Page 28 of Little Rabbit

“What did you think was going to happen?” he yells back at me. This large man yelling in my face should have me cowering, but it only infuriates me more. At this point, I’m a bottle of barely contained rage ready to explode. He lowers his voice, but it’s still angry as he continues, “After all the shit you’ve pulled, did you really think I would waltz you into my family home and let you have free reign?”

“What, you think I’m going to steal the silverware and climb over the wall?”

“I think you’re far too damn stubborn for your own fucking good, and the moment you think the coast is clear, you’ll be trying to get the fuck out of here and back to whatever the fuck you think is your new normal. Do not think I haven’t noticed that you’re so keen to talk to Nico. You seem to be under the impression that if you can charm your way into your sister’s life, he’ll take you away and protect you back in New York.” His face lowers until he’s staring directly into my eyes. “That will never happen, Sienna. I will never allow it, and Nico would never risk an alliance with us over a woman he doesn’t know. And if you think I’m a bastard, then you’re about to get an education, because Nico is just like me. So you have two choices. You can accept you’re not going anywhere and that you’re mine, or you can fight me, and I will spend every day for the rest of my life reminding you.”

His lips press to mine in a hard, bruising kiss, and while I struggle, it’s of no use, because I’m melting far too quickly into it. There is no love or romance in this kiss. It’s a punishment, pure and simple, and despite the part of me that wants to fight back, to push him away, or even bite him, I’m pulled into the fog of desire again.

When he abruptly pulls away, a gasp leaves my bruised lips, but that’s quickly followed with a sharp cry of pain when he latches his teeth onto my neck. A new spot this time, but there is no mistaking what he’s doing. He’s marking me.

Why is that so fucking hot?

When he pulls his teeth away, I shiver at the feel of his tongue soothing the skin, and then shudder when he rasps in my ear, “No one will ever doubt that you’re mine, Sienna. You’re wearing my mark, and soon enough, you’re going to wear my ring. Because no matter how much you fight me, you know this is right. To feed that dark desire inside you the way no one else can. You think I haven’t noticed how excited you get every time I dominate you, or when I prove how much I own this lithe body? Because I have, and I’ll use it every damn time you try to leave me, or pull away. You say sex isn’t going to fix everything, and you’re right, but with you and I, it’s going to be a damn big part of it. When we fight, and we will, I’m going to fuck the mad right out of you. Just like I’m going to do now. Because when I’m inside you, when you feel me filling you so full that you can’t take any more, you can’t deny that you’re mine.” Then, before I can argue, he takes my mouth again, releases my wrists and neck, and then uses both hands to grip my ass and haul me up.

I wrap my legs around him out of pure instinct, my hands coming up to tangle in his hair even as he spins us and I feel him moving. Even in my clouded brain, I know I need to stop this or I’m going to lose this battle. With some kind of control that I dig from deep down inside me, I use the grip on his hair to yank his head back, hard, and he lets out a hiss of pain. His eyes darken until they’re almost black. Someone likes that; though, I shouldn’t be all that surprised. “I don’t need you to fill some part of me,” I rasp, staring down into his eyes, trying to get my stupid hormones under control. “And I’m not fucking you again. You think a bite mark makes me yours? That you’re going to force me into marrying you all so you can gain more power and money? You’ve got another thing coming, Alessio.”

Then, in a move that I haven’t done in a very long time, I use all my strength to propel us back onto the bed. While we’re falling, I dislodge my hands from his hair and then lock my thighs, spinning us so that he has no choice but to let go of me to keep us from falling off the bed and onto the hard floor. I take that moment to curl my body forward, doing a half-somersault across the bed and landing on the other side, even as Alessio gets to his feet. A thunderous look covers his face as he glares at me. I’ve well and truly pissed him off now, and I can see him struggling to contain it. Oh yeah, he wants to make me pay for always fighting him and outsmarting him.

“I’m running out of patience for you, Sienna,” Alessio grits out between clenched teeth.

“Then we’re even,” I toss back. “Now, I’m tired and I’m going to bed. And no, it won’t be in here. So unless you’d like to spend the rest of the night repeating this over and over again, I suggest you figure out where the hell I’m going to be sleeping.”

“You already know my answer.” With a strength and speed that surprises me, he launches himself across the bed toward me. I jump back and make a break for the door. No way can I stay in this room any longer.

I manage to wrench the door open and get a couple of feet into the hallway before he’s on me, grabbing me around the waist and hauling me back and up in a show of strength that surprises me. Fuck! I struggle, snapping, “Let me fucking go, Alessio. Now.”

“I’m going to tie your ass to the fucking bed. And this time, I’m going to gag that pretty mouth so I don’t have to listen to you screeching your nonsense.”

“The minute I’m free, I’m going to find that knife of yours and slice your throat,” I vow as he starts to walk backwards toward the bedroom.

“I do believe she means business, son,” a deep voice says in amusement, making us both still. An older man stands in the hallway, and I immediately know this is Alessio’s father. Considering what I know about Alessio and read about him, that would put his father closer to seventy, but he doesn’t look a day over fifty. His clean-shaven face is nearly free of any lines that would belie his age, and he’s kept his body in good shape. His dark eyes are lit with laughter, and he’s got his salt and pepper hair slicked back, but there is no mistaking the power of this man. He’s every bit the Don the media makes him out to be.

“Papa,” Alessio says in a calm voice, though his grip on me doesn’t loosen. “I’ll be down in the morning to see you and we can get everything caught up.”

“We’re all gathered in the sitting room,” Pietro says easily. “Bring Ms. Harris down. We have a lot to discuss.” It’s not a request, it’s an order. “And, Ms. Harris, however justified you may be in wanting to kill my son, please hold off for now.” He winks at me, and then turns down the hall toward the stairs.

Neither Alessio or I move for a moment, until Alessio gives an aggravated growl and reluctantly lets me go. Not that I get very far. Before I can take a step, his hand lashes out and grips my hair, hauling me back. “Owww!” I hiss, turning my head just enough to glare at him. “Let go of my hair, asshole.”

Surprisingly he complies, but unsurprisingly, he moves his hand down to grab the back of my neck instead, holding me in place as he hisses, “Do not think that we’re finished with this discussion, Sienna. You’ll pay for that threat. You won’t need to worry about a new place to sleep because when I’m done with you, you’ll be far too tired and sore to walk.”

I suppress a shiver as he removes his hand from my neck, and then grips my hand as he slams his bedroom door loud enough that it echoes down the hallway. Maybe I should be grateful we’ve been interrupted, because, fuck if that doesn’t sound like something I would like.

16

ALESSIO

Anger makes my strides long and purposeful, eating up the stairs as we make our way down. Sienna is silent, and at least not trying to pull away from me, but I won’t make the mistake of thinking she’s being compliant. The woman doesn’t have a single acquiescent bone in her body. Any other time I might enjoy it, but not now. Not today.

I’m still pissed Dario almost shot her, almost managed to take her away from me. And now she’s here—again, where she belongs—and she’s still fighting me tooth and nail. Acting like everything over the past week and a half means nothing. Cheapening what we are to nothing more than the physical. We are so much more, and I’m going to make her see it if it’s the last thing I do.

I do not chase women. Ever. I charm, I seduce, but never chase. Never let them see the darker parts of me. No, they only see the mask that I allow them to. With Sienna, however, there is no hiding. She brings it out in me in ways I never could have imagined possible. I both despise and enjoy it where she’s concerned. But now she’s pulling parts of me forward that I had no idea were even there, like this dark possessiveness that makes me want to kill any fucker that even looks at her. Fuck, I wanted to snarl at my father the moment he interrupted us. Something I have never done, nor would ever do. My father is a good man, but when it comes to disrespect, even from his own sons, he’s as brutal as expected.

I need to get a grip on myself and not let my anger cloud my senses. Especially not when we’re about to go into a meeting full of emotion and tension. I’m well aware my father wants to get the introductions out of the way between Sienna and Gia, but I’m selfish enough to want one more night to myself. One more night to make her understand this is where she needs to be.

When we finally reach the bottom of the stairs, some of the anger inside me dissipates when I catch a glimpse of Sienna’s expression. It’s like she’s zoned out, forgetting I’m even there. She’s staring straight ahead, but there’s no hiding the tension in her shoulders or the nerves on her face. It hits me that none of it has anything to do with me, but what we’re about to do. The people she’s about to meet for the first time. Not just a bunch of criminals, but family she didn’t know existed. The one who didn’t make it out.

I slow my steps, and instead of continuing into the sitting room, I pull her into a little alcove just off the hallway, turning her so she’s shielded by my body. She looks up at me in surprise, and I release her hand to cup her face. She blinks at me, as if unsure of what I’m doing, but her nerves are dissipating and being replaced by suspicion. I don’t let her get too far down that road, as I lean down to take her mouth in a soft kiss. She resists at first, but soon enough she’s kissing me back. The kiss is nothing like the ones we’ve shared so far. This is soft, gentle, soothing. The tension leaves her body, and I pull away because if we keep going, I’m going to say fuck it to my father’s order and we’ll go right back up to my room to finish what we started.

“What was that for?”

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