Page 44 of His Stakes (His Obsession 2)

“Don’t act dumb with me,” she teased. “Good lord, you two were giving me hot flashes just now.”

I didn’t even try to deny it. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” I whispered.

“I do,” she said. “You have the hots for my boss.”

“Your boss and my kidnapper,” I told her. “Isn’t there a name for that. Stockholm syndrome? Is that it?”

“I don’t think that’s what’s happening here.” She put the teapot on the stove and turned on the burner. “I think it’s more than that. You two have had some kind of current running between you since the moment your eyes met.”

“You weren’t there when I first saw him. And since you weren’t, let me just fill you in. I was drugged and had a hood over my head when I was dropped on that couch…” I pointed out the doorway, where we could see the end of the couch in the sitting area near the patio doors. When I turned back to Lisa, she was leaning on the counter with an unreadable expression. “What?” I asked her.

“It’s just…I’ve never seen Luca like this. I mean, he’s a passionate man. Anyone can see that. And he has his demons. The way he works. The way he punishes himself in the gym—”

“The way he kidnaps innocent women.”

She gave me a disapproving look.

“Don’t look at me like that,” I told her. “He took me from my sister’s home, Lisa. He forced me to stay here, dressed me up like her, and paraded me around the city until his brother was drawn out of hiding. And then he planned to shoot me in front of him.”

“But he didn’t,” she said.

“Really?” I said. “That’s your argument?”

“I said he has his demons. I wasn’t lying. I’ve worked here a long time. I’ve seen and heard a lot of things.”

I’ve seen and heard a lot of things.

Her words ricocheted around my head. Maybe I was going about this whole spying thing all wrong. But my thoughts were interrupted by Luca’s return. He strode into the kitchen looking like he was ready to attend a party on a yacht in cocoa brown shorts with big pockets that came to his knees and a white, long-sleeved, pullover shirt made of some thin material you could practically see through. The sleeves were rolled up over his powerful forearms and it was split open from his neck to the tops of his hard abs. On his feet were slip-on sneakers, much like the ones I was wearing, only in brown. The muscles in his arms and back were visible through his shirt as he bent down and picked up the cooler from the floor. “Are you ready?” he asked me.

I had to swallow past my dry throat before I could respond. “Yeah, I’m ready.” I hopped off my stool and gave Lisa an awkward wave, then picked up the bag that contained the plates, silverware, and sunblock.

“Be safe,” she called after us as I followed Luca out of the room.

Enzo, dressed in light blue board shorts and a black T-shirt, was waiting for us outside, sunglasses firmly in place. As soon as he saw us, he strode forward and took the bag from my hands, taking it to the open back of the SUV. Luca hefted the cooler inside as I got into the backseat and pulled on my seatbelt. “I didn’t know Enzo was coming,” I told Luca when he got in beside me.

“It’s not a good idea to go anywhere on your own when you’re in the business I’m in,” was the answer he gave me.

“Of course. I just wasn’t thinking. I like Enzo.” Giving him what I hoped was a carefree smile, I turned to look out the window as Enzo took us down the driveway. But I could feel his eyes on me all the same.

“What’s wrong, Veda?”

I opened my mouth to tell him nothing was wrong, but remembering his reaction the last time I did that, I closed it again and shrugged. “I think I’ve just been in the house too long.” As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I winced internally. I wasn’t looking to start a fight with him. Not today.

But his response took me by surprise. “I’m sorry. I’ll try to arrange it so you can get outside more. And if I don’t, and you start feeling too trapped, just give me a reminder. Preferably with your words and not your temper.”

My eyes flew to his face, only to find him staring back at me with a teasing smile. Holy Christ, he was a devastating man when he put his mind to it. I blinked a few times, completely forgetting what we’d just been talking about for a few seconds. “No,” I said. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

“But,” he paused to make sure he had my attention, “I will not do anything or go anywhere that will put you in danger. Is that understood?” Reaching across the backseat, he took my hand. His thumb gently stroked my knuckles, and I flashed back to the way he’d brushed my clit just like that while I was tied to a chair. My face grew heated, and my inner muscles squeezed tight. I couldn’t take my eyes from him.

His blue eyes fell to my mouth, then fell to my breasts, watching them rise and fall with each quick breath as if he knew exactly what I was thinking about. His lips parted and his tongue darted out to wet his bottom lip. And the whole time, his thumb stroked my knuckles.

Enzo’s phone buzzed on the seat beside him, reminding me we weren’t alone, and I dragged my eyes from Luca as I cleared my throat and looked out the window, forcing those memories out of my head. “Where are we going?”

Luca’s voice was low and husky when he answered. “There’s a marina a mile from the house. The boat is there.”

“But wouldn’t that make it hard to escape by water if you needed to?”

Enzo chuckled, and Luca sent him a side-eyed look before answering me. “There are alternate ways to get here if needed.”

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