Chapter Six
Celina stared at herself in the mirror, leaning forward to wipe a streak of mascara from the corner of her eye.
Not bad, she decided, eyeing herself critically. That ought to do it.
She looked lovely in a simple A-line strapless dress, the ebony of the silk accenting her fair good looks dramatically. It had been created by some outrageously expensive designer, but Celina wasn’t even sure she knew which one.
Someone currying favors from my father by trying to win my affections. If only they knew that was the wrong way about it. But I’m not going to tell anyone.
Opting for smoky make-up, her blonde hair and fair skin glowed, and even as she studied her reflection, she barely recognized herself.
Am I trying too hard? She wondered suddenly, tearing her eyes away from the mirror. Is that why he’s blatantly refusing my advances?
It wasn’t for lack of trying, that was for certain.
She had dropped the most overt hints she could think of, trying to seduce Ariano but he was either completely oblivious or purposely ignoring her.
Both were annoying thoughts.
Over the last week Celina had developed an almost grudging respect for her new detail.
She was ashamed to admit just how much she had underestimated him, his determination to keep on her tail more steadfast than any other guard she’d ever had. And she had to admit that she had even enjoyed the time they had spent together; sometimes in companionable silence, but others in intriguing conversation. It turned out they had very similar opinions on many global issues, and even the same taste in foods, music, and art. Who would have thought that ‘the outsider’ would know anything about Antoine Watteau?
Well, he’s an intelligent ambitious idiot, she thought when she realized that Ariano was anything but stupid, a fact he proved by refusing her coy, sexual suggestions.
The chemistry between them seemed amplified by the fact that he refused to give in to the explosive chemistry that she knew he was feeling between them too.
True, she had started off trying to seduce him just so she could control him, but she soon realized that her body was demanding she let it at him.
I just need him once. Then I’ll have satisfied this demand that my traitorous body has put on me and I can turn my focus back to my business dreams. Just once!
He will give in, she assured herself. No guy can hold out on this kind of chemistry for long. Then I’ll have the ammunition I need to force him to give me my freedom, and I’ll have proven to my libido that he probably has no talent at all between the sheets. Guys that were that good looking rarely did.
This had gone on long enough.
Ariano was proving to be a distraction she did not need, not when she was supposed to be focussing on her business.
Get this done tonight, she thought grimly, stalking out of the bedroom and toward the foyer of the condo.
“I need you to zip me up,” she announced, yanking open the front door.
She expected Ariano to be standing in the hall right where he always stayed if he wasn’t actually in her penthouse.
Lately he had been opting to be in the suite with her more often than not. She tried to tell herself it was because he wanted to be close to her and he was enjoying their conversation and the sexual tension between them, but she knew it was more likely that he refused to let her escape him again.
But today, to her surprise, there was no one in the hallway.
A twinge of nervousness fluttered through her body but she couldn’t say why exactly.
He made a big mistake losing sight of me, she thought, but even as the words entered her mind, the elevator doors slid open.
Celina’s mouth parted in surprise as Alex strode toward her.
“Ah ha!” he chuckled, winking at her. “It worked.”
A confident smirk formed on her lips and she cocked her head to the side, trying to reconcile what the hell he was doing there.
His presence bothered her more than she cared to admit, even to herself.
Didn’t I go out of my way to make sure that this ass-hat wouldn’t get to sit around watching my tits all day? How is he here, and why wasn’t I consulted?
“What worked?” she demanded, whirling back toward her condo.
She stifled a loud sigh as Alex sauntered in behind her.
“Silent alarm on your door. That paesano thinks you need to be guarded twenty-four seven but I knew you better than him. I’ll always be one step ahead of you, sweetheart.”
“What are you doing here, Alex?” she asked without turning to him. “Did Ariano quit?”
Alex snickered.
“Not yet, princess, but give him time.”
Celina bristled at the endearment.
“Why are you here?” she demanded again.
“It’s Ariano’s night off. I imagine he’s off chasing hookers and snorting coke,” Alex replied. Celina was instantly defensive.
Ariano isn’t like that, she scoffed in her mind. She almost said it aloud, but she managed to silence herself before she did. There was no point. It’s not like her father would have kept Ari around if he did that stuff, and there was also no way Alex would stop trying to malign him.
“Need me to zip you up?” Alex continued. “Where are you going tonight?”
“No, I’ve got it,” she replied quickly, disappearing into the bedroom, her pulse quickening.
She had not accounted for Ari taking a night off, but of course he needed time off too.
Shit! I had this night planned perfectly, and now I’ve got to change everything.
In her plot, she was going to start with a simple tease, having Ariano zip up her slinky dress, making sure he was drawn in by her scent and her upswept hair. She would have had him aroused before she flittered out on her Tinder date, a guy named Ron who was guaranteed to be an absolute yuppy tool.
After a few drinks and listening to Ron discuss the fall of the American empire due to blah, blah, blah, she was going to cut the night short and return to her car in tears.
Ari, in turn, would be forced to ask her what was wrong and she would turn on the waterworks.
Men loved a damsel in distress, she thought. And since outright seduction isn’t doing shit, this has to work!
From there, nature would take its course; Celina would throw herself in Ariano’s arms for “comfort” and he would be overcome by the magnetism between them. If she could just get him to kiss her, she was sure the passion would explode and overtake him too.
We both know we’ve wanted to see each other naked for a long time.
But now, with the changing of the guards, she had only committed herself to an insufferable evening of drinks with a fanatical Texan named Ron.
Fuck my life. I should just call and cancel this date, she thought, biting on her lower lip as she debated her next move. She glanced at her watch to see if she had time to bow out gracefully.
“Where are you going?” Alex demanded again, appearing in the doorway of her bedroom.
“You are not welcome in my room, Alex. Now leave.”
Her voice was like a thousand ice pellets aimed directly for his face.
“I just came to check on you, princess. No need to get nasty with me,” he replied defensively, crossing his arms over his wide chest, his dark eyes flashing.
Celina eyed him in the mirror, her hands slipping behind her back to fasten the dress properly.
“This is my bedroom; therefore, it is strictly off limits to you,” she retorted, but she softened her tone at the last moment, detecting a malevolence in the soldier’s inky irises.
It was no secret that Alex was a killer at heart.
She had been told stories of the business he had set aflame and the beatings he had administered on rival families.
There had been rumors of half a dozen murders but who could say what was fantasy and what was fact in that circle.
All she knew was that she didn’t like what she saw when she looked into Alex’s eyes; she never had.
“But Ariano can come in your bedroom?” he hissed, sliding toward her, his hands spinning her roughly and reaching for the zipper. “He’s good enough for you, but I’m not?”
Celina’s spine stiffened, but she maintained the stoic expression on her face, as he moved even closer to her, his hips brushing her buttocks while he raised the zipper higher up her smooth back. His tone sent shivers of trepidation through her body.
Suddenly, she decided she was honoring the date with Ron after all, political backbencher, or not. The thought of being alone with Alex nearby sent chills of apprehension through her body.
Alex had always been a horny puppy in her mind, following her around too close, as if hoping for a chance to mark her.
Celina had never taken him seriously because there had been no need.
Of course, he has never been tasked with your detail nor has he had access to your bedroom in the past.
Something told her that the rules of the game had changed in a way she hadn’t accounted for.
“Ariano hasn’t even been in my condo,” she lied evenly. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, but you better watch yourself before you start spreading rumors. Papa wouldn’t like that, Alex.”
Suddenly, he pushed the zipper into her, causing it to catch on the edge of her flesh. He continued to tear upward, causing Celina to gasp in pain.
“Are you gonna tell Papa everything?” he jeered, his hand closing against her shoulder in a vice-grip. “Or just what suits you?”
“What the hell are you talking about?” she demanded, trying to keep the unsteadiness from her voice. “You’re not making any sense.”
“You’re fucking him, aren’t you? That’s why you walked into the hallway half-dressed. You were looking for him.”
She felt a trickle of blood spill from the cut and she whirled to glare at him.
“How could I be looking for him if tonight is his night off?” she spat back, losing her temper with the pain in her back. “You should stick to running drugs, Alex, and leave the detective work to the cops who will eventually bust you for being so damned stupid.”
Fury colored his face and Celina was afraid she had gone too far.
He won’t touch you, a voice in her head called out sanely. You’re on his watch right now. If anything happens to you, it’s on his head.
Alex seemed to realize the same thing at the same time.
“You are such a spitfire,” he chuckled but there was no humor in his tone. “I don’t envy Ariano for having to deal with your shit.”
But even as he said the words, his eyes trailed maliciously down her body, as if he wanted to throw her to the ground right then and there.
He wouldn’t dare. He wouldn’t…
For the first time since Celina could remember, she was truly, truly afraid.
This one is going to be a much bigger problem than Ariano. Maybe there needs to be a new plan, she thought, her pulse racing as she brushed past him, leaving him to stand alone in the bedroom.
Whatever animus was brewing inside Alex needed to be quashed before he did something stupid.
“I asked you three times where you’re going!” he demanded again as she snatched her purse from the coffee table and grabbed her cell phone from the charger.
“I have a date,” she replied shortly. “Lock up on your way out.”
Without waiting for him to respond, she exited the condo and turned for the fire stairs, not wanting to be trapped in the same elevator as him.
She couldn’t put her finger directly on what was going on, but her well-honed sixth sense told her that Alex was a ticking time bomb.
I can’t go to Papa with just a feeling, she thought, hurrying down the steps, her heels clicking against the concrete. He’ll laugh at me like he always does. But I can warn Ariano about him.
But then she reasoned that Ariano probably already knew that Alex was a problem.
They’re all a fucking problem in their own way, she thought with annoyance, making her way into the underground. Men!
As she slipped into the Alfa Romeo, she suddenly realized that whatever had transpired with Alex had bothered her in more ways than one.
Was that his way of threatening me? She wondered. Was that his way of threatening Ariano?
She couldn’t say for certain.
All she knew was that the encounter had left her edgy, almost scared. And that was not a familiar sensation for Celina DiMarco.
Backing the convertible from her spot, she saw the door open to the elevator banks and Alex strode out, his jaw locked in anger.
If I go to Papa about this, I will be wasting my breath. I’m the girl who cried wolf too many times when I was a kid. He’s not going to take me seriously.
Swallowing, Celina guided the car out of the lot and away from her condo, her blood pounding through her veins so loudly, she could barely hear herself think.
But as she looked in her rear-view mirror, her heart stopped altogether.
She slammed on the brakes and gaped, spinning her head back around to look behind her as if second guessing what her eyes had told her.
Parked on the opposite side of the street, was Ariano in his black Audi, staring right at her.
What is he doing here? She wondered, slowly turning back toward the windshield, her eyes trained on the road as she resumed speed.
A moment later, Alex’s Mercedes appeared behind her and as Celina gazed further back, she saw Ariano had pulled from his spot to follow Alex.
An excited pack of butterflies went wild in her stomach, followed by trepidation for Ari.
He’s following Alex, she realized, her heart filling with emotions she couldn’t identify. Or am I crazy?
But as she made her way back toward downtown, Ariano continued to trail Alex and Celina thought about how much trouble he would be in if Alex caught him. But in spite of that danger, he never pulled away from them.
What a crazy thing to do, she thought, shaking her head. Why is he doing this?
She was certain she had never been more grateful to anyone than she was to Ari in that moment, no matter what the reason.
While she was relatively certain that Alex wouldn’t do anything to her, it was good to know there was another set of eyes on him just in case.
Celina just hoped Ari was good enough not to get caught by Alex.