't."

"What's there to understand?" I ask softly. "He's hurting you. If he loved you, he wouldn't do that."

She shakes me off and leaves the suite. When she closes the door, the key turns in the lock.

As I get ready for my day, I feel a bad premonition of something happening, and as I'm combing through my freshly washed and dried mane of hair, my feelings come true. The door opens and Signore saunters in. It's one of the rare times I've seen him since I got here, but by now I know how I'm supposed to greet him.

His boots come to a stop before me while I hurriedly drop to my knees, my forehead touching the ground. I don't want to risk disobeying the man or giving him the smallest reason to punish me. I already know he would not go easy on me – Sophia's bruises speak volumes on how he treats his women. Like we're property, something to own, not a relationship to cherish.

"You may get up," he says in his deep, dark and commanding voice.

I pick myself up and keep my eyes trained on the floor. He may think it's a sign of respect, but I'm only doing it because I can't bear the sight of him. He may be devilishly handsome, but he's a wolf, a predator. And I don't trust him at all.

"I've brought you a gift," he continues, and this finally catches my attention.

"Thank you," I whisper, my heart speeding up into overdrive. I can't help but hope this gift has something to do with Ryder or the Bernardi famiglia, and before I can stop myself, I ask him about it, "Are you going to let me go back home to Ryder?"

"Don't be stupid." His demeanor changes in an instant. The man is irritable today and it seems our conversation has only served to ruin his mood further. "I brought you something I heard you like."

He pulls out a bottle of perfume. I recognize it in an instant – it's the one I always wear, the brand and bottle of the one my mother loved. It was one of the small indulgences even Papa couldn't say no to.

But seeing the perfume in Signore's hands makes me feel sick to my stomach. Something about it doesn't sit right with me and I instantly know his true intentions aren't as pure as he'd like them to seem.

"What do I have to do in return?" I ask as he holds out the bottle for me.

"Who says you have to do something?" he muses, but my watchful expression doesn't wane, and he finally chuckles. "Fine. You're a sharp woman, Aurora. I want to have sex with you."

Instantly, my blood runs cold. This is what I was afraid of, but the small mercy here is that he hasn't just forced himself on me without asking permission. Still, he cannot be stupid enough to assume I'll go along with this. I don't want him anywhere near me, and the thought of his fingers roaming over my naked skin as Ryder's once did makes me feel sick.

"You're hesitant," he says, setting the bottle down on the coffee table in my lounging area. "Why?"

"I'm pregnant," I remind him.

"I'm not going to rough you up, Aurora." He takes a step forward and I flinch as he strokes my hair, groaning. "I would treat you differently than the others."

His words don't do anything to calm me. In fact, they have the opposite effect, making my blood run even colder. "What about Ryder?"

He furrows his brows as if he can't possibly understand where I'm coming from. "What about him?"

"I love him." It's the first time I've admitted it out loud and my confession shocks us both. I can't believe I've just blurted it out like that... but at least now it's out in the open, and there's no skirting around the issue anymore. "I don't want to betray him."

"Don't you think he would be looking for you if he cared about you at all?" I glare at Signore who seems to know exactly how to twist the dagger he's buried in my heart. "He doesn't care, Aurora. You'd do well to accept that now."

And even though he might be telling the truth, I refuse to believe him. The passion that ignited the spark between Ryder and me won't die so easily. I still believe we're destined to be together, and I'm convinced he will come after me, bring me back home and forgive me for everything that happened with Papa.

"I'm never going to replace him," I tell Angelo with my head held high. "You'll have to force yourself on me if that's what you want."

Tags: Isabella Starling Mafia Heirs Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net