Page 19 of Anastasia

Seeing as he held on to my hair, I ran my fingers through his. I never would’ve guessed his hair would feel so silky and thick. When I grabbed a handful and tugged it gently, he let out a small groan against my neck. It was the sexiest noise I had ever heard. He pressed me closer against his erection and just like I had done before, I began to grind against him.

After much time, he pulled away from my neck. I just knew that it looked bad based on the smirk he wore on his face as he stared at it. “Every time you strip, I just want those little boys to know that you belong to me,no?”

“I don’t belong to you,” I said before quickly getting out of his grip. I bent over as fast as I could to grasp my skirt that he had discarded on the floor. His eyes followed my every move as I quickly slid it back on.

Annoyance was clear on my expression. I hated how much of an effect he had on me. One minute I was ready to submit to him and do what he wanted because my brain was clogged up with lust. Then the next, a reminder of the type of business he does would go rushing into my head. I had to get away, but no matter how hard I tried, my body wouldn’t let me.

My phone rang, interrupting my thoughts. I quickly grabbed it and felt my heart sink at the realization that it was coming from the hospital. He got up from his chair and made his way over to me, where he pulled me against him.

“Ms. Smith? We need you at the hospital as soon as you can. The doctor received an urgent call from your sister’s room and we’ve tried to reach you for a couple of hours. They are currently rushing her to surgery,” she explained. My heart immediately sank at her words. I couldn’t even form a sentence as the repetition of everything she had to say kept playing in my brain.

“I’ll be right there,” I muttered before hanging up.

It had been two months since Alex had been diagnosed with leukemia. I couldn’t ignore the fear that crept up my bones at the thought of her possibly dying. Mr. Romano pulled away from me as he looked at my face. I quickly wiped away a tear that had fallen before briskly walking over to the door.

“I have to go,” I whispered. My voice wasn’t trustworthy at all, so a whisper was all that came out.

As fast as I could, I opened the door and walked out of the huge mansion and back into the club. Valerio cast me a concerned look.

I knew I couldn’t handle bringing up my situation, so I just left. I left the club, I left my boss, and I left Valerio. A sob climbed out of my throat as I tried my best to breathe. It seemed like one thing kept tearing me down after another. As soon as I took one step forward, I was pulled ten steps back.

* * *

I rushed into the hospital.My makeup probably looked a mess and I knew that my clothing wasn’t the most presentable. None of it mattered though, I just needed my little sister to be okay. She was my last little bit of sanity that I had left, I didn’t know what I would do without her.

Just as soon as I walked in, Dr. Flores came up to me with a tight-lipped smile. It wasn’t his usual smile where he proudly displayed his pearly whites, which left me worried.

“Anastasia, I’m happy to inform you that Alexandria is in much better condition. I had to perform a splenectomy, which is surgery to remove the entire spleen. It was an emergency operation because her spleen had been dangerously compromised by the leukemia. The spleen is a very important part of the body’s immune system. Seeing as we had to remove that, it’s going to lead to a lot scarier bumps up ahead. This is what I call the ‘dark part’ of cancer, Ms. Smith. Remember when I told you that you may need help? This is the time that you should get it,” he said, his hand rubbing my shoulder soothingly.

I understood that it was supposed to be good news, but I couldn’t stop my tears. I wrapped my arms around him and sobbed. It may have been inappropriate to hug my sister’s doctor, but it was the one thing I needed at the moment—a hug. My body shook and there was an ache beginning to make a permanent home in the pit of my belly.

“She’s not going to get better, is she? She’s never coming back home,” I cried as I pulled away. His eyes strayed away for a moment before returning back to mine with a sad smile.

“It depends on the way her cancer responds to the treatment.”

Valentino

Iwatched her run out in a frenzy. At first, I believed she was a spy or someone trying to bring me down, so I ordered my men to watch her. It was the only explanation I could think of without raising the suspicious brows of my men. She came out of nowhere and was exactly what I favored in a girl. It was easy for me to assume one of my many enemies assigned her a job to get information about me, but I was wrong.

What my men reported back surprised me. She spent nights at the hospital, watching over her dying little sister. There was no indication that she was in contact with Dmitri or anyone else who could possibly want to bring me down. My paranoia quickly vanished the moment I began to discover more about her.

What began as a task to see if she was who she truly said she was became a worry of whether or not everything was okay. I knew how easy it was to be tempted by darkness in dark times, but she was too bright of a person. It would pain me to see the same darkness in me exist in her.

What intrigued me most about the girl was the way she would spend hours and hours at the club, just to spend all of the money she made on her sister. In a way, she reminded me a lot of myself. Maybe that was why I couldn’t rid myself of the thought of her.

Vincenzo walked into the conference room with a raised brow. I rolled my eyes, not wanting to hear him go on and on about Anastasia. She was neither his concern, nor would she ever be.

“You brought one of your whores to a meeting? What the hell are you doing?” he questioned.

“She’s not my whore. The girl just needs…” I trailed off.. I knew what I was going to say before I stopped myself. I was going to say that she needed someone, just like I wished I had someone. The world was lonely when there was no one there, and based on the shakiness of her voice earlier, I wasn’t too sure her sister would be around for much longer.

“I thought you promised to never let those girls into our home,” Vincenzo said in disbelief.

I sighed. “She’s an exception. So, accept it and leave it the hell alone.”

He didn’t seem pleased with my answer, but he dropped it. Instead, he began telling me more information about Dmitri. Dmitri was planning something huge, and I knew it was coming straight for us. He knew we had his daughter, and it was only a matter of time before he tried to come and get her. All I knew was that we had to attack before he could get the chance.

“About Orabella…” Vincenzo began.

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