Luke, Chase, and Niko show up an hour or so after Enzo leaves. Niko flops down on the loveseat and pulls out his phone. His scarred face is neutral and unreadable, which seems to be the norm for him. Chase looks me up and down with his warm eyes, clearly trying to figure out if I’ve eaten or not. Luke just leers at me, eyes lingering too long on my breasts for my liking.

I discovered some clothes Enzo had left for me in my room after he went to speak with his father. I finally showered, washing away the last hints of my shameful encounter with Enzo in the restaurant. I’m wearing a simple pair of jeans and a black top that is a little lower cut and tighter than I’d have picked out for myself. With Luke’s prying eyes, I wish I had something more conservative. Like a black trash bag.

Luke taps his temple, near his star tattoos, and gives me an appreciative smile. With his shaved head and strong eyebrows, he makes a striking picture of masculinity and good looks, but I can’t stop seeing something wormy and distrustful in him that gives me the creeps.

“You doing okay?” Chase asks. He nearly puts his hand on my shoulder when he asks, but seems to think better of it, pulling it back jerkily.

“I’m fine, thanks.”

“I’m going to put the Notebook on,” Luke says offhandedly, as if the idea of a heavily tattooed, buff mafia guy wanting to watch the Notebook isn’t strange in the slightest. “You in?”

“Um, sure?” I say.

Chase sits down on the couch and motions for me to sit beside him. I take the spot and Luke squeezes in on the other side of me. I am scared of these men and my situation, but Enzo’s promise to make sure it works out okay clings to me like armor. As odd as it is to put so much value in the promise of a man I only met yesterday—a man who kidnapped me, no less—it’s the truth. I do trust that he’ll try to get me out of this, one way or another.

So I let myself settle into a comfortable position, and even if it’s just for the length of a single movie, I try not to think about where I am or why. Chase is nice enough, after all, and even if Niko spends all his time sexting girls, he at least leaves me alone. Luke, though… I feel like he’s just waiting for a chance to get me by myself, a chance to try something vile. I scoot a little bit away from him and closer to Chase. An odd sense of guilt wells up in me, like if Enzo came in now and saw me sitting between the two men on his couch, he’d feel betrayed.

I find myself making an excuse about how the couch is hurting my back and sliding down to sit on the floor with my back against the couch.

Chase shifts like he’s about to say something, but Luke only turns sideways and kicks his legs across the couch where I was sitting as he flips the movie on.

“So…” I say, trying to cut through the awkward silence. “Romance movies are your thing?” I ask.

Luke makes a noncommittal sound from behind me. “These clowns want to call me a pussy for it, but the way I see it? You want to get pussy, you have to speak pussy.”

Niko looks up from his phone with an expression of utter disbelief. “That might be the dumbest thing you’ve ever said,” he says dryly before looking back to his phone.

Luke blows out a dismissive breath. “You’ve got your techniques. I’ve got mine.”

I can’t help grinning a little. As much as these men seemed like hardened killers on my first meeting, I’m starting to see a little more of their personalities, and it goes a long way toward making me less scared of them.

“So, you and Enzo hook up already?” Luke asks once the movie has been playing for about half an hour.

“Come on, man,” says Chase. “If you think watching these movies is teaching you to ‘speak pussy,’ you just proved you’re not learning shit.”

I keep quiet, not wanting to admit what happened between Enzo and me, even if they can all probably guess it.

“You think women want what you do?” Luke asks. “All that soft buttery shit? If you didn’t look like you were in a boy band, you’d never get within ten feet of a pussy with your nice guy act.”

“Fuck you,” Chase says.

“The way both of you are talking,” Niko says without looking up. “You should both be in a boy band. Maybe you can sing some duets together. Grab each other's asses."

I try my hardest to stifle a snort of laughter, but both Chase and Luke hear it. I can sense their eyes on the back of my head.

I think I’m about to get an ear-full from them when the door bursts open to the room. I notice for the first time that the sounds of the club beyond the private room have woken back up, filling the space with a thumping, electronic beat. I can even hear glasses clinking and muted conversation coming from outside. I had almost forgotten I was stashed away in this private corner of the club and not some fancy apartment complex.

The men who enter are jaw-dropping. They both have beards and dirty blonde hair. One is a little taller and more roguish with a look on his face that says he doesn’t smile often. The other has a hint of laughter in his eyes, but at a glance I can tell both men are involved in the same lifestyle as Enzo. Mafia. I’d even go as far as to say they could be his brothers, from the vague resemblance I see in some of their features.

“Enzo’s calling everyone in,” says the taller of the two. His voice is heavy and deep.

“Off your asses,” says the other one, who I take to be a couple years younger. He’s shorter by maybe an inch, but both men are still well above average height, even if not quite as tall as Enzo.

Nico gets up, actually tucking his phone in his pocket. Luke pauses the movie and hands me the remote. “Sorry babe,” he says. “Those are Enzo’s brothers. If he had them come get us, it’s something serious. You can watch without me.”

“We’ll be back,” Chase promises.

The two brothers eye me with a look of interest for a few seconds before they usher everyone out of the door, leaving me alone again.

Without knowing what else to do, I end up turning the movie back on and sitting there, more than a little distracted.

The door opens a few minutes later, and this time Enzo comes in. He’s breathing heavily and sweat is covering his forehead. “You’ve got to go. Now. I thought we’d have longer. I wish we did,” he says, voice full of regret. “But it has to be now.”

“What?” I ask, standing up.

“I don’t have time to explain anything.” He hands me my phone and meets my eyes. “It’ll be too dangerous for me to see you again. This is goodbye,” he says, pulling me in and kissing me full on the mouth.

The kiss catches me so off guard that I don’t do anything for a moment. I only stand there, his mouth soft and warm against mine, my nose full of the masculine scent of him and the heat of his body so hard but inviting. I only just begin to kiss him back against all my instincts before he pulls away with a look on his face that has warmth flooding between my legs. God. It’s not fair what this man can do to me.

“I don’t understand,” I breathe. A whirlwind of emotion tears at me. The biggest part of my brain is ready to take any opportunity I can, to run and never look back. But at the same time, the idea of walking away from him feels wrong. It feels like something incomplete still hangs between us both, like he was a puzzle I had yet to solve, and leaving now would mean he’ll always be on my mind, always gnawing at me like the opportunity I let get away.

“You don’t need to understand,” he says. “It’s easier this way. You’re going to need to leave the city. Start over somewhere. If my father finds out you’re alive, he’ll try to make an example out of both of us.” He cups my cheeks in his hands, forcing my eyes on his. “Tell me you understand. Tell me you’ll listen.”

“Okay,” I say, nodding. “Okay…” It’s all happening so fast. Too fast. I feel like I’m sliding down a steep, slippery slope without anything to grab a hold of to slow myself down.

He kisses me again and guides me by the back to the door. “You have to leave on your own. And take this,” he says, handing me a credit card. “I’ll make sure it always has all the money you need on it. Okay? Use it for whatever you want. I know it doesn’t excuse kidnapping you,” he adds with a grin, “but I’ll feel better knowing you’re taken care of. Now go,” he says, giving me another push.

I turn to say something. To thank him. To curse him. To kiss him. I don’t even know, but I don’t get a chance because he slams the door behind me. I’m left to walk out of the club on my own and I’m strangely free after less than a day from when he kidnapped me. One day and he turned my world upside down. I’ll have to talk to everyone at the clinic and explain—except I can’t explain anything. I’ll have to lie, to make excuses, possibly lose my chance to keep working as a veterinarian.

Despite it all, I can’t quite believe I just saw Enzo Luciani for the last time.