Page 51 of Temptation and Tyranny

“Sit.” I grumbled.

“Is that an order?” she scoffed, fixing me with a skeptical glare.

“Please, would you sit?”

“That’s better.”

I rolled my eyes and headed back to the kitchen, grabbing some cutlery and a bottle of orange juice.

When I returned to the dining room, I noticed that there was a new visitor at the table, sitting in my chair.

“Bianca, down!” Allegra scolded, but this time, I just laughed.

“It’s fine, angel. I’ll move. That way I can sit even closer to you.” I grabbed my plate, then sat down right beside Allegra. Before I started eating, I picked up her hand and placed a kiss against her knuckles. She looked at me, her expression once again hard to read. But instead of commenting, she put her hand on my knee, and kept it there.

I hid my grin as I devoured my food. Breakfast was quiet, but I didn’t mind. I’d never shared a space with a woman before. My mom had died when we were six, so Colton and I grew up with just our dad. I thought having a female companion in my space would be fucking annoying, but I was disappointed when my phone buzzed, the screen lighting up with a text from Mario to let me know Allegra’s security was in place. I casually flipped my phone on its backside, hiding the screen.

Allegra had sharp eyes. “What’s going on? Do you know who’s been following me?”

“No, baby. Just a message that your security has been arranged.”

“Oh.” She stabbed her pancakes a little too aggressively, and I instantly knew she was uncomfortable with the idea of a security teamsurrounding her. But I didn’t care. I couldn’t watch her every single hour of the day, no matter how tempting the thought was, and I needed to know she was safe.

“It won’t be forever, baby. Just until I find these guys.”

“I hate the nickname ‘baby.’”

“I don’t care—”

“But I like it when you call me it.”

I closed my mouth, pleased at her addition. She was my baby, after all. However, as the thought went through my mind, I tried to shut it down.

But it was too late. I knew. I knew this was bad.

I knew I was in trouble.

I knew I was falling hard for Allegra Prescott.

I killed the engine, then turned my head to look at Allegra. She was scrutinizing the entire block, looking for signs of my men.

I chuckled. “They’re good at what they do, baby. You won’t be able to spot them on the street.”

She sighed deeply. “Well, that’s a relief, at least. They won’t be in the building, then?”

“I’m not stupid, angel. Of course there’s security in the building.”

“But how did you—”

“Your neighbors will just think that your landlord invested in a doorman. That’s all. But he’s there on my orders—if you need anything, absolutely anything, he’s been instructed to take care of it.”

We sat in my car for a few more seconds. She looked out the window, and then smoothed her black lace skirt. I’d had Mario bring her a new set of clothesfrom Chanel, and they fit her like a glove. She looked good even in the athletic clothing she wore at work, but I longed to see her dress like the queen she was. She should be a goddamn model for these designers.

I was pretty sure I was biased.

“Let’s go. I’m going to walk you up to your door.”

Instead of fighting me, she grabbed her purse and the Chanel shopping bag that now held her clothes from the previous evening. I grabbed the cat carrier from the backseat, then reached for her hand. Her fingers closed around mine, and I couldn’t believe how right it felt.

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