Page 45 of Bianchi

The coast is clear, but I still find myself creeping along the corridor, my back pressed to the wall like I don’t have permission to be here. When I come to a stop at the top of the stairs, I shake my head and exhale heavily. What am I doing? I don’t need to sneak around like I’m doing something I shouldn’t. If anything, it’s going to draw more attention to me if I come across somebody. Pushing my shoulders back, I stride down the hallway, stopping occasionally to test the handles of doors along the way. I stumble upon the library after five tries, my relief palpable when the door swung open.

I can only imagine what secrets must be hiding in this house if, after five rooms, the library is the only door unlocked. These men are dangerous and the one I share my bed with is the most dangerous of them all. I shouldn't forget that.

But they do have good taste in books. My fingers run over the spines neatly lined up on the shelves. The titles are in Italian, but the authors' names are not. It’s a collection of classics and there’s no mistaking the value. I pull a hardback edition of To Kill a Mockingbird off the shelf, turning the leather-bound book over in my hands.

“Are you lost?” an accented voice asks, and I yelp in surprise.

I turn to face the man, a nervous smile on my lips when I’m greeted by his stony face. He was at the dinner table last week. Something twists in my gut, and my smile drops. There’s a darkness to this guy, one that’s not entirely to do with the world he finds himself in. Carefully, I slide the book back onto the shelf and clasp my hands together behind my back.

“I, uh, Romeo said… I’m free. To go around the house at least.” Clearing my throat, I hold my hand out and take a step forward, my mouth tipping up at the corner. Maybe I’ve got him all wrong. “I’m Aurora.”

He looks me up and down, barely concealing his contempt before he grinds out, “The library is off-limits.”

I pull my hand back, looking around the room. It’s literally the only door that was open. How can it be off-limits? When my attention returns to him, his eyes narrow with impatience.

“Oh.” Walking around him, I head toward the door. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize. I’ll, uh, just get out of here, then.” Pausing on the threshold, I face him. “Are there any other rooms I should stay out of?”

“I suggest you keep your exploring to the ground floor and garden. Anything you stumble upon up here is likely to get you killed, Aurora.” His tone is cold and sends a shiver running down my spine.

With a jerky nod, I step out into the hallway, not bothering to close the door behind me. It’s only when I reach the top of the stairs that I look back. I don’t expect to find him watching me, his hand resting on the holstered gun at his hip in a silent threat. I fly down the stairs, his message chasing after me.

It’s only when I reach the bottom step and slip into the entertainment room that I allow myself to breathe. Every nerve ending in my body is alert and not in the way that it is whenever Romeo is near. These are firing on all cylinders with a desire to protect myself from harm.

Note to self: stay clear of him.

Slightly dazed and confused by the interaction, I stand in the middle of the room, my shoulders slumped and my brow furrowed. It’s only when the ringing in my ears has stopped and I’ve shaken off the disorientation of the conversation that I continue with my self-guided tour of the ground floor of the house.

Chapter 26

Aurora

“Oh, I couldn’t eat another bite.” I push my plate away with one hand and hold up the other to keep Alma at bay. She’s been feeding me nonstop for the last hour. I’m starting to wish I was still locked away in my bedroom because, although the food is delicious, there’s only so much one person can eat.

Alma tsks, dropping another heavenly slice of homemade ciabatta onto my plate. Steam rises from the bread and my mouth waters, imagining it slathered in butter. “You’re nothing but skin and bones, signorina. You need to keep up your strength.”

I open my mouth to respond, but Haven, a housekeeper, pushes back her chair and admonishes Alma. “You shouldn’t force-feed people, Alma. Especially when they’ve told you they’ve had enough.” Walking toward the door, Haven calls, “I’ll show you how to get to the garden, Aurora.”

After exploring the house this morning, I stumbled upon the kitchen. Or rather, my rumbling stomach led me here when I got the first whiff of fresh bread. I’ve spent my afternoon with Alma, Massimo’s chef, Maria, his head housekeeper, and Haven, her daughter. They’ve been so welcoming and made me feel at ease. Unlike the man I ran into in the library. Just the thought of the way he said my name sends a shiver down my spine.

Pushing back my chair, I gather up the dishes, but Maria stops me, smacking away my hands. She carries them to the kitchen sink, talking to Alma in rapid Italian and effectively dismissing me. With a shrug of my shoulder, I swipe up my pad and pencils and follow Haven as she walks from the room.

In the quiet of the corridor, she leans in, her voice low and conspiring. “Don’t worry about them. You’ll get used to their pushy nature in no time, just don’t be afraid to tell them no or you’ll end up in some really compromising situations. Believe me. My mom is the worst when it comes to pushing things on people.”

I clutch my pad to my chest and try to keep the hurt out of my tone when I reply, “I don’t think I’ll be here long enough for that to happen.”

The corner of Haven’s mouth twitches and her brows shoot up before she composes herself and lifts her chin. “If you say so.”

A heaviness settles into the pit of my stomach, but I narrow my eyes and affirm, “I do.”

Soon, Romeo will have no use for me and he’ll either follow through on the threats he made when we first met or return to Sicily and leave me behind without a thought. I’m not sure what will be worse.

Haven pushes through a set of doors that open up into the garden and I gulp in a much needed lungful of air. A peacefulness falls over me as I look out at the lush lawn that stretches for miles in front of us. A light breeze blows the strands of my hair into my face as I walk to the edge of the patio.

“I’ve seen the way he looks at you.” Coming to a stop behind me, Haven softens her voice, drawing my attention to her. “Part of my job is to be invisible. But it does mean that people let their guards down because they think they’re alone.” She rests a hand on my shoulder. “Just know that if he didn’t feel anything for you, you wouldn’t be here. The men that occupy this house aren’t the kind to do favors or make decisions just for the sake of it.”

Sighing heavily, I look out over the landscape. “I’m not naïve enough to believe that.” My voice is small and gets carried away in the breeze. “This”—I wave my arm at the garden before us—“is nothing more than him rewarding me for behaving. I know that if I so much as breathe the wrong way, he has the power to snatch away this little slice of freedom.”

We stand in silence, the weight of my words hanging between us and tarnishing the late afternoon brightness. The sound of a motor starting up cuts through the tension and I lift my face to the sky, closing my eyes and basking in the warmth of the sun that somehow feels foreign on my skin after the last few weeks inside.

---