Page 55 of Enzo's Vow
A waiter carryinghors d’oeuvrespassed, and she followed after him. Anything to escape my presence, I bet. Well, she couldn’t go far.
By the time the banquet ended, and we bid my colleagues goodnight, Gemma didn’t saunter to my car… she stalked. I hit the unlock button; the beep echoing in the awkward silence. She pivoted on her heels and pelted me with a murderous glare. “A vampire-zombie hybrid, really?”
No wonder she’d been seething all night, deliberately mingling with just about everyone at our table in a desperate attempt toavoid me. I’d hit a nerve. Rubbing the back of my neck, I felt a grin tug at my lips. “You have a problem with my retelling, but not your own?”
She threw her hands in the air. “At least I told the truth!”
I slanted forward, getting into her personal space. “Who said I lied? You do sometimes get this spaced-out look about you.”
She smacked her hands on her hips. “I do not!”
A car vibrated in the distance, threatening to distract us, but I wouldn’t let her off so easily. “Oh, yes, you do.” Joking aside, I adored her zombie stare. I seized her arms and angled her close, our noses almost touching. “And in the future, when you slight me in front of my work colleagues, be ready to receive as good as you give.” My gaze dropped to her mouth, her parted lips practically an invitation. Her eyes, golden depths ablaze with heat, held mine. This woman drove me insane. No wonder she’d nicknamed me Psychopath.
“Who’s Valentina?” She threw the name out there as a diversion from our close proximity, the rise and fall of her chest giving away the effects of our closeness.
I squeezed her shoulders, drawing her even closer. Her breasts pressed against my chest, the urge a physical ache. “Jealous?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” A flicker of amusement crossed her face before her control slipped, her lips parting in anticipation despite herself.
“Good. Don’t be. No woman in the world can compare to you, Gemma,” I whispered each word so softly, making no mistake of my desire.
The instant her eyelids fluttered shut, she yielded just a fraction. My lips feathered hers, at last sampling the kiss I craved.
She recoiled, shielding her mouth with the back of her hand. “Don’t you ever try to kiss me again,” she hissed, breathless and shaky, then hopped into the car.
For a brief instant, she’d caved. Enticed to give in. Why fight this? Her restraint… intrigued me. Sooner or later, those walls she built would crumble. The spark between us zapped, a living entity, ready to explode. Tonight, I’d let her pretend our chemistry was nonexistent.
Chapter 21
Gemma
Lombardy was a fleeting dream. Three days. That’s all it took before Carina’s call shattered the peace.“Get back to Sicily. Now. Lucio is in the emergency room,”she’d screeched. Doubt had flickered in Enzo’s eyes, struggling to trust his own mother. He spent an hour trying to reach his brother by phone, a growing frustration, until he could no longer handle the suspense and barked at the pilot to ready the jet.
He’d paced the entire flight. My attempts to distract him, urging him to sit beside me, earned me a snarl, the peace of the last few days already a distant memory. Carina had revealed next to nothing over the phone, just a frantic plea for his immediate return.
The limo screeched to a halt. He barely waited for the door to open before he surged toward the house, the familiar crunch of gravel under his feet a stark contrast to the smooth marble of the Lombardy estate. He charged toward the doors but staggered back as Lucio strolled out, not a mark on him.
“You’re here?” Lucio gawked, scratching at his temple. “What happened to Lombardy?”
Enzo stumbled, his momentum shattered by his brother’s nonchalant presence. “You’re okay?” The words escaped, strained.
“Why wouldn’t I be?” The younger man snorted, but his smirk faltered when neither of us laughed, the tension thicker than smoke.
Carina stepped out to join us. I bet this woman constructed this entire scheme to suit her own advantage. Enzo heeded his mother, his dangerous glare narrowed into tiny slits.
“You left me no choice, Enzo.” She admitted, not even sugarcoating her behavior. “How else would I’ve convinced you to come back?”
Enzo spun his phone and shoved the call history at Lucio. “I tried calling—multiple times.”
Lucio retrieved his own device and frowned. “I received nothing.”
Carina tipped her chin, a cold amusement in her eyes. “You wouldn’t have. I used a signal blocker on your phone.”
The air crackled with the brothers’ collective rage. Lucio’s face flushed a dangerous red, his breath a frustrated hiss. “What is wrong with you, Carina?”
“Why the urgency for me to return?” Enzo’s tone carried a grave note.
Carina flicked her burgundy bob, her solemnity almost passing as boredom. She offered no apology, nor showed any signs of regret. Calculating to the bone. “What was I meant to do, ask nicely?”
