Chapter 11: Chapter 11

As soon as I got to my designated room, Gino removed his hand from my back and closed the door behind us while I took a deep breath to vent all my pent-up anger on him..

But that wasn't even possible for me, as quickly as he suddenly grabbed my neck and pressed me against the wall behind me with a force that made me shudder with fear.

His eyes were filled with anger as he looked deep into my eyes and his grip grew tighter and more unbearable. I was really starting to panic and while my heart was beating faster, I desperately clutched his forearm in my hands, trying to get him to let go of me.

But nothing happened.

"Remember one thing!" he growled in my face, getting so close that I could feel his breath on my cheeks while my eyes widened and I was already slightly dizzy from the lack of oxygen. "I'm not your fucking minder! Bring me my money and you can fuck off! And if you talk to me like that again in front of my brother or my father, I won't take my hand off your neck anymore!"

He let go of me abruptly and I immediately fell to my knees, gasping for breath, clutching my aching neck. I didn't even know what to say anymore, but I thought it best to keep quiet given his bad mood.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw that he was probably crouching down next to me and as my panic slowly subsided, the oxygen found deep in my lungs and the pain lessened, I looked over at him and felt my tears slowly falling into mine cheeks.

"Why are you crying now?" he asked completely calm and wanted to put his hand on my shoulder, but no matter how scared I was, I slapped his hand away and fixed him angrily.

"I lost my virginity and I still didn't get any money! If you could handle your customers better-"

"What?!" he said, stunned, and at that moment he grabbed my shoulder to pull me to my feet. "Who did you fuck with?!"

I knew Dario was his brother. Knew that he certainly hadn't told anyone about us since he was engaged and so I also resolved to keep our hours together to myself.

"I don't know what his name was," I replied softly and just when he probably wanted to get angry again, there was a knock on the door.

Last night I thought this asshole had a good side, but Gino sucked through and through.

"Gino", the shy-looking woman who I had seen before spoke to him and then whispered something that I unfortunately couldn't understand, but since Gino disappeared down the hall without saying anything else, it must have been important .

I was fine.

After she turned around and ran in the other direction, I closed the door, leaned my back against it and took a few deep breaths with my eyes closed before I looked at my white bathrobe in thought and shook my head.

I was about to take a step toward my bed, frustrated with myself, when the door behind me opened with such a force that I stumbled over and landed on all fours.

"Can't you knock?!", I got upset and wanted to target Gino angrily, but then I looked up and directly into Dario's blue eyes, who watched me in fascination as I knelt down and blushed under his intense gaze.

He didn't say anything else, just closed the door without taking his eyes off me, and then walked slowly towards me, stopping right in front of me and I had to crane my head to look up at him be able.

He was still wearing his white shirt, only now he had his sleeves rolled up a bit so I could admire what must have been an expensive watch and his tattoos.

"You have no idea what you trigger in me in this position," I heard him say into the silence and I didn't know how to react in the face of last night and the realization of his engagement. I didn't know what to say to that either and felt more and more uncomfortable on my knees in front of him, so I quickly looked down and wanted to support myself with my hands, but he suddenly gave me his hand, which I just stared at in irritation.

"I'll help you, Ludovica," he said calmly but still decisively, and although I was afraid that he would change his behavior just as quickly as Gino did, I took his hand after a moment's hesitation and let him help me to my feet .

His hand on mine triggered something in me. Something that in my memory catapulted me back to last night, but I ignored the sensations, took my hand from his and took a step back, which he didn't seem to like.

"Aren't you going to say thank you?" he asked with a raised eyebrow and when our eyes met again, I immediately noticed how good he looked here in the light, which made me skid a bit.

"Thank you," I said, and then took a deep breath. "Thanks for just leaving me alone tonight and making me feel like shit," I added, about to mention that he hadn't even paid me when he got close to me, grabbed his chin a little tighter and looked deep into my eyes.

"I didn't know that I would see you again," he explained and seemed to be scrutinizing me so intensely that goosebumps ran down the back of my neck and I shuddered slightly.

"And I didn't know that you were engaged," I breathed and looked at his lips, which he apparently noticed immediately. The corners of his mouth twitched slightly and he actually seemed to enjoy my distraction from his charisma, so I bit my lower lip in embarrassment and he abruptly let go of my chin.

"You shouldn't provoke me," he said coolly and then turned to the window to just look out for a while. Being around him made me feel different. Strange. I didn't even know what to do anymore and I just stood there, staring at him, wondering if I'd ever be able to escape from this mansion again .

"Why are you here?" He then suddenly pulled me out of my rigidity and pointed to the bed. "Sit down and explain it to me."

I sat down on the bed without thinking much and looked down at my fingers nervously while I then told him about my uncle, last night and Gino and he really listened to me carefully.

But then, after my revelation, he simply ran to the door and took the handle in his hand before he paused again for a moment.

"I'll be back at 6 p.m.," he let me know without looking at me, and although I wanted to ask and say so much, he too disappeared, leaving me more confused than I already was.

After sitting on the edge of my bed completely alone and caught up in my thoughts for a while, I got up with a deep snort and walked over to the window, from which I had a direct view of the parking lot in front of the villa. I played nervously with my bottom lip, thinking about what kind of person Dario was and also whether he might not be just as unpredictable as Gino, just better at hiding it.

In the end, they all scared me in a way and I was still hoping to just go home. Filippo was shit, too, but he was stupid as fuck and mostly too drunk to be really dangerous to me. At least that made him easier to handle than those mafia guys I was watching excitedly how they on walked into the parking lot and seemed to be arguing.

Gino was leaning against his black car while lighting a cigarette and seemed genuinely angry at something while Dario stood across from him and seemed to be arguing with him. I didn't see his face, but even from here I could see that his expression was a lot calmer and more controlled than Gino's, who seemed to be gesturing wildly with his hands and cursing loudly.

Tense and holding my breath, I continued to watch them until there was an unexpected knock on my door and I took a step back from the window.

"Yes?" I spoke softly and at that moment the door opened and the shy maid from earlier came into the room with several dresses over her arm.

Her glassy eyes met mine and when I looked at her questioningly, she immediately avoided my gaze and arranged her clothes neatly on the bed in front of her.

"Scusa per il disturbo", she apologized barely audibly for her disturbance and then stood next to the bed with her head down.

"You don't have to apologize," I tried to relieve some of her tension and didn't understand at all why she seemed so nervous. I was a whore after all. So I was probably even below her in rank and I should look insecure, not her.

"Capo Vinzenco instructed me to bring you these clothes. Please get them ready and he'll be expecting you in his office in an hour. I'll pick them up."

"What?" I asked confused, but she slipped silently past me and out of my room without giving me any further reaction. I looked stunned at the door for a moment and then turned to the really expensive looking clothes. All three were black and very elegant, but one thing immediately caught my eye. It was strapless and cut much longer at the bottom than the others, which appealed to me the first time.

I carefully picked it up, held it to my body and went into the bathroom with it to change my clothes and arrange my black hair with my hands. I didn't have any make-up here and my white sneakers were the only shoes I owned, so I put them on as well and stood in front of the mirror in the closet to look at myself proudly.

I smiled and imagined how my life would have been if my parents hadn't died. Am I rich too? Would I also have owned such beautiful clothes? If I were happy.

At this performance, my smile disappeared and I had to hold back my tears because, despite the long time, I still missed her so much that I would certainly never recover from this pain. Plus last night and my first time. I wish my mother was with me now to accompany me and stand by my side during this time, but I was alone.

With a sad expression, I walked closer to the mirror, gently stroking the few freckles on my cheeks and examining my neck, which was still shimmering slightly red from Gino's rough grip.

"Bunker," I whispered and then adjusted my dress to stand by the window again, but there was no sign of Dario and Gino, which made me seem kind of disappointed. Not because of Gino.

Looking at the blue sky, I drifted back to our night when everything seemed so uncomplicated and simple. Though I didn't know what I represented to him, the thought that he was being so affectionate to me despite his determination was somehow reassuring. He was actually just like Gino, a complete stranger and yet I trusted him in a strange way. I didn't get the feeling he meant to hurt me or treat me badly, but given his fiancée, he didn't give a shit either.

What was I even thinking about? Because he was my first? Or had I gone crazy from the stress?

"Don't go crazy," I said to myself and turned to the door to find my way to Vincenzo on my own. I felt trapped and lonely in this room and it was in my best interest not to spend an unnecessary second inside here.

I opened the door, looked first down the wide aisle to the right, and then to the left at the stairs, but there was no one in sight, so I slowly put one foot in front of the other, lifting the dress slightly, afraid I might trip .

"Ludovica," I suddenly heard his voice behind me and, holding my breath, turned to Dario, who was just about to button his fresh, white shirt.

My gaze fell briefly on his gunshot wound, but I pulled myself together and looked at his face questioningly.

"Dario?" I breathed, not knowing what else to add until he came close and looked me up and down while I saw a smile on his usually cold face for the first time.

"You really see-"

He stopped, probably struggling for the right words.

"Grazie," I replied shyly and he suddenly looked so deeply into my eyes that I completely forgot where I was and where I wanted to go until the shy maid came hurrying up the stairs and Dario automatically took a step away backed away from me.

"Buongiorno signor Mancini", she greeted him but didn't dare to really look at him, instead she turned to me. "Vincenzo is expecting you," she let me know and I took my eyes off Dario to nod at the maid.

"Ludo, wait," Dario said suddenly and grabbed my arm, which made me pause and when I saw the girl's startled expression in front of me, I thought I had done something wrong and expected the worst. But Dario just looked at me and stepped close to me.

"No matter what he asks of you, you will say no," he whispered firmly in my ear and then looked at me intently, which made my heart almost jump out of my chest.

I stared at him, then shifted my gaze to his hand on my arm and he instantly let go of me, turned and walked quickly down the hallway.

"Dio Mio", (oh my god) the little one next to me suddenly said and still looked at me in shock. "Do you know Signor Mancini?"

"No, why?" I asked confused and she tilted her head to look at me thoughtfully.

"He would never allow anyone to touch him, nor does he touch other people. Especially women, not even his fiancee."

I looked at her in amazement and remembered that he had already reached out his hand in my room and hadn't done anything to stop me holding it a little longer, which even I now found more than just strange.

"Is he like Gino?" I asked, looking thoughtfully down the hall.

"What do you mean?"

My eyes met hers and I took a deep breath just thinking about what Gino had already done to me.

"So unpredictable with women," I explained, and she immediately shook her head.

"Dario has nothing to do with women. He takes over the business-"

"What is there to babble on here?" Nunzio interrupted, coming up the stairs in a good mood and looking at me with a smile. "Wow. That's hardly the Ludo with the horrible last name anymore," he joked, kissing my cheek lightly in greeting.

At least one who seemed to treat me normally.

"Oh yes, it's still me and my last name is beautiful," I retorted, raising an eyebrow provocatively, prompting him to offer me his arm.

"Come with me. Vinzenco has great news about you," he almost beamed and ran with me ahead of the maid to the stairs.

Would I maybe really come home?!