Page 28 of Ruthless Guardian

“Isabella is in the gym,” she calls out behind me.

“Great, thank you.” I turn down another corridor of the sprawling penthouse. Despite never having been in the home fitness center, my steps are sure and quick. I’ve memorized every inch of this apartment.And still the little princess got the slip on you. A dark voice echoes across my mind, the deep timbre and thick accent markedly similar to that of my father. He never approved of anything I wanted to do; nothing was ever good enough.

And now every time I fail at anything, that damned voice worms its way into my subconscious, feeding the doubt and prodding the monster.

By the time I reach the gym, my nails are cutting into my palms, and it’s taking every ounce of self-restraint I possess not to rip the door off its hinges. Instead, I suck in a breath and count to ten before opening the door. Loud music seeps through, interrupting my quest for Zen, and I jerk the door open a second later.

Isabella stands in front of a wall of mirrors in a sports bra and yoga pants that leave nothing to the imagination. I freeze inthe doorway as she bends down, touching her palms to the mat and giving me a front row view of her perfect ass.

My hands twitch as I stride forward, my palms begging to spank that ass raw for disobeying me last night. Isabella is so damned focused she doesn’t even notice me until I’m right up on her.

She peers up at me, dropping into downward dog. “Do you mind? I’m trying to relax.”

“How can you relax with the music blaring like this?”

“It’s soothing.”

“Like a chainsaw.”

The corner of her lip twitches, but she doesn’t give into the smile. Instead, she continues her workout, completely ignoring me.

I crouch in front of her, getting right in her face so she has no choice but meet my eye. “We need to work on your awareness,principessa.”

“I am aware. Very aware of how annoying you are.”So sassy. She offers a sweet smile before switching positions once again. Cat pose or some shit where her back is arched and her ass sticks up, just begging for me to spank it.

Clearing my throat, I force my scattered thoughts to focus. “I just walked in on you a second ago, and you didn’t even notice. What if I’d been sent to attack you?”

She twists her head to the side, skewering me with those baby blues. “I did notice. I was simply ignoring you.”

“I hope you’re not bullshitting me for your own sake.”

Isabella rolls onto her back and glares up at me, her head nearly between my legs and inches from my hardening cock. Then she lifts her hips into bridge pose and my eyes instinctively chase to her tight-ass yoga pants and the hollow between her thighs.Merda, I can practically see the outline of her pussy. She’s doing this on purpose to rile me up, I’m certain of it.

Dropping back on my haunches, I heave out a breath, squeezing my eyes closed. “When you’re done with your workout, we need to talk.”

“It’ll be a while.” She thrusts her hips up, and fuck, all I can picture is my body blanketing hers, and my cock pounding into her.

Damn it, Raf, stop that. I’ve never been so turned on by a female I found so irritating. In an effort to keep my sanity, and my job, I reach for my phone and start scrolling funny cat videos. Nothing like hilarious kittens tumbling around to keep your mind off forbidden pussy.

As I pretend to watch the videos, I keep one eye on her at all times. It’s not even on purpose; my duty has been ingrained so deeply it’s second nature. And it’s not even because of how badly I want to fuck her either.

A never-ending hour passes before she finally stands, reaches for a towel and wipes the beads of sweat off her forehead then slowly runs the terrycloth down her chest and across her tight abs.

There is no doubt in my mind that this woman is testing me.

Because what better way to get rid of me than telling Daddy I made a move on her. I’m impressed by her last-ditch effort. Today is the deadline to accept the residency in Rome after all.

“You ready to talk?” I grit out.

She huffs out a frustrated breath and plops down on the weight bench. “What do you want now, Raf?”

“We need to talk about last night, and all the reasons why it willneverhappen again.”

“I learned my lesson, okay? I promise never to sneak out when we’re in Rome.” A smirk tugs up the corner of her lip and with those rosy cheeks and the glint of perspiration on her skin, she looks goddamned radiant.

“When?” I bark once I’ve stopped staring at her like a damned lovesick teenager. “You’re out of your mind.”

“I am not.”

---