Page 40 of Obsessive Love

"Thank you for being home by eight,dolcezza," he says, his smooth voice and the hint of an Italian accent when he uses my nickname causes heat to bloom in my cheeks.

"I didn't really have a choice, did I?" I retort, acting as if I'm completely unaffected by our close proximity.

He smirks and shakes his head.

"Seems like you're finally starting to understand how things are going to be."

I roll my eyes and side-step him, wanting to create some distance between us.

"Sophia," he calls out, stopping me in my tracks. "That's a nice hairclip, by the way. It really suits you."

I turn to face him with narrowed eyes and furrowed brows as my hand reaches into my hair and my fingers brush against the butterfly clip.

"What did you say?"

A crazed smile appears on his face and he winks at me as he walks over to Jericho's car, getting in the passenger side. I glance over at Jericho, who's standing next to the driver's side and he shrugs at me.

"Don't look at me for answers. He confuses me just as much as he confuses you." He opens the door and before he gets inside, he looks back at me with a ghost of a smile on his face. "I'm glad you came home in time. It'll save us both from worrying about you whilst we're out."

He slips into the car, Leo following suit and then a minute later, they drive down the pebbled driveway towards the gate.

"What the fuck was all of that about?" Jaylen asks.

"I honestly have no idea," I mutter, shaking my head and pulling myself out of my confused stupor. "I need to go and check something. Come on." I rush up the stairs and through the front door, throwing a quick 'hello' over my shoulder when I see Myra in the foyer buttoning her coat.

"There's some food in the fridge for you to heat up if you get hungry!" she calls out.

"Thanks, Myra! I'll make sure it's all gone by the morning," Jaylen says as he follows me up the stairs.

I charge into my room and head straight for the bedside cabinet, pulling open the drawer and grabbing the note from inside. My eyes scan across the words and my eyes go wide in shock when I read the last sentence.

"That motherfucker!" I shout, shaking my head in disbelief. I slam the note back into the drawer and grab the clip, planning to do the same with that, but as my eyes coast over the butterfly with the slight purple tint, I decide against hiding it away and instead clip it back into my hair.

"What's going on?" Jaylen asks, walking into my room as he pulls a black balaclava over his face, tucking it into the turtleneck jumper that he's changed into.

Seeing him stare at me with wide eyes through the slit in the balaclava has me folding over as I fall into a fit of laughter, slapping my hands against my thighs as tears gather in my eyes.

"Jay, what the fuck are you wearing," I choke out between bouts of laughter.

"Well, they might have cameras, so I thought the masks would help. I have one for you too," he states, pulling another mask out of his pocket. I fall onto the bed, cackling loudly as tears begin sliding down my cheeks.

It takes me a few minutes to compose myself, but when I do, I shake my head and take the balaclava from him.

"We're not wearing those, Jay. No one's home, so I'm pretty sure that if they have cameras, they'll know who the two people in balaclavas are. It'd be pointless wearing them, so please, throw them away."

He huffs as he walks over to the bin and wrestles off the balaclava before throwing it in.

"Would you have worn it if I bought a purple one?"

"Probably," I tell him, shrugging.

"Dammit!"

I giggle as I walk past him, opening my bedroom door and poking my head into the hall, listening to the silence of the house.

"There are still guards outside, but the inside is empty. Jericho and Kaleb are out, and Myra was leaving as we came in. We should be all good," Jaylen whispers from beside me, making me jump in surprise.

I swat his arm, scowling at him.

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