Page 3 of Secret Confession
As soon as she sees Marcus, the smile on her face grows wide and she reaches for him, pulling him in for a tight hug, as Miles and I walk up the stairs to join them. The way she hugs Marcus feels almost motherly, and I’m just as surprised to see a slight blush on Marcus’ cheeks.
Once she lets go of Marcus, she’s quick to pull Miles into a hug too, although he doesn’t let go of my hand, returning her gesture with just his free arm. The way she looks at him, the same as she did with Marcus, is so full of love, and for just a fraction of a second, my chest aches and jealousy spikes.
As Miles takes a step back, the friendly woman turns her assessing gaze to me. Though her warm smile doesn’t falter, I feel very exposed under the weight of this woman’s eyes.
“Such a beautiful young girl, but you are much too thin,” she says finally, gently placing her hand on my cheek.
I find myself leaning in to her warm touch, until a deep rumbling voice startles us both. “I think she looks fine just the way she is.”
I turn towards the door, in the direction of the voice, only to find an older man leaning against the doorframe, his gaze locked on me. There’s no doubt that this man is Maximus Morelli, and although I’m not sure what I was expecting, it is definitely not this.
Despite him leaning, it’s clear he's much taller than me, and more muscular than you’d expect for a man of his age. Although I know he’s in his early fifties, I wouldn’t have guessed that by looking at him. He has faint lines around his eyes and across his brow, and his dark hair is turning grey in places, but they’re the only giveaways regarding his age.
He’s wearing a dark, perfectly tailored suit that fits his body to perfection. The dark shade of his trousers and waistcoat contrast with the crisp white of his shirt, making him look more like a rich businessman than the feared mafia leader he really is.
With Marcus, it only takes one look at his hard exterior, blank mask, and general stern expression to know that he’s dangerous. He exudes it from his pores, whereas Maximus doesn’t have that. His almost relaxed, friendly posture draws you in, until you see his eyes.
Although his emerald-green eyes are a different colour to Marcus’—who got his blue gaze from his mother, so I’ve been told—there’s a harsh seriousness to them that make it clear just how dangerous this man really is. And the way they’re fixed on me, assessing my every move, makes me feel almost naked.
As soon as I catch him staring at me, Maximus is quick to glance away, making me wonder if he really was looking at me the way I thought he was. He doesn’t cast his eyes back to me again, dismissing like I’m not even there, and I couldn’t be more confused.
“Father, thank you so much for agreeing to this,” Marcus says as he reaches ahand out towards Maximus, sounding much more formal than a father and son should.
Maximus shakes his hand, though they don’t move any closer to each other than they have to, which strikes me as odd. Miles is quick to shake Maximus’ hand too, once he’s let go of his son’s.
“Yes, I can’t thank you enough for this,” my brother says, his emotions bleeding into his words so that his gratitude is obvious.
Maximus gives them both a firm nod, keeping his expression blank, which almost makes it look like he’s agreeing reluctantly, and might not actually want me here.
My thoughts are reinforced when his stern tone interrupts my spiralling. “As long as she follows the rules, and stays in her allocated rooms, we won’t have a problem. I trust it won’t take you long to eliminate the threat, and then she can get back on with her life.”
I want to cut in and tell him that I have a fucking name, and don’t particularly appreciate being referred to asshe, but despite what my brain clearly thinks, I’m actually a coward deep down, and don’t have the guts to stand up to a man like him.
Instead, I keep my head down and let Miles and Marcus do the talking. Ultimately, I need to stay here as it’s the only place I’ll be safe, and if that means putting up with the grumpy arsehole who can’t even be bothered to learn my name, or talk to me directly, then so be it.
Marcus replies to him with the same promise Miles made me earlier. “We will work quickly to take out the threat, so that Courtney can get back to her life. We will determine who is behind the ‘gift’ and the note, and then we can go from there.”
“Good,” he replies sharply.
I know I should probably keep quiet, but this man has agreed to let me into his home, and even though he doesn’t deserve my politeness after the dismissive tone he used on me, I’m still grateful for the help he’s giving me, and I want him to know that.
“Thank you, Mr Morelli, Sir, for opening your home to me. It means a lot that I can feel safe.” I hate how small and weak my voice sounds, and I’m sure he can hear how much he terrifies me.
He finally lifts his gaze to meet mine, somewhat reluctantly, and his eyes darken as he takes all of me in, sending a shiver down my spine. Silence stretches between us as he just stares at me with his dark, piercing gaze, making me shift uncomfortably from one foot to the other.
When he finally responds, his deep voice is harsh and firm. “Mrs Branch will give you the tour. Pay close attention to everything she says, as not all of the Mansion is open to you.
“She’ll also go over the rules with you. If there’s any you don’t agree with, or you break them, my offer for you to stay here will be rescinded immediately, whether the threat against you remains or not.”
“Father,” Marcus snaps, sounding exasperated with him.
Miles glares at him too, looking like he’s about to say something we’ll all regret,so I hold my hand out to silence him. Despite wanting to shy away from the fierceness in Maximus’ gaze, I don’t.
I keep my eyes on his as I say, “That’s not a problem. I’m good at following rules.”
Maximus’ emerald eyes seem to darken once more, making them appear almost black now, as he pulls in a sharp breath. I’m not sure whether it was my refusal to look away from him, or something I said, but he seems more affected by me, and that only confuses me more.
With the briefest nod, he turns on his heel and walks back into the house without saying another word. Miles turns to Marcus, sarcasm dripping from him as he says, “Now I see where you get your people skills from. He’s even more of a moody bastard than you are.”
