Never.
There was no mirror in the room, but I was positive I had a deer-caught-in-the-headlights look. My wide eyes met with Luciano’s dark one.
“Everyone out, now,” he commanded a second later, eyes not leaving mine.
He didn’t need to raise his voice, it was already one of a don’s— sharp and empty— the opposite of what I’d heard last night.
I didn’t think he was talking to me, but I didn’t want to risk it. Rather be safe than sorry, especially when he practically had steam popping out of his ears. I dropped the clothes on the floor and made a move to follow the men who were filing out.
“Not you, Katarina.”
I stilled and stood there fumbling with my fingers while I waited for the next set of commands.
The door slammed as the last of the Beneveti men left, and the temperature in the room dived. The logical part of me knew he was nothing like Marco was, but when his fury turned on me, a deep-rooted fear bubbled to the surface.
“I didn’t know you were still here,” I tried to explain.
Unlike Marco, his voice remained calm. “What do you think you’re doing walking around like that?”
“I was about to go do laundry. Seriously, I didn’t know anyone was here.”
His jaw tightened as he eyed said laundry beside my foot. In a matter of a split second, he moved his angry gaze to my fidgeting toes, ran an assessment up to where the towel ended around my mid-thigh, and then skipped the rest of the white material to my rising chest. Finally, his stare landed on my face.
“Here I thought you were old enough to dress yourself,” he drawled.
I should have been mature and elaborated on my explanation, but I doubted he would have listened. His condescending tone was the cherry on top of why I was going to find ways to purposefully piss him off.
Crossing my arms in front of me, I retorted, “Sofia can, so why can’t I?”
Sarcasm mixed in with his moody eyes. “There weren’t other men then, were there?”
A surge of annoyance ran through me as he chose to not say anything aboutherbeing in a towel. “So it’s okay for women to walk around you naked but not when they do it to other men? How pretentious.”
“It’s not okay foryouto walk around naked around anyone butme. Men or women.”
Possessiveness leaked through his words and straight down tothe butterflies waiting in my stomach.
I ignored them.
“Who are you to tell me what I can and can’t do?”
Amusement lit on his face. “You came all over my tongue yesterday. One would think it meant some sort of loyalty, no?”
My mouth dropped open at his crass remark. While it wasn’t anything far-fetched, it wasn’t fair he was bringing it up as if we both weren’t willing participants.
“Oh, yeah? Like you’re so loyal to the past women you’ve been with. Do you even recall their names?”
He smirked. “Yes.”
I pursed my lips. I didn’t actually expect him to remember something so small, considering women threw themselves at his feet daily.
“Name one.”
His smirk widened. “Katarina.”
My eyes narrowed. “I don’t know how many times you need to hear it, but something is seriously wrong with you,” I spat.
He didn’t seem to mind the insult, shrugging it off as the riled flames dissipated from his eyes. Apparently, a little pettiness was all it took for him to go back to his indifference.