POV Victoria
Luca's charging after me and Sofia throughout the house.
We've been running for a while now, and I'm slowing down. But not Luca. He's still hot on our tails, approaching us at full speed.
His fingers graze my left shoulder blade, and I shriek, willing myself to run faster.
Sofia takes a sharp turn, disappearing to my left and leaving Luca to chase after me. I huff in annoyance because drawing on his face was her idea.
Up ahead, I see Leo coming out of a room. I run toward him, knowing Luca won't hurt me if he's nearby.
Noticing us, Leo raises a brow in surprise before his eyes widen when he sees how fast I'm running toward him.
I crash into his solid chest, and he doesn't stumble back from the force. He catches me as if I weigh nothing.
Luca approaches us, huffing, and Leo's hold loosens around my waist, allowing me to hide behind him.
A smile tugs at my lips when Luca groans in defeat. He then makes a beeline in the other direction and grumbles incoherent sentences under his breath.
Sofia appears from the corner with a grin.
"Nice mustache." Comes her snarky reply.
"Shut it!" Luca grunts, and she laughs.
My attention shift to Leo, who has a dazed, faraway expression.
"Is everything okay?" I ask.
He nods and grabs my right hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. His warmth brings a sense of comfort and protection.
I'm not sure what to think about his constant gestures of affection toward me. I know I should find them creepy, but for some weird reason, I don't.
My brain keeps telling me to stop falling for his charm. But my heart keeps skipping a beat anytime he treats me as if I'm his.
It's his stupid, handsome face that's making me go crazy!
Leo's voice breaks through my thoughts.
"I need to speak to you both." His expression and tone are unreadable, and this makes me nervous.
His comment from this morning comes to mind, and I realize he's going to tell us what he's going to do with us. A shiver runs through the length of my body. Afraid of what he has to say.
We nod, and he ushers us inside the room he was leaving earlier.
Sofia and I take a seat in front of Leo's desk. There's a tension in my body, and Sofia looks at me with a nervous expression.
"You asked me when you could go home..." Leo draws out.
"Yes," I mumble.
"Adriano and his men know I had something to do with your rescue." My eyes shoot up to stare at him, and I'm sure he can see the terror in my eyes.
Leo continues, his voice steady, "we're still not sure if he'll track down the girls he lost. Which is why you both need to stay here until we're certain he won't go after you both." As he says this, he shuffles the many papers on his desk, avoiding our stare.
His words have produced a hollowness inside me because I won't be going home, and now there's a possibility I'm still in danger.
Sofia's chair makes a harsh sound when she stands.
"Are you kidding me!" she shouts, her arms flinging around her in anger. I extend a hand to calm her, and she pushes me away, too consumed with distress.
Leo's face hardens, and he rises from his seat.
"Sit down." There's a warning in his voice, and Sofia shrinks back into her chair.
I bite my bottom lip, unsure of what to say because this Leo is a force I'm afraid of.
He wasn't kidding when he said he was bipolar.
Leo sits down with a sigh.
"Would you much rather go home and risk being taken again?" he asks Sofia in a calmer voice. She shakes her head and looks down at her hands resting on her lap.
"It's not fair! Why can't he leave us alone? I want to go home and forget this ever happened." She swipes at her fallen tears, and I place a hand on her forearm.
The grief of not seeing my family after what happened has also upset me, but I don't cry because crying won't help us escape the mess we've been thrown into. We need to be grateful Leo is willing to protect us and has given us a place to stay until it's safe to leave.
"Sofia, I understand you miss your family. But if we need to stay here a little longer to make sure we're safe, then we need to be thankful we're here together." Her teary eyes meet my stare, and she sighs before nodding in understanding.
"How long do we have to stay here?" she asks.
"Maybe two weeks, or at least until we're sure it's safe for you both to return home." When he says this, he's watching us, waiting for our rejection. We give none and instead nod in understanding.
Sofia rises from her seat, saying she's tired when she's really missing her family.
As she leaves, she casts her head down, and I feel hopeless when I can't do anything to ease her grief.
Leo and I are the only ones in the room now, and I can feel his intense eyes holding me in place, making me nervous.
"Thank you for everything, Leo. I don't even want to think about what would have happened to us if you all didn't save us when you did." I say, my voice trembling. Memories of the girls still trapped with Adriano flood my mind, and tears well up in my eyes. Erika comes to mind, and my chest becomes heavy from the last memory I have of her.
My words have upset Leo, and he makes his way over to me and crouches beside me.
"I will always protect you," he says, his eyes looking right into mine, and it's as if time has slowed. My heart is beating fast with him close to me, and I can see there's a question he wants to ask me, but he's afraid to say it.
"You're probably wondering how Sofia and I got trafficked." My tone is a little off, and I'm also aware that my hands are shaking in my lap.
He notices the fear rising inside me, and his big, warm hands seize mine into a tender embrace. With his comfort, I explain pieces of what happened during my kidnapping.
He's quiet, and his jaw hardens as I tell him what I saw and what they did to us.
Throughout our conversation, I find myself with the urge to ask if he can rescue the others, but I'm not sure how to tell him, or if asking him for this favor is even possible. But I still can't forget about the other girls. Especially Erika, who has no one looking for her other than me.
"What's wrong?" Leo asks when he notices my turmoil.
I sigh. "Everything's been so crazy, and I feel bad because I got saved, but others like Erika didn't." My face is warm from my tears, and the pain I harbor inside me leaves with each droplet. "I can't go on knowing he's still hurting her and many others. To top it all off, I ruined the trip for the rest of my classmates by getting kidnapped." I scoff, angry at how messed up this trip turned out.
Leo grabs my chin, and his touch is soft. I stare into his jade eyes and almost lose myself in the green hues.
"It's normal to experience survivor's guilt after everything you've been through," he says, voice velvety. His thumb rubs the skin near my fading bruise, and he stares at my busted lip, anger washing over his expression for a second.
"I can't promise to make the pain disappear, but I can try my best to help in any way possible." He's now cupping my face between his hands, and I'm sure he can hear me breathing hard from how close he is. "I'll see if Luca can track where Adriano has Erika, so we can rescue her and the rest of the girls."
"You would do that?"
Leo flashes me a smile when he notices my wide-eyed expression.
"I'll do whatever it takes to make you happy."
I'm silent as I stare at him. My heart beats vigorously from his words.
I'm not sure how to read his comment. Whether he's simply a decent human being who wants to help another person in need, or if there's another reason why my happiness is important to him. Regardless, his words have sent a wave of warmth through me, and there's no controlling the tumbling in my stomach.
"But I won't be able to get her out within a few days because things have become complicated." He sighs. "Adriano won't be as careless as before."
I nod in understanding and wrap my arms around him. His musky scent sticks to my skin.
"Thank you so much, Leo."
His arms wrap around me, and his chin grazes the top of my head. When I pull back, I feel intense happiness from his promise to save the others. I'm not sure what takes over me, but I kiss him on the cheek, and heat rises to my face when I pull away.
Way to be embarrassing, Victoria! I groan and mentally facepalm myself.
Leo says nothing about what I've done and instead lets out a soft laugh, the corners of his mouth lifting into a slight smile.
I put a strand of hair behind my right ear to distract myself from the tension between us, and Leo's eyes fall onto my torn earlobe. His face hardens.
"Which of the bastards did this to you?" His voice is deep, and a nerve ticks in his jaw.
"I—I—" I stutter, completely losing my train of thought from this dominating yet comforting side of him.
I draw in a deep sigh.
"I forgot to tell you, but when they kidnapped me, they put a bag over my head. When I got one of them to release me, I tore the bag off, and my earring got caught with it," I mutter, watching his eyes simmer with an unknown emotion. "So I guess I'm the said bastard," I say, trying to make light of the situation.
Leo's face contorts into disapproval at my comment.
"I'm sorry I wasn't there to help you sooner. But I'm here now, and no one will ever hurt you again. If anyone even tries to hurt you, I'll cut their hand off myself," he grits out, and I'm not sure if he's only saying this to make me feel better or if he's being serious.
Leo's eyes waver to a stack of papers on his desk, and then back to me.
"Victoria, since you and Sofia never got to see much of France, how would you feel about having us show you two around Paris?"
I shuffle in my seat at his words.
"You don't have to do that. You've already done so much for me. I wouldn't want to be a burden."
"You're not a burden, Victoria." The corner of his mouth tugs into a frown. "Let me show you around France. You deserve it after everything they put you through."
I let out a heavy breath and give a hesitant nod. Leo smiles, pleased with my answer.
"But you have to promise to stay by my side." This time he speaks in a deep, firm tone, like my dad. I laugh at his overprotectiveness, and he looks at me with curiosity.
"What's so funny?"
"You sound like my dad." When I say this, Leo's forehead scrunches, and his eyes widen. My words have brought an obvious grimace to his expression.
"Your dad?" he says in disbelief.
***
Leo
When Victoria kissed my cheek, her lips against my skin brought tingles to my body. This unfamiliar sensation that I once called a weakness brings pleasure, and I want more of it. Her touch makes me feel good.
I can't stop myself from growing attached to her. She smells nice, she's beautiful, and her long hair swooshes behind her like the finest drapes from Egypt. Being around her makes my heart race. I'm falling faster than I thought, and this scares me.
"Your dad?" My voice comes out slightly off from her comment.
Did she dad-zone me? Is that even a thing?
Victoria's laughing, and the back of my neck turns warm. My mind is going crazy after being compared to her dad. I'm not that much older than her.
"You should see your face!" She places a hand on her chest, her cheeks are stretched from how wide she's smiling, and her smile, God, her smile is so gorgeous it's like I'm looking at an angel.
I send her a teasing glare.
Normally, when anyone makes fun of me, they find themselves with my fist in their face, but not Victoria. Hell, she could slap me with a whipped cream pie, and I won't care as long as it means I can hear her beautiful laugh and see her smiling like she is right now.
"Your dad though?" I say with a slight grimace, and she bites her top lip to stop from grinning. "Do you think I'm that old?"
She shakes her head, and I let out a breath.
"I said you sound like my dad, not you look like my dad." Her voice still holds a level of tease.
"Oh." I scratch the back of my neck, and her face glows with amusement.
I rise from my crouched position near her, and she cranes her neck to look at me.
When I extend my hand, she only takes a second before placing her delicate hand in mine, allowing me to help her out of her seat. I guide us out of my office, not ready to let her go. Not when I've been waiting to spend time with her since she woke up yesterday.
"Where are we going?" she breathes, trying to keep up with my long strides. I slow my steps when I remember her legs are much shorter than mine.
"What do you like doing for fun?" I ask, wanting to get to know the woman who has my heart beating in my ears and my hands turning clammy.
She thinks for a second before her beautiful smile graces my sight.
"I like to read." She pauses, biting the inside of her mouth. "I also like to take pictures of nature and architecture."
"Do you trust me?" I ask when an idea comes to mind.
Victoria's cheeks flush with color.
"Although we just met, I do trust you," she says in a whisper, and my heart skips a beat from her answer. With her words, I'm certain that if I died right now, I'd die a happy man.
My heart races as I take us to the backyard toward the mini–Versailles Gardens. When we're outside, she gasps and releases herself from my hand. She runs toward a rose bush, looking at the surrounding greenery in awe. The pad of her finger brushes along the soft velvet red petals, and I soak in the sight of her.
Victoria's eyes sparkle in excitement, and she's more vibrant than the red roses she's touching.
I send a quick message to Francisco asking him to do me a favor, and his reply comes within a second. It wouldn't be Francisco if he didn't tease me about Victoria. But I can't help it. I want to do something special for her. If it was that easy, I would give her the world in a heartbeat.
"Where I come from, we don't have many gardens or architecture like this," she says, looking at me and motioning to the mansion behind us.
I approach her with slow steps, asking her to elaborate, wanting to learn as much as I can about her before our time together ends.
"Sofia and I are from Southern California, where everything is as dry as this rose." She plucks a dead rose from the bush and crumbles it between her fingers.
I let out a breathless laugh at her little joke.
"Tell me more about you," I edge, and she smiles, sitting on the grass.
"What do you want to know?" She looks at me and lifts her right hand to block the sun from beaming into her eyes.
"Everything," I reply, sitting beside her and using my body to shield her from the sun.
Her lips curve into a slight smile.
"I'm about to be nineteen. I'm a middle child...What else...? Oh yeah, I want to study business."
From the mention of her wanting to study business, I have to contain my laughter at how ironic our situations are. She's literally perfect. I just know we would make a powerful team if there's any chance of us ever being together.
I nod and listen to her words with interest, finding myself more mesmerized by her.
"What about you? I want to know who Leo—" She pauses in thought, looking curious, and a frown appears on her face. "See, I don't even know your last name."
"Bandoni," I answer, looking at the rose bushes ahead.
"What?" she says, her face scrunched in confusion.
"My last name is Bandoni, I'm twenty-four, and I live in Italy," I tell her the basics of who I am without mentioning my work. She doesn't need to know she's sitting beside the Don of the Italian mafia. This information is enough to send a grown man running, and she's barely warming up to me.
"What do you do for a living? You seem to be loaded. Are you some famous actor or something?" she asks, and I catch the teasing note in her words.
I laugh at her comment.
"Sorry to disappoint, but I'm not an actor," I say with humor. "I'm a businessperson. Let's leave it at that," I tell her, and she nods in understanding, but I can tell my answer hasn't convinced her.
She nibbles on her bottom lip, and my heart rate speeds up from the gesture. She doesn't notice how her little nervous habit frustrates me because her eyes are busy looking around the garden.
I push aside the desire to kiss her and focus on the receding sunset. We continue to talk like I have wanted to do since I first laid my eyes on her, and by the end of the night, a newfound sense of comfort forms between us.
It's as if the last few hours we spent together have created a bridge I can use to cross over to where she is. Talking to her came easily, and that's saying a lot since I'm a man of little words.
The loud ringing from my phone disrupts the comfortable silence between us.
Despite the noise, Victoria's eyes don't waver. They continue to stare ahead in deep solitude. I can't take my eyes off the side of her face, which is glowing from the fiery orange hues of the sunset.
The sound of my phone going off continues, and this time Victoria emerges from her trance.
She looks at me, and my face becomes warm when she catches me staring at her. Her brows lift as if asking me whether I'm going to answer the call or not.
I inwardly groan and pull out my phone to check the caller ID. I panic when the name of Cleo's guard flashes on the screen.
Victoria's forehead creases, having sensed my agitation.
"Good evening, boss. Sorry to interrupt. But your sister was worried when you never returned when you promised." Cleo's guard's voice fills my ear.
"Put me on speaker," I tell him, and I talk to my sister. "Cleo, I'm sorry I forgot to tell you. I'm going to stay in France longer than I thought." I glance at Victoria, who's staring at the water fountain ahead. "Something came up..."
Her guard tells me what she signs.
"Boss, she's annoyed, but she wishes you the best. She says—" He pauses, and I hear his conversation with Cleo. "Do I have to say it?" he grumbles at what she signs. "Fine, she says she loves you." There's a hint of discomfort in his words, and I laugh.
"I love you too, Cleo." From beside me, Victoria briefly turns tense. I turn to see what's wrong and sigh in relief when I find her safely watching the Eiffel Tower. "Cleo, I have to go, but I'll see you in a few weeks," I assure her before getting held up talking to her guard, who tells me everything that has happened since I left Italy.
By the time I end the call, the sun has disappeared, and Victoria has fallen asleep.
Her head rests on my shoulder, and her soft breathing comforts me.
I smile, caressing the top of her head, and I'm gentle as I lift her and carry her back inside.
Like the first time I held her in my arms, she molds perfectly into my body.