I forgot how beautiful Nina really is.

I don’t know how that is possible when she’s the sexiest woman I’ve ever seen. I don’t know what it is about her that makes her seem so beautiful. Is it her piercing brown eyes, luscious red lips, her unbelievable curves, or her legs that go on for days?

Maybe it’s the fierceness in her eyes. The obsessiveness that, when she sets her heart on something, she does everything to make it happen. Even at the expense of herself.

Whatever it is, I can’t believe I forgot. And, now, I’m just as obsessed with her as my brother. He can pretend she’s not all he wants. That he’s just playing along with the game, just like he has with all the ones before. But he’s lying. I know him better than that. I practically am him. So, I definitely know what he’s thinking.

And he already knows what I’m thinking. That’s the problem after doing this six other times. He already knows all my tricks. I’ll have to play this game differently if I want to win.

“I’m Matteo Carini, Arlo’s twin brother,” I say, walking over to Nina and softly kissing her on each cheek. I get hard from just kissing her on the damn cheek. Man, I’m in trouble if this woman can control my dick that easily.

Nina just keeps staring at me, wide-eyed. “Have we met before?” she asks.

I nod. “I was there the night we saved you.”

She frowns but still says, “Thank you.”

I laugh. “I wouldn’t be thanking me yet. If you think my brother is bad, I’m worse.”

She studies me out of the corner of her eye, and I’m not sure she believes me. I thought my scar would make me look like more of a badass than Arlo could ever dream of being. But, apparently, it still isn’t enough. His broodiness makes it impossible for me to compete with him.

I hold out my arm to her, and she apprehensively looks at it.

“Let me give you a tour of our house and where you will be staying.”

She doesn’t put her hand on my arm like I want her to.

“I figured I would be staying in the dungeon again.”

I laugh. “And why would we do that?”

“Because I’m your prisoner, and that’s where you keep prisoners.”

I shrug. “We could, but then we’d have to go down to the dungeons ourselves every time we needed something from you, and that would get tiring. It’s much better if you just stay up here. Don’t you agree?” I say with a sexy grin.

I watch as her cheeks blush just the tiniest bit at the attention I’m giving her.

“You’re right. What was I thinking? I wouldn’t want to inconvenience you when you want to rape me,” she says, every word dripping with sarcasm.

I grin. “Exactly,” I say, liking her spunk. “Now, take my arm so that I can show you around.”

“No, thanks. Arlo already gave me a tour the last time I was here.”

I roll my eyes. “He didn’t show you the good parts. Hold onto my arm or stay here and take your chances with what my father will need from you.”

Disgust and fear cover her gorgeous eyes. And rightly so. If she is smart, she will do everything in her power to stay away from my father. She might hate Arlo and me now, but she’ll learn soon enough that we are the lesser of the evils in this family.

She puts her hand in the crook of my arm. “I hate you. You can’t force me to do anything. I’m not your slave.”

I shake my head, laughing a little to myself. She’s something else. If putting her hand on my arm pisses her off, she isn’t going to like what the future holds for her.

“I’m not forcing you to do anything. I’m giving you a choice. Me or my father.”

“That’s not a choice.”

“It is a choice. I think you will find that my family is more than fair when it comes to giving you free will while you stay with us even though you owe us a huge debt,” I say, leading her out of the family room.

“A debt that your family manipulated me into having.”

I stop. “You can hate my family, but you don’t get to blame us for the predicament you are in. If I remember correctly, my brother even tried to warn you. This is on you. You had a choice to drink or not even though you knew it was spiked. You had the choice to be saved or to stay with them. You chose us. Now, deal with it.”

She pouts but doesn’t argue about it any longer, so I keep walking. I show her the kitchen, our family’s private dining room, our offices, the library, and then the art gallery.

It’s clear when we enter the library that also holds walls of art that this room is her favorite. She runs her hands over the spines of the books and studies each and every painting we pass.

I should have done more research before she came. I know Arlo knows everything about her. I should have been better prepared.

“Do you like art? Books?” I ask before realizing how stupid I sound.

She nods. “I like history. I like learning about the past. Art captures the imperfections of people’s pasts, and books tell their stories. What isn’t there to love?”

“Are you an artist?”

She laughs. It’s a beautiful sound that I want to hear over and over again.

“No. I’ve tried, but that isn’t where my talent lies.”

I step closer to her, closing the space between us, testing to see how uncomfortable I make her. She doesn’t step back.

“Why would I tell you what my talents are? Why would I tell you anything about myself? You are just going to use it against me.”

I smile, liking how fierce she is when she speaks. It’s adorable that she thinks she has any control in this situation.

“Because it might make your stay easier if you were my friend and not just the woman I fuck when I’m bored.”

She narrows her eyes but doesn’t say anything. She isn’t going to tell me anything about herself. I’ll just have to find the file that I know my obsessive, organized brother has on her. I’ll find out everything I need to know from that.

But, from the look in her eyes, I know where to find her if I ever need her. She’ll be here, enveloped in a story about medieval times or some shit like that. I’m sure books are interesting, but I prefer to make history rather than read about it in some book.

“Come on. Let me show you to your room,” I say, again holding out my arm to her.

She doesn’t want to take it. She doesn’t want to do anything that she is told. I’ll have to remember that tidbit. She needs to feel in control.

“You hold on to my arm, or I’ll hold on to your ass. Your choice.”

She frowns but takes my arm. I can practically feel the blood pulsing through her body just from the touch of her hand. She’s excited or nervous or turned on. I can’t tell which. Arlo is better at reading people than I am.

“You should really cheer up, sweetheart. Things could be a lot worse than they are.”

“How could they be any worse? I’ve been kidnapped. I’m a slave. I just got married, and I don’t even get to have a life with my new husband. I think this is about as bad as it gets.”

I shake my head. “No. You made the right decision when you chose us over Erick seven years ago.”

“And why would you say that? From what I’ve seen, you are both scum.”

“For one, we are much fairer than Erick’s family. We keep to our word and will give you back your freedom after you’ve paid your fair debt off. But he wouldn’t ever give you your life back even though you didn’t owe them anything.”

I walk her up the stairs to the highest room in the mansion. I open the door and lead her inside.

“And, two, we have a lot more money than them, which means you have much better accommodations while you stay here.”

I watch as her mouth drops at the gorgeous room I just brought her into. The room is circular with a large window circling the whole room, providing plenty of light. An oversize bed sits in the center of the room along with a curved couch on another wall, looking out over the gardens. A single other door leads from the room to her bathroom that is almost as large as this room, complete with a chandelier over the bathtub. I’m sure it is the best room she has ever stayed in.

“This room is mine?”

“Yes, it’s yours while you stay here. No one will touch you while you’re in this room. No one will come in here without your permission. It’s the only safe place you have. Remember that.”

She turns to me after studying the room. “Why would you give me a safe place to go? I could just stay in this room, and no one would ever touch me.”

“For one, you would starve if you stayed in here the whole time. No one will bring you food as long as you stay in here. And, two, even if you were to get someone to bring you food, you would go crazy, staying in here. Seven years is a long time not to speak to anyone. People go crazy in solitary confinement. Even confinement that is as beautiful as this.”

She frowns. “If this is my safe place, then why are you in here?”

“Because I was invited.”

“I didn’t invite you.”

I sigh. “Fine, I’ll leave. But, first, you need to know the rules since I’m sure you didn’t read the whole document you signed very carefully.”

She rolls her eyes. “No, I was more concerned with the fact that I’d willingly signed my life away.”

“Not your life. Only seven years.”

“Seven years is a long time.”

I nod. “But it’s not forever.”

Her eyes bore into mine, like she is trying to figure out if I’m telling the truth or not. “Why should I believe you? Why should I believe that I’m ever going to be free again?”

“Because this is how my family keeps our power. We are honest. We do what we say. Our word means everything. When I tell you something, believe me. When Arlo tells you something, believe him. My family tells the truth above all else.”

“Are you going to rape me?” she asks.

I can’t tell if she wants me to or not from the way she says it. She’s not afraid; I know that much.

I grin. “Not today.” I pull a bracelet out of my pocket. “Now, for the rules. Hold out your arm.”

She folds her arms across her chest.

I laugh, loving her fire. “Nina, will you please hold out your arm so that I can place this bracelet on your wrist, or would you rather I take you to the dungeons instead?”

She frowns but holds out her left wrist to me. I place this bracelet on her wrist.

“What is it?”

“It has a tracking device in it. That way, we can figure out where you are and allow you the freedom to move around in our home. Or you can stay in the dungeon. I heard you and Arlo fucked there, so maybe that’s really what you prefer.”

“The bracelet is fine,” she says, shooting fire with her eyes.

She studies the bracelet, already trying to figure out a way to take it off. She’s going to struggle to get it off herself. Once closed, it doesn’t open, except with wire cutters.

“Don’t even think about taking it off.”

She rubs her wrist. “Why?”

“Just don’t. You don’t want to know what will happen to you if you take it off.”

She studies the bracelet. “Is there poison or explosives or something in it?”

I shrug. “Just don’t.”

“I thought you didn’t lie.”

“I don’t. But that doesn’t mean I have to answer all of your questions either.”

I don’t have to tell her that the bracelet won’t hurt her in any way if she removes it. It will fuck with her brain though to think that there is a possibility that it might. The punishment would come after we hunted her down and found her.

She sighs. “So, what are the rules? I’m tired, and I just want to sleep.”

“Simple. Stay in the mansion or on the main grounds. Don’t take the bracelet off. Stay in your room if you don’t want to be ordered around. Come out, and you’re free game to any of my family members to do what they feel is fair for you to pay back the debt you owe us. Stay away from Enrico if you don’t want to experience any pain.” I pause. “Well, the kind of pain that comes with no enjoyment for you anyway. Rinse and repeat until your time is up. If you follow the rules, then you’ll survive long enough to go back to that husband of yours. Any questions?”

She folds her arms across her chest. “No.”

“Don’t follow the rules, and there will be consequences that you can’t imagine. Including your death. Do you understand?” I say as nicely and calmly as I can.

I don’t want to scare her, but she needs to know that I’m serious when I say she can’t run.

She nods.

“I need to hear you say that you understand.”

“I understand,” she says, willing to give in without a fight because it’s clear she just wants me gone.

I turn to walk toward the door. “Oh, one more thing.”

She exhales deeply, like she can’t take any more.

“If you want hot, can’t-walk-for-a-week, life-shattering sex, then come to me, not my brother, okay? I know you think sex with him was amazing, but trust me, he has no imagination, and all he does is brood. You don’t want that. You want me. I’m much more fun.”

She smiles the tiniest bit, but her smile vanishes so quickly that I’m not sure if I dreamed it or if it was really there.

“I won’t be going to either of you for sex. You kidnapped me, remember? You will have to rape me if you want sex. And don’t forget; I put up a good fight. Just ask your brother about his shoulder.”

I smile, thrilled that she caused my brother pain. I’m sure the asshole deserved it.

“Have a good night, beautiful. My room is three doors down if you need me,” I say with a wink.

I watch her roll her eyes at me.

This is going to be too much fun. She’s the perfect number seven.