Page 46 of Ruthless Commander
“No,” he answered. “Which is why I’m calling you now. She’s here on the mainland…in fact, she’s about to get on a boat to come to you.”
“That can’t be right.” I shook my head. “She’s here on the island right now.”
“You sure of that, brother?”
“What? Yes.” I answered, as the urge to pull up the cameras wore at me.
But Edon didn’t call for no reason and he wasn’t one to play games. “If Evan Valachi is getting on a boat to come to the island, then who the hell is here?”
My phone gave abeep. I pulled it away and glanced at the number of the caller. What do you know…Michele Valachi…
“Edon, Michele Valachi’s calling me.”
“Careful, brother, a storm is coming…it’s dark and savage…and it’s calling your name.”
I scowled at his words as the same chill I'd felt moments ago walking into the command center returned. “Will do,” I answered and hung up the call.
“Mr. Valachi,” I answered the next call.
“You have a goddamn imposter on the island, Mateo,” he growled. “And the bitch tried to kill my goddamn daughter.”
19
Xael
When I woke up the next day, I felt like hell. Something had hit me with the force of a truck during the night. My thoughts were slow as my eyes opened. I blinked, then moaned as I moved, rolling to reach and grab my phone from the nightstand to peer, bleary-eyed, at the time. "You gotta be shitting me," I mumbled out loud.
It was already early afternoon when I pushed myself up, dragged my gaze from the phone, and glanced out into the darkened, savage storm outside my window.
Those dark clouds from yesterday swirled around us. It looked like the cyclone that’d threatened the island was making its presence known. Great. I shoved the sheets aside and crawled out of bed before stumbling to the bathroom. The harsh light inside made me wince. I tugged my t-shirt free and slid my panties down before stepping into the shower and hitting the spray, waiting for the water to heat before I stepped under it.
The moment the water hit my skin, memories of the events of last night came rushing back, Kat, Anna, then Mateo, and my desperate attempt to get away from here.
I closed my eyes as the haunting image of Kat’s empty stare came roaring back to me.Jesus…
I washed my hair as rage returned. I wanted to kill that fucker Zakharov, wanted to beat him more than Lazarus had…it was lucky Rossi had left him alive at all. If it hadn’t been for Fin and Anna being there, I guarantee he wouldn’t have.
No. The Rossis were a special breed, savage, dangerous, and fiercely loyal. A shiver of jealousy rose inside me as I poured conditioner on my hair, then rinsed, taking my time until I felt somewhat human. I knew Anna and Fin would be together, had known from that first night when the boat docked. I’d never seen him so obsessed before, never seen him soconsumed.Christ, I wanted that.
I wanted a man who didn’t give a fuck about anyone or anything else.
I wanted a man who wanted me above everything. Someone who was prepared to not just make his feelings known, but gave zero fucks about anyone else when he rammed it down everyone else’s throat. Fin wanted Anna, and after how she'd acted around him last night, she wanted him, as well. But Lazarus and Kat had taken me by surprise.
And for a second there, I was scared for her.
Lazarus Rossi wasn’t the kind of man you played with…neither was he one who you betrayed. I’d heard the rumors about the shooting and I'd seen him at Fin’s mom’s funeral. I'd also seen when they'd carried out that poor bastard he’d beaten almost to death, as well.
No, with a man like Lazarus, you stayed the hell away from him…unless you felt the same way.
Did she? Did Kat have feelings for the Stidda Prince? She went to his apartment, right? She wasn’t the kind of woman who did that. I turned, hit the taps, and ended the spray. No, Kat wasn’t a player, and she sure as hell didn’t sleep around, no matter what shit Zakharov spewed. She wasn’t…like me?
I flinched as I grabbed a towel and ran it over my body. God, I was tired of all this. Tired of hurting…tired of wanting, tired of searching for a way to stop myself from feeling that emptiness. Damien was a mistake. I knew that now, maybe I’d known it all along.
When I'd tried to get off the island, it wasn’t just Mateo I was running away from. I was running from the desperate need in his eyes and the way he wanted me.
Doesn’t matter what I do. Doesn’t matter who I fuck. My body…my body doesn’t respond. Not like it did with you. I’m broken, Mateo. But I guess none of that matters, does it?My own words came back to me in a rush as I dropped my towel to the floor.
Heat rushed to my cheeks. I shouldn’t have told him that, shouldn’t have let myself get so fucking vulnerable around him. I shouldn’t have let myself feel…not about him. I strode into my bedroom, grabbed my phone from the bed, and sent a message to Damien.
