Page 27 of Savage Prince

It’s all I can do not to beg for her to call me Tonio once again. Anything to bring back memories of a sweeter time.

“The cook has left dinner on the table for you and thesignorina,” she continues. “Is there anything else I can do before I retire for the evening?”

“Si. Serena will need clothes for her stay. Can you pick something up in the morning?”

She glances at her wristwatch and begins to move toward the door. “The shops in town are still open for another hour. I can go tonight. She shouldn’t have to sleep in those indecent scraps of fabric she’s wearing.”

I barely restrain a chuckle and the urge to hug the woman. For my own sanity, a less revealing outfit would do wonders.

“Grazie, Mariuccia. I mean it.”

With a tight smile, she marches the rest of the way to the door. Her hand closes around the knob, then she turns to me, her expression conflicted. “Perhaps it is not my place to say, but I wouldn’t forgive myself for not speaking up. I don’t pretend to know about your life or what has happened over the last two decades to turn the sweet, kind boy I knew into a cowardly, heartless man who would kidnap a woman. This is not who you are, Antonio Ferrara. MaybeDiobrought you here for a reason. Maybe here, in this home, you will remember the man your mother bore, not the monster your father raised.”

I stare at her, my jaw hanging open, as she spins toward the door and walks out, slamming the old timber behind her for good measure. I can’t remember the last time anyone dared speak to me like that or when truer words were spoken.

Instead of continuing up the stairs, I just stand there for an endless moment like a completecoglione. A part of me rages at the idea of being talked to like that, that’s the new me, while the old me can’t help another rueful smile from breaking through.

Mariuccia is right. My mother would be disgusted by the man I’ve become. By the man who just stood by and watched whenPapàtook out his thirst for revenge on Raf’s innocent girlfriend, when he banished my youngest brother from the family for no good reason. I was a complete and utter coward, just like my former nanny claimed.

But how can I go back now?

After years spent crafting the monster, how can I possibly banish the darkness I’d nurtured within myself? I wasn’t sure there was anything left of that little boy in the gilded frame.

The savory scent of garlic and herbs wafts down the hall, filling my nostrils and distracting me from this completelyunexpected moral dilemma.Get a hold of yourself, Antonio. Some things have to be done despite the unpleasant consequences. My feet instinctively turn toward the kitchen, and I follow them in search of the delicious scent, anything to get my mind off the past.

Balancing the tray of food in my hands, I tick my head at Otto to open the door of the master bedroom. The grand chamber that should have been mine. Then again, maybe my parents’ old bedroom would be filled with too many ghosts, and Serena has actually done me a favor by claiming it.

The door swings open and I march through, only to barrel into a naked, wet form. The tray crashes to the ground, the food splattering across the marble, and a hiss escapes through my clenched teeth as I take in all of Serena. Miles of perfectly tanned flesh gleams before me, tiny droplets of water dripping down her shoulders. I trail one of the glistening beads that traces a path from a lock of blonde hair over the perfect swell of her breast, winding around the peaked pink nipple, then diving lower across her abdomen. Somehow, by the sheer will ofDio, I force my eyes up before they delve lower to ogle the hollow between her thighs.

Finding a pair of amused sapphire orbs watching me stare at her, a smirk quirks up the corners of Serena’s lips. “See something you like, Ferrara?”

Squeezing my eyes closed, I grit out a curse before spinning around. Otto stands in the doorway gawking at the still naked Serena, who hasn’t even made a move to cover herself.Cazzo. A wave of unexpected irritation crashes over me, and I take it out on the gaping guard.

“Smetti di fissarla e vattene da qui,” I growl at Otto.Stop staring and get the hell out of here.

With one final glance at Serena’s perfect form, and a smile that says he’s memorizing every delicious inch of her, he whirls around and starts to retreat.

“And have Fabi come up here and clean up this mess,” I shout.

“Yes,capo.” He marches out, slamming the door behind him.

My fingers tighten into fists, nails digging into the flesh of my palms. The idea of him, of any man, seeing her bare has unexpected rage consuming my insides.

“Get dressed,” I hiss and crouch down to toss her the discarded towel, ignoring the splatter of ravioli and cream sauce across the floor.

She barely wraps it around herself before her eyes meet mine, taunting. “In case you forgot, I don’t exactly have anything to change into. I’ve been wearing that romper for more than twenty-four hours, and it’s starting to chafe.”

I heave out a frustrated groan and march across the space to the door that connects my room to hers. Until Mariuccia returns, I’d rather have her in one of my shirts and a pair of boxers than a measly towel. “Follow me.”

I’m surprised when she does, the soft pitter patter of her feet on the marble echoing over the suddenly escalated thrumming of my pulse. I scan the smaller room, still fitted with a king size bed and find my suitcase nestled beside the armoire. Picking it up and splaying it out on the bed, I rifle through its paltry contents. I didn’t exactly plan for a lengthy stay at the villa so my options are limited.

Serena peers over my shoulder, eyeing the random assortment and lingering on the compartment that holds my boxer briefs. Grabbing one, I toss it to her then reach for the firstshirt I find. “Here. This should suffice for now. Mariuccia has gone into town to buy you something suitable for tomorrow.”

“Really?” Her voice rises a few octaves. “You’re buying me clothes?”

“Well, I can’t exactly have you running around naked in my house. My guards will lose complete focus.”

She cackles, her head tipping back and locks of damp blonde hair fall across her eyes. “Just the guards?”

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