Page 9 of Little Rabbit

It’s her turn to give me a taunting look. “And what are you going to do, Mr. Underboss? We’ve heard all about how you don’t hurt women. You certainly won’t turn me over to your men because you can’t risk damaging the goods you were promised to replace the one who got away.” She takes one more step toward the fireplace.

“There are other ways to punish you, coniglietto,” I remind her with a wicked smile. I lower my voice so her parents can’t hear the next part. No need to enrage them any further. “Ways that will have you screaming, but not in pain or fear. Well, maybe a little of both, but not for the reasons one would think. And I wager you’ll love them before I’m done, as much as you might want to hate them.” I follow her steps, bracing myself to rush her if she gets too close to the items by the fireplace. I don’t fancy a poker in the face. “But we can work our way up to that. For now, I’m more interested in getting you behind our gates, where I know you’re safe. But on the flight there, I’ll tie your ass to the seat so you can’t take over the plane.”

Her eyes flash at my words, but the tension between us rises. “You’re crazy if you think I’m going to go with you so easily. I’m not marrying you, and I won’t allow myself to be used in whatever game you and my bio family are wrapped up in. They didn’t want me, and I’m staying the fuck out of it. I’ll keep on running until you all kill each other, or you forget about me.”

“You’re delusional if you think that will ever happen,” I tell her bluntly. I lunge at her, trying to take her by surprise, but the damn woman seems to anticipate every move. She jumps back and away, moving toward the middle of the room, a smug smirk on her face.

“First, it was your stalking skills, and now your grabbing skills. Seems you need to brush up on your kidnapping too, Caruso,” she taunts. “Don’t worry. Soon enough, another woman will catch your eye, and I’ll be nothing but a distant memory.”

“Another woman would be less work,” I agree, and her eyes narrow. “But far less fun, I’m sure. Now, how about we stop this nonsense and get down to business. What can I give you that will have you come with me quietly, without all this bullshit running?”

“He’s not too bright, is he?” her mother says in a stage whisper to her husband, who tries to shush her.

“No, he isn’t,” Sienna agrees with her, smirking. “The word ‘quiet’ isn’t in my vocabulary. Especially not when dealing with mobsters.”

I stop advancing on her and narrow my eyes. She stills too, but she’s ready to move at a single twitch from me. “Sienna,” I tell her sharply, done with this little game. Irritation fills my voice as I tell her harshly, “Do you know what will happen to you if you keep this up? You cannot keep running for the rest of your life. Because it would be the rest of your life. You will never get a moment’s peace. Your family will do anything, align themselves with people who will gladly sell you for the smallest hint of power or money, and they will not rest until they have you. Then, when they catch you, if they don’t kill you simply for wasting their time and resources, they’ll toss you to their men to rape and torture you until you’re nothing more than a broken shell. If you manage to live through that, they’ll arrange a marriage for you to a man who will make those horrors look like nothing. He will marry you to align with the De Lucas and their quests for power and territory. He will rape you every fucking day until you give him and his family the heirs they want. Then, if you’re lucky, he’ll kill you. If you’re not, he’ll throw you to his men and let them finish the job.

“In the meantime, they will go after your parents and anyone else that helped them take you away from them. Anyone who helped your biological mother smuggle you out. They will murder your father after they torture him, and they will record it so they can make you watch. Then they’ll rape your mother, torture her, and kill her. And they will make you watch that, because that is the kind of family they are.” A tendril of guilt grips my stomach at the sound of her mother crying, no doubt reliving the horror of her past, but I can’t sugarcoat this. I can’t let her believe she’ll have any kind of safety as long as she’s running.

Sienna’s face is pale, but her gaze is hard. My words have hit her, and she doesn’t want to believe them, but she knows I’m right. I can see it on her face. That doesn’t mean she’s not going to give in without a fight. “And you know this how?” she finally demands, her voice tight.

“Like I said, I know everything. Not only did I do my homework on you, but your family as well. I know things that they think are secret because people talk, and knowledge is power. Your family are scumbags, as you Americans say, and they don’t deserve to live, for the things they’ve done to innocent people and their own families. We’ll be handling that soon enough, but until then, running will not keep you safe.”

She stares at me for a moment and then looks over at her parents. Indecision crosses her face before she turns back to me, her expression calculating. “You need to protect them,” she tells me. “They are the only family I have, and the only ones who will ever matter to me.”

Easy enough. “Then we’ll make sure they’re safe,” I promise. “I’ll have my men with them, watching over them until this is cleared up.”

“Even if it takes years?”

“Even then.”

She relaxes and nods. “Good.”

“We can’t go to Italy,” her father says tightly. “We have a business to run.”

“Then I’ll assign men to watch over you in London,” I shrug. “Lazaro will arrange it.” I turn my head and see him nodding. He steps out the door, shutting it behind him, phone already rising to his ear. I turn back and let out a curse when I see her heading for the kitchen, hopping up on the counter near the large window over the sink. “Fucking hell,” I snarl as I rush forward. Her parents jump out of the way, clearly not going to stop me. I pay them no mind, but let out another loud curse when, quick as a flash, Sienna pushes the window open and jumps out before I can grab her, narrowly missing her foot.

Not wanting to waste time, I jump out after her, yelling for Lazaro. I run into the thick trees that surround the house, listening to her crash through them. “Sienna!” I roar. “Your ass is getting put in a straight jacket.”

“You’ll have to catch me first,” her voice yells, not too far ahead of me. Determination has me picking up the pace, and I’m weaving through the trees as fast as I can, trying to avoid taking branches and leaves to the face.

I burst into a small clearing and stop to listen. I can’t hear her anymore, but I know she’s close. I can sense her. Lazaro crashes in behind me. “Where’d she go?” he demands.

“She’s here.” I can feel her eyes on me. “And if she doesn’t come out now, I’m going to make good on my threat,” I say loudly. Nothing. Not even a whisper of sound. I lift my gaze up to the treetops. I wouldn’t put it past her to climb her ass up a tree to avoid me. “Sienna,” I warn dangerously, the monster inside me rearing his head.

Something I’ve never told anyone is how much I love the thrill of a good chase. It’s exciting and freeing, and when your prey is a feisty woman, it’s as addictive as a drug. All I want to do is chase her down and feel her fighting me before giving in and accepting her fate. I want it so badly that everything in me aches for it, and my cock twitches in my pants.

“You know,” her voice echoes through the trees, “I’m really starting to think you need a reality check. You’ve had far too many people give you whatever you want that you’re not used to a woman actually disagreeing.” I can’t pinpoint where she is, but I turn in the direction I think her voice is coming from and watch silently as some of the leaves shiver in a couple of higher-up branches. It seems my clever rabbit is moving through the trees to try and get away from us.

“I have had plenty of women disagree with me,” I say casually, turning to face the movement of the leaves, Lazaro doing the same. He gives a low signal to let me know he’s going to try and get closer. I give a subtle nod and then turn my full attention back to the woman who is driving me crazy. “However, having one run across the ocean is new. I’ll give you points for ingenuity.”

“Oh, well, now my life is complete,” she sing-songs, her voice sounding closer. I narrow my eyes. The movement in the trees is nowhere near that close. I whip my head up to look above me, but see nothing. Not even a leaf twitches. What is she up to? “I’ve been working on it so that when a sexy mobster came along, I could lead him on a merry chase.”

“Sexy, huh?” I reply. “Cara mia, you flatter me. How about you come down and let me show you properly? I’ll hold off on spanking your pretty ass for all your little stunts.”

She gives a mocking laugh, and this time the sound comes from the other side of the clearing. I turn toward it, and every instinct inside me is telling me to stay put. Whatever the game she’s playing, she’s not going to win. “Of course that’s the only thing you heard. Men are all the same. Well, hopefully you hear my words this time. I’m not going with you, Alessio. I have no desire to marry you, and as sexy as you are, I’m not going anywhere near your bed. You can handle your little battle without me.”

“If you prefer somewhere other than a bed, coniglietto, you won’t hear any arguments from me.” Again, there’s movement in the trees, and I look to see leaves moving in the same area Lazaro is closing in on. The bastard is so fucking big he should be able to see her without much issue.