Page 6 of Unspoken Ties

The sound of my phone ringing cut through the silence. I fumbled through my purse, digging through the random contents, until I finally found it. Dillon’s name was on the caller ID. I should let him know I was okay, but I didn’t know what to say.

Ettore glanced at the screen from the corner of his eye. “You should pick up.”

“Yeah…” Taking a deep breath in, I tapped the green phone icon. “Hello?”

“Hilaria? Oh, thank god you’re ok,” Dillon said.

“Yeah,” I responded, because I had no idea what to say back.

“I’m ok,” he continued. “When that horrid man flipped my chair over, it knocked me out of the way of the bullet’s path.”

“Regret that,” Ettore muttered under his breath.

Dillon continued to chatter on about himself and the shooting. I had never been so grateful for his personality and the need todominate a conversation. I could not bring myself to talk. At the end, he mentioned he had heard about my father’s passing.

“Where are you? I know it’s sudden, but we may have to expedite the wedding so you can come live with me.”

Ettore yanked the phone out of my hand. “The wedding is off. She’s engaged to someone else.”

He tapped the end call button before powering down my phone.

“Hey!” I protested, reaching out for my phone, but Ettore held it just out of reach.

“What?” He looked at me, his brow arched in challenge. His eyes held a kind of daring gleam that made me swallow my retort. “He had to know sooner or later.”

Ettore tossed the phone into the back seat and shifted gears as we pulled onto a freeway.

So far, I didn’t like Ettore. Not for the reasons one might expect, such as kidnapping me or near forcing me to marry him. No, it was because he brought out a side of me that barely saw the light of day. I was always shy and never talked back. But every action he did got a reaction out of me.

“Just who do you think you are?” I demanded, glaring at him.

“I’m the man who saved your life,” he said flatly. “Now, I suggest you keep quiet and let me drive.”

His words came off more as an order than a suggestion. I crossed my arms over my chest and looked away, staring out of the window instead.

He didn’t spare me a second glance as he kept his eyes firmly on the road. We spent the rest of the drive back to his house in silence. My stomach twisted as he drove us deep into the city - I had never liked the hustle and bustle, and preferred growing up just outside of it. After a long ride, we arrived at an upscale building and he drove down into the underground parking area.

Ettore parked the car and stepped out without saying a word. I followed suit, opening the back door in search of my phone. I couldn’t help but curse him in my head for being so frustrating and tossing it into the backseat.

We rode the elevator up in silence to his penthouse. The elevator dinged, and the doors slid open to reveal a landing that was…surprisingly under furnished. The amount of furniture he had did not match the size of the home he lived in.

“I don’t spend a lot of time here,” Ettore said, as if reading my mind.

“Oh.”

“Let’s go to bed. It’s late.”

My exhaustion didn’t register until he spoke the words aloud. It was as if all the tiring events from the day caught up to me and hit me like a freight train. Every limb in my body felt heavy, and it felt like I could barely keep my eyes open.

“Yeah,” I said, rubbing my eyes. “Where is my bedroom?”

He laughed at me. I should have been used to it by now, but I still felt a slight flare of irritation.

“They’re already occupied, Princess. A gym and my office.”

“Oh…why didn’t you take me home if there was nowhere for me to sleep?” I nibbled on my lower lip. Now I was too tired to be driven all the way back there. “Is there a hotel close to here?”

More laughter directed towards me. “You can sleep in my bed. You’re my fiancée.”

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