Page 124 of Lips On My Soul

Chapter Seventeen

Josephine

Driving recklessly along the beat-up trucking road on the far side of the Fort Collins industrial park, I pray Lorenzo keeps his promise.

This place is a giant maze of steel buildings used as temporary storage for the rail system. Thousands of acres devoid of human contact seems like an ideal hiding spot for Lorenzo.

The directions Lorenzo sent me has me going to the rail corridors. If he’s planning an escape out of Fort Collins, using the railroad makes sense since the FBI is watching the highways and airports. It feels a little like an old western set in modern times.

I slow as I near the railway and peer into several of the steel structures surrounding me. Lorenzo and his goons are holding my mom and Simone hostage in one of them. When I catch a flash of something shiny and bright yellow, I stomp on the breaks.

There, hiding in the shadows of a pole shed in the center of the rail system, is Lorenzo’s Lamborghini. I throw the truck in park, leaving the keys in the ignition, and jump out. Pretty Paolo appears out of nowhere and firmly takes me by the elbow.

“Get your filthy hands off me,” I shriek, trying to yank my arm from the ugly bastard’s grip.

We both struggle with each other a few moments when Lorenzo comes out from the building. “Paolo, let her go. She must come to me freely,” he orders in a smooth voice.

Released from Paolo’s hands, I step purposely toward Lorenzo. My heart pounds harder against my ribs with each footfall. Lorenzo’s dark eyes sparkle brighter the closer I come to him.

When I’m within grabbing distance, Lorenzo closes the gap between us. His arms encircle me in a death grip and thrust me against his hard chest. It takes everything in me not to respond to my fight or flight instincts. Any resistance and he may back out of his promise to leave my family alone.

He palms my face with one hand, his hard eyes reading mine for any sign of falsehood. I must be one fan-fucking-tastic actress because Lorenzo’s eyes soften. His hold relaxes, becoming tender.

“Pina,” he whispers seductively. “You’ve chosen me.”

Wrong! I was coerced, you loafer-dick.

Lorenzo runs his smooth thumb along my bottom lip. Unable to tolerate his Palmolive touch, I snap my teeth. He yanks his hand away.

Sheer willpower be damned.

Lorenzo’s polished face pulls into a nasty grin. “I see the fight is still in you.” He grabs me by the collar of my shirt, bringing my face less than an inch from his. “Good. I want to be the one to break and mold you.”

I open my mouth to give some smart-aleck retort when he crushes his lips to mine, shoving his tongue down my throat.

Gah! And I thought I didn’t have a gag reflex except for Simone’s loogies.

Struggling in his arms, Lorenzo breaks the kiss with a snarl. “Don’t test my patience, Pina! I’ve waited long enough. My tolerance is nearly gone. You came to me!”

“I still haven’t seen my mom and sister,” I fire back.

Lorenzo’s jaw ticks, but he nods with a smile. “Mmm, you’ve pleased me. Never assume a deal is done until you see the goods. That quality in you will make you a damn fineDonnato stand next to me.” He takes me by the hand and pulls me into the metal building.

In the center of the room, I spot my mom and sister still restrained in chairs. Lucky Luca is squatting next to Simone, whispering in her ear. She yanks her head away, making Luca laugh. Seeing the creep near Simone brings on my feral side. I rip my hand away from Lorenzo and sprint toward her.

“Pina!” Lorenzo yells in alarm.

Luca looks up with only enough time to see me barreling down on him. The one good thing about being short is I don’t need to lower my center of gravity to drive my weight into someone.Thank God for small wonders.I drive my shoulder into Luca’s gut, making him tumble backward on his ass.

Scrambling quickly, I straddle his chest and start throwing right and left hooks at the sick fuck’s face. Thanks to Maceo teaching me how to throw a proper punch, I actually manage to land a couple decent shots on the asshole.

My mom and sister shout through their gags, their words inaudible. Luca’s little weasel squeals twist my face into a cruel smile. “How you like being beat? Not fun is it, you fucking sadist!”

Lean arms wrap around my waist and haul me off of Luca, but the fight hasn’t left me. I kick Luca hard in the shin as I’m dragged away, making him yelp.

Lorenzo snickers in my ear. “Oh my! My vixen has some claws.”

Luca sits up slowly with a busted lip and a welt on his cheek. He wipes the back of his hand across his mouth, eyes widening when he notices the blood. He staggers to a stand with gritted teeth. “Little bitch.”

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