Page 56 of The Devil Can Be Kind

I gulped, trying to clear the lump forming in my throat.

Inexplicably, my obvious fear seemed to clear some of the brutality in his eyes and after a minute passed, his hand loosened from around my neck.

He took a step away, looking anywhere but at me.

I could see the anger burning inside him slowly recede as he worked to bring himself back under control. His carefully crafted coldness slowly returned to his handsome face after a handful of seconds ticked by. He muttered something quietly that I didn’t understand as the last of his turmoil drifted away.

“Why are you getting Alonso to forcibly remove every person that dances with me?” I questioned cautiously, not forgetting the reason I marched over to him in the first place.

He gripped his hips and shot me a condescending look. “I already told you. If I don’t want another man touching you, then he isn’t fucking touching you.”

“I don’t get you. You think you can dictate my life and who I can hook up with just because you’re keeping me at your house? That’s fucked up.”

He just looked at me with a strange expression, refusing to offer an explanation. My frustration swelled again.

Nothing to say? Great! I have tons.

“Let me make something clear to you, Marco. You’ve told me to start a life here because you won’t kill me or cart me away, but you don’t get to dictate what kind of life I choose. If I want to sleep with someone, I will. If I want to dance with someone, I will. Hell, if I want to get my nips out and dance on the fucking bar out there, then I will! I am a livingperson,and I can do whatI want!” I heaved, mimicking his stance and planting my hands on my hips.

“Is that what this is about?” He asked, shocking me by flashing a boyish smile that held no trace of insincerity. “You want to getlaid?”

I stumbled. “I, uh—"Oh, come on pull it together!“I ha…I have needs you know!” I blurted, avoiding his gaze.

“Oh, really? That’s not very Catholic of you now, is it?” He mocked, his face growing stern.

“You of all people don’t get to judge me. You’re a total man slut and you know it.” He scowled at that, but I could see a spark of humor lurking in his eyes.

Marco seemed to contemplate something for a few moments before speaking again.

He leaned toward me, placing his hands on the wall behind me and caging me in.

“My earlier statement still stands…I will kill any man that touches you. If you want attention you come to me.”

What. The. Fuck. Did he just say…

I looked up at him in complete shock, convinced he was joking.

I swallowed back the flutter in my chest when I found no trace of humor in his calm expression. Just steely indifference. I didn’t know what to say. I couldn’t even string two words together. I was certain he couldn’t even stand to be around me but…this?

What the hell is happening right now?

“So…do you want attention?” He asked seductively, his eyes clearly roaming over my chest and southwards.

I tried not to visibly tremble under the intensity of his gaze and roughness of his voice. This version of Marco…fuck,it was lethal.

I want attention!My body screamed and for a split second I felt myself lean toward him, surrendering to him.

A hand drifted down from the wall behind me, coming to rest on my waist as his head tipped toward me in response to my unspoken words.

But the second my body almost gave in to it, to him, a flash of red lipstick on his neck caught my gaze.

Just like that, any and all traces of desire vanished.

“No. Not from you. Go back to fucking your whore.”

I couldn’t keep the disgust from my voice as I ducked under his arm and scurried out the door, entering back into the throng of the crowd.

When I got backto the mansion that evening, the stone palace was desolate and silent with most of the normal mafioso still at the club with Marco. Jesse included.

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