Page 29 of Bound to the Mafia King

I flinched back like he had punched me in the face. His words were daggers that pierced the exposed areas. They were sharp, biting, and cruel.

I didn’t know if it felt cruel because of the tone he used, or if it felt cruel because of the truth behind them. There were moments when I did feel like a broken doll.

“I was only concerned, Valerio.”

My words only seemed to make him angrier. “Instead of worrying about people who are completely fine, why don't you worry about the fact that little miss virgin has been fucked before?”

My heart thudded to a dramatic halt.

“Tell me, does your brother know that his most prized possession is tainted? How many have tasted that sweet pussy of yours, Anastasia?”

“Fuck you.”

One side of his lips tilted up into a devilish smirk. “Oh, you wanted to last night. How many dicks has your mouth tasted? Tell me, did they fuck you with their mouth better than me?”

He was being crass and crude. I knew that he was only trying to deflect, but that did not negate the fact that his words were disgusting. He was speaking to me the way Sergei would, and it made my skin crawl.

My hand itched at my side, wanting to connect with his cheek but I held myself back. We were in public, and the last thing we needed was to make a scene. So instead, I steeled my back and mustered up a strength that I kept on reserve for moments such as these.

“You wish you were my best, Valerio.” I jutted my chin up in defiance. “Excuse me, I need some air.”

I turned to leave and, thankfully, he didn't follow me. I didn't look back to see if he was staying in the store. I needed to be as far away from him as possible, or else I would be responsiblefor assaulting one of the most powerful underbosses on the East Coast, and I was sure that the various security guards he had tailing me would have pulled a gun on me for it.

I didn’t know how long I wandered about the mall until I finally made it out to the car park where we had left the car. I had been expecting to find Valerio there, but he was nowhere in sight. According to the driver, Valerio had left and had told them to take me straight home after I was done.

Of course, from one prison to the next. My life was an endless cycle of golden cages, passed on from one powerful man to the next.

Valerio’s words echoed in my mind, only adding to my despondency. I did my best to push those thoughts far away into my mind before I got into the car and made my way back to the Valdez manor.

The car dropped me off at the front of the house. The driver rounded the car to open my door, and when I got out, I came face to face with a pair of blue-gray eyes that stopped me dead in my tracks.

Valerio leaned against the frame of the door with a lit cigarette in hand. His eyes stared at me as I got out of the car.

The wind blew through my dress, lifting the skirt ever so slightly. The wisps of hair that surrounded my face kissed my cheeks gently.

I needed to remind myself of how rude he had been earlier. I could not give this man grace; I was tired of allowing men in this world to do and say whatever they wanted to me. For Sergei, it was beyond my control. I could only submit myself to him to keep the arrangement. But with a man like Valerio, who I owed nothing to, I would not allow him to make me a punching bag.

I rolled my shoulders back and lifted my chin. The man had a massive effect on me, I knew that, so I needed to feign a confidence I knew I didn’t have when it came to him.

“Thank you.” I offered the driver a sweet smile which he returned.

I walked toward the door, keeping my eyes trained on the hardwood and not the man standing off to the side.

Maybe, if I pretended like he wasn’t there, then he would simply let me pass. But that hope soon died when I stepped onto the stoop.

Valerio immediately blocked my path with his body and stared down at me with a blank expression on his face. I tried to sidestep him, but he blocked me yet again. We continued this dance for a little while longer until my frustrations got the better of me and I snapped my neck upward to meet his gaze.

“What do you want now, Valerio? Surely you said everything you needed to say in the store.” I tried to keep any ounce of hurt from my lips. The last thing I needed was for this man to think that he had hurt my feelings.

Instead of answering me, Valerio took a large drag of his cigarette before he puffed out a plume of smoke. To his credit, he did blow the smoke away from my face. He went to go and drag it again, but I grabbed the thing and threw it onto the floor before grinding the sole of my shoe on it.

When I lifted my gaze to meet his eyes, amusement painted his features. His eyes danced over my face, from my eyes to my nose, then my lips, and then back again.

“I don’t have time for this,” I groaned. “Move, please.”

I tried to put as much conviction behind my tone as possible, but the nervousness of being close to him didn’t help me.

“I’m sorry.”

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