"Valerie," he whispered, his smile fading as he moved closer to me. "I'm sor-" I cut him off with a hard slap to his left cheek. "How dare you?" I hissed, delivering another slap in the same spot. "How could you do this to me?" I raised my hand to strike again, but he caught my wrist before I could. "Think very carefully about your next move," he warned in a low, threatening tone, tightening his grip on my wrist, daring me to slap him again. The pain shot through my arm, and tears pricked at the corners of my eyes. "Or what?" I scowled at him. "You don't want to find out," he replied, stepping closer and staring into my eyes. "And don't push me!" Today was the day it all began to fall apart. My world twisted, crushed me against the wall, and tore apart my sanity and innocence. I never imagined I would go through something like this, but there I was, caught in the middle of it all. Valerie Price is a smart, strong-willed girl with a kind heart, but a series of unfortunate events tear her apart. She catches the attention of Matteo Romano, a ruthless mafia leader disguised as a charming tycoon. He is not only intrigued by her but also infatuated. As they get to know each other, they begin to change, becoming something neither expected. She finds herself doing things she never thought possible. He offers her the world, but will she accept it or push it away in fear? The tension between them eats away at her, but will she give in to the irresistible temptation of the man who molested her and took her virginity or will she fight for her freedom from deadly and sexy man? Warning: Contains strong language, sexual content, rape, and graphic violence.
Chapter 1 1
Selene slammed the folders on the desk in front of me, pulling me out of my trance. "Jeez, scared the shit out of me," I said with a hand on my racing heart.
"Oh! I'm sorry. Or am I?" Her blue orbs narrowed at me. "You need to knock that depressing look off your face because you're depressing me. You have been like that the entire day. Be happy. Your shift ends in an hour," she said while crossing her thin little arms. "Get off my chair and get some work done in your last hour."
"Okay," I sighed while rolling my eyes. I got up and walked towards the reception, plopping down on my chair behind the counter. This day started bad enough with that asshole at the station and this slight headache was a cherry on top. I had completely lost my appetite after the morning stunt.
I retrieved some medicine that would relieve my headache but would make me dizzy for a while because of my empty stomach. Popping the pill into my mouth, I swallowed it with some water that I pulled out of the mini fridge in Selene's office. "Oh shit!" I exclaimed out loud for the few people to listen were waiting on their turn to go in and get checked. My brain froze as the cold water trickled down my throat. Ugh.
"Ok. What's wrong? You look like shit honestly. Did you drink a lot that you still have a hangover from your birthday?" Selene asked with her brows furrowed together.
"I'm fine," I whispered for only her to hear. "And I didn't drink. It's just one of those days."
"Whatever you say but you are in no state to work. It seems that you might faint any moment now and I don't want to carry your heavy ass," she grinned.
"Shut up. I'm fine. I just took medicine so it is making me a little dizzy. After a few minutes, I'll be as good as new."
"You better be. I don't want your depression to spread across everyone in here," she giggled. "I'm kidding, girl."
"Hilarious," I said, already feeling a little dizzy.
The door dinged open, forcing my eyes up in that direction. It was him again. The blue-suited man stood there alone this time. He ran his fingers through his dense hair and gazed right into my tired eyes. Looking down, I tried to compose myself due to the medicine that was starting to kick in.
"Oh God," Selene gasped. "No way."
I glanced up at her. "What?"
"I think I'm going to pass out," she stared at the man. I looked in his direction and watched a sympathizing smile form on his lips. Damn that smile. He started walking towards me, coming closer and closer until the reception desk stopped him from reaching any further. Selene still stood next to me with her lips slightly parted in shock.
"Hello, love," his husky voice rang through my ears again with a hint of British accent sending a chill down my spine that I hadn't noticed earlier.
"May I help you, sir?" I asked unenthusiastically.
"I just wanted to apologize for my brother's behavior this morning. He is all the things that you said. An asshole, a dickhead, and all the other things."
"He's the one who should be apologizing," I said as I could feel the anger boiling again in me. "He almost hit me but you stopped him so I should thank you for that."
"I would have never let him hit you," he said smiling sheepishly. Is he flirting with me?
"Hmm," was all I could get out of my throat. I saw Selene backing away slowly from the corner of my right eye.
"I'm Matteo. Matteo Romano," he said putting his hand forth.
I looked at his big hand and then back up at him. "I'm Aquarius. Aquarius Pepperoni."
He started laughing. His laugh was intoxicating which brought a slight smile to my face. "That's a first. Got jokes, huh?"
"What?" I acted confused. "I thought we were saying a zodiac sign and then a random word."
He tilted his head to the right and mumbled, "You're intriguing."
"What was that?" I asked trying to figure out what he said under his breath.
"I apologize on behalf of my brother again. He does need to learn manners."
"Like I said, I don't need your meaningless apology. He was the one wrong, not you." I tried to stop myself from slurring. The medicine was taking a toll on me.
"It isn't meaningless, love. I mean it. I'll have him apologize to you as well. I'll make sure he does. You have my word," he smiled.
"Well, we'll see about that." I got up and began walking away before the room started spinning. "Oh shit," I slurred and fell into a pair of strong arms.
***
I woke up with Matteo's hand on my face, stroking my loose hair behind my ear. I pushed him away from me and sat up instantly in panic. "What the hell were you doing?"
"Calm down, love. You passed out and I caught you before you could hit your head on the desk. So, I think you owe me a thank you perhaps."
"Well, how long was I out?" I asked, rubbing my eyes.
He looked at his watch and then back up at me. "About 6 hours."
"What?" I shrieked. "I've been on the floor for six hours?"
"Did I say hours?" He asked, his finger tapping his chin. "I meant minutes. Six minutes."
I narrowed my eyes at the stupid man and tried to stand up. He supported me as I did that, laying his arms around my waist. "Don't touch me!" I spat.
He raised his hands in the air. "Sorry. I won't touch you without your permission. Cool?"
"You're talking as if we are going to see each other again," I cocked my brow at him.
"To show you how sorry I am about my brother's behavior, I want to ask you if you could come to a ball with me," he asked with a glint of hope in his eyes.
"You're asking me out on a date?"
"It's not a date. It's an apology. I can promise you that you'll accept the apology before the night is over," he smirked.
"Look, sir, I don't know you. I don't trust you or any other guy that I don't know for that matter. So ask someone else to escort you to a ball." I turned on my heel and commenced walking towards Selene who was standing behind the reception, staring at us.
"Think about it, love. The event is tomorrow. You don't have to buy anything and you can bring a friend along with you as well," he said from behind me. He sauntered over to the door and opened it. "You won't regret it," he winked and walked out.
"Don't be too overconfident, pepperoni," I shouted after him. He just cocked his head back and laughed while a man in a black suit opened the door to his black Audi R8 for him. He sat in and rolled down the window. With his left hand on the steering wheel and the right one waving at me, he sped off.
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