POV: KATHERINA
I woke up in a cold bed, the realization sinking in that I was in Luca’s possession and not back at my Grams’s. After a quick shower, I descended the stairs. The delicious aroma of food was in the air.
I expected the maids in the kitchen. Instead, Luca’s back was to me as he cooked. I frowned in confusion as well as doubt as to what he had up his sleeve since this wasn’t like Luca.
The first time I escaped him, he broke Christopher’s legs, and the second time, when I tried to get away from Cruz, he tied me naked to his bed and made a fucking cobra eat a crab on me.
I never saw the cobra again, but one look at his closet, and I imagine a whole fucking zoo in it.
Part of me wanted to believe that this was his true self and the madness didn’t rise unless it was triggered, but I couldn’t help but fear that he’s trying to get me to bend to his wishes and play his sick games with me.
I stood rooted to the spot and watched him. Whatever his intentions were, I didn’t get to see this side of Luca often, be it fake or not.
When he finally turned around to get something, he looked at me. He looked as fresh as a newly-washed apple.
How badly I wanted a bite.
He gave me a smirk, and I felt nervous at being caught while staring.
“You going to stand there the whole time and watch me? Although I don’t mind you staring at my sexy ass,” he commented and went back to the stove.
I walked toward him with a silly smile on my face.
I looked at the scrambled eggs he was frying and the pancakes on the other side.
“Looks delicious,” I said.
“I know. The look in your eye says you wanna ravish me right here, right now,” Luca whispered lowly, and I looked away, unable to hide my blush.
Luca pulled my face back to look at him. “You look beautiful when you blush.”
He captured my lips for a quick kiss and went back to frying the eggs like nothing had happened, and everything was normal.
“I’ll make coffee,” I said, and he nodded.
“I bought some bread and milk,” he said.
“The fridge was empty last night.”
“It’s stocked now,” he said, reaching into the cupboard. He took out two cups and gave them to me.
“Why was it empty? Did you eat out every day?” I asked.
“You can say that,” he answered, filling the plates with pancakes and eggs.
I poured the coffee in two cups and followed Luca to the dining table, where he placed the plates opposite to each other and sat down. He muttered thanks when I gave him his coffee.
I had to work to keep from pinching myself to prove it wasn’t a dream.
“I expected the house to be shattered,” I said carefully, recalling the time he was drunk and drenched in blood and looked no less than a monster when Rick tried to hold him down.
He had turned the place upside down, and by the time I was back, it looked like nothing had happened. “Everything looks fine.”
“I haven’t been home since the night you left. I’ve been busy searching for you.”
I looked down at the plate and ate his delicious pancakes, not really knowing how to respond to that. There were a lot of things I needed to talk about and a lot of things to be clarified.
He washed the dishes once we were done with breakfast. He joined me on the couch instead of getting ready and leaving for his work.
“Don’t you have work?” I asked.
“I’m staying with you today,” he replied and switched on the TV.
“Can we go out?” I asked.
“Where to?”
“I don’t know. Anywhere you wish to take me.”
“The only place I want to take you to is the bed,” he said, still not looking down at me.
“Then take me.”
That caught his attention. He looked down at me with surprise, and a smirk spread over his lips.
“If I touch you now, I swear to God, I will take you in every corner of my house until sunset.”
I fake gaped at him. “What if the guards catch us in the act?”
Luca was amused at that, and before I knew it, he crushed me down on the couch, making me giggle.
“You’re going to be the death of me, woman,” he murmured into my neck and gave me a hasty kiss before getting up and taking off his shorts and boxers.
I looked at his naked glory and removed my clothes slowly, much to his dissatisfaction. His hungry eyes stared at every inch of my naked body before joining me on the couch.
He kissed my neck and held me in his arms, and got right into the action without foreplay. I hissed when he entered me slowly.
The hunger buried deep inside me came out with a roar, and I wanted him to go take me like an animal, but he went slow and gentle, muttering how much he missed me.
“Your mine, Katherina,” he moaned, moving in and out of me.
His name fell from my lips, and I felt my orgasm building up slowly. I relaxed underneath him and closed my eyes, feeling him all over me.
I missed him too. It was insane how he’d latched onto my soul, so I couldn’t think of anyone but him.
He left a trail of kisses all over my face and neck before sucking my tits, biting my nipples, and leaving his mark.
When he started moving a little faster, I held onto the couch and him while he wrapped his arms around me and stared into my eyes with so much desire as he made love to me.
His moans drove me over the edge, and it sounded so fucking sexy. I bit down on his neck and sucked it hard as his arms tightened around me, and he fucked me harder.
“Fuck, baby,” he cursed when he came inside me but kept thrusting until I came too. Though it wasn’t an earth-shaking orgasm, I was satisfied.
He kissed the corner of my lips. “Now, let me fuck you on my desk and then take you to our bed and make love to you again and then pound again into that pussy hard against the wall, sì?
“Sì,” I replied, capturing his lips for a soft kiss.
He lifted us from the couch, my legs wrapping around his waist as he hurried to his office. My pussy was already tingling. Even though I like the sweet love, the rough sex is a huge turn-on.
He opened the door and pushed the contents from his desk, and laid me down on the cool wooden surface before hooking his legs around below my knees and pulling me toward him roughly.
His hand came down between my legs for a harsh slap, and I moaned loudly at the sting. He slapped again, making me wetter than I already was, his cum leaking from my hole.
He played with my sex with his fingers, moving in a circle as the wetness sounded loud in the empty room.
“So wet,” he hissed lowly and pushed in hard, making me gasp as my body moved up.
He withdrew and pushed back in. Holding my hip in a firm grip, he started moving at a steady tempo, never slowing, ruthless.
I moved up and held onto his shoulders for support as my body shook uncontrollably on the desk as he kept fucking hard and fast, making me scream and moan.
My eyes were tight shut, feeling every thrust hit my cervix at an unbearable speed.
Luca hooked his arms in behind my knees and bent my legs, leaning forward, finding his position. His hard chest rubbed on my breasts, my nipples turning rock hard as they brushed them.
“Oh, fuck!” I screamed, my nails biting into his flesh, feeling my walls clenching around his swollen dick as my orgasm approached.
He started thrusting harder when he was close too, and I came hard, my body shaking tremendously underneath him.
Luca moaned my name and released inside me again, and quickly sealed my lips with a brutal kiss.
Just like he said, he took me to our room and made sweet love to me again, kissing every inch of my body, telling me how beautiful I was and that I belonged only to him.
He took against the wall and then made a quick call to dismiss all of the guards for today before taking me to the patio and fucking me under the sun.
We couldn’t get enough of each other, and even though I was tired, I just didn’t want him any distance away from me.
We did it in the swimming pool, relaxing for a while and cleaning ourselves before getting back to the house to do it again on the floor.
Luca ordered food from outside for lunch, and we ate in our room and did it for a final time before collapsing on each other.
We laid in silence, listening to each other’s breathing calm down. His arm was protectively wrapped around my shoulder while my head rested on his chest.
This felt peaceful, and it was ironic that I was receiving it from a destroyer.
“Luca?” I called him, finally breaking the silence.
“Hm?” Luca hummed under me.
“I want to be in contact with my family on a regular basis,” I spoke softly.
There was silence again, and I had to lift my head up to look at him staring at the ceiling above, lost in his own thoughts.
“Okay,” came his reply, and even though I did a flip inside, I stayed unaffected in front of him.
I went back to listen to his steady heartbeats, but Luca spoke again.
“Did you remember me in the past five days when you were away from me?”
It shouldn’t even be a question. Of course I missed him, though there were times I was relieved to be off his radar and loved to be back home.
“Yes,” I replied.
“Why?”
I didn’t have an answer yet to that. It was scary that I came back to him and also submitted myself willingly.
No one would come back to their tormentor or would feel this way toward them, but what I feel for him is beyond Stockholm syndrome due to intimacy.
“Because you left me with no choice and bent me to your will,” I said.
“Liar,” Luca chuckled.
I looked up at him with a frown, and he met my gaze.
“You’re a terrible liar, my queen.”
***
Victor gave me a phone, and I was surprised that my parents and friends contacts were already saved in it, except for Chris.
I was happy that Luca made it so easy since he wanted me away from them.
Even though my mom and dad were happy that Luca was not abusing me, they didn’t like the fact that I was with a criminal, a stranger, and wanted this over as fast as possible.
I promised them that I would leave him very soon, but deep down, I knew it was a lie because even if I swallowed the feelings I had for him, I was afraid Luca’s madness for me wouldn't die anytime soon.
New Year’s Eve was around the corner, but Luca has had other things to celebrate.
Sheriff Newman was not happy about my choice and declined to give protection to my family and friends.
It wasn’t required either. Luca’s attention was on other matters since I’d come to him willingly, understanding there is no escape from him.
Even though the sheriff tried to contact me, I refused to talk to him about anything. I’d finally managed to get my family out of trouble.
Every conversation and video chat with my pals was recorded, so any wrong move and Luca would cut off all the ties I had with them or worse.
The news had escalated, and a force had been appointed to capture Luca alive, but that was futile since all those who tried to get near Luca had lost their lives, and the sheriff was not happy about it.
Karen was nowhere on the radar, but I see Luca sometimes conversing angrily on the phone in his mother tongue, spitting her name like dirt, making me tense.
When I managed to ask Isabella and Anna about the status at Bridgehills, they told me that Karen was not in town and Christopher and Kevin were back to school.
Meanwhile, I was moved to the casino since the cops were sniffing around everywhere. Romero was in charge of keeping an eye on me.
Things were good in the casino, and Luca didn’t stop me from gambling or drinking, as long as I didn’t step out without guards or let my drunk ass run off with other men.
That would have been impossible anyway because everybody knew I was his woman and kept far away from me. They even let me win all the bets, which irritated me.
I spent my days reading books and playing snooker with Romero, who showed me amazing race cars in the garage, which were moved in here since the cops have shut down the illegal racing club Rickard ran.
Whatever I knew about cars was because of Chris. He loved classic racing cars, and I saw the same 1970 Dodge Charger R/T that he had, but this one had an extra engine at the top.
From Lamborghinis to Pontiac Trans Ams, every vehicle had engines like monsters for winning races. There were even some Jeeps like you only get to see at SEMA.
Apart from those, there was one beauty that stood out in particular: a 1971 Chevrolet Corvette LS5.
That sleek black beast was parked like a king in all its luxurious glory. It was a convertible, but a model styled from the olden days.
The car had steel-plated wheels about eight inches wide. They looked so shiny and new that I was sure I would be able to see my reflection if I peered close enough.
Two large dark front directional headlights were placed on the lower end of the hood, on either side of the rectangular exhaust outlet. Right in the front was the supercharger.
“It’s one of the masterpieces we asked our men to remake.” He was watching the car with his hands tucked in his pockets.
“Remake?” I asked.
“Yup. The engine was added by Edward.”
“Edward?” I asked, surprised.
“Edward’s the best racer we’ve ever heard, and he knows as much about them as a well-educated mechanical engineer.” He gave me a sly smile.
I ended up coming down to the garage almost every day while Luca was busy handling the cops and his business.
I wanted to meet Rickard very badly since things were not on good terms between us before I left. I hoped that he and the others wouldn’t be pissed off at me like Edward was, but I was wrong.
On New Year’s Eve, I saw Rickard, Leonardo, Parker, Emmalyn, Cruz, Luca, and Becky in a private area, with the door open.
I smiled when Rickard saw me, but he stopped talking, gaining everyone’s attention. They all turned and stared at me blankly.
I knew then things would turn embarrassing because they were looking at me like I was an unwanted guest, clinging to their friend.
Before I could do anything, Parker stood up from his place and shut the door in my face.
I was angry and embarrassed and thought even Romero saw me that way, but since Luca had ordered him to watch me, he’d begrudgingly swallowed the hard pill and played nice with me.
I wanted to barge in there and knock some sense into their criminal minds, but I didn’t need to explain anything to anyone.
There was a huge party that night for Cruz, and even though Luca invited me, I didn’t leave my room, saving myself from further embarrassment.
Cruz, who was in charge of drug and woman trafficking, had been appointed as the head by their main boss, Accardi De Gasperi, the one for whom Luca had risked his own life in Bangkok two years ago.
Cruz was over the moon, running around in the casino, beating his chest like a wild animal. Luca was previously handling it with Cruz and Emmalyn, and I expected him to be pissed off, but he was happy.
Even though Crus wasn’t liked by many, the party was on fire, and I heard the sound echoing to my floor, and I couldn’t pretend I wasn’t sad. I was probably the only one who wasn’t at the party.
I wished a happy new year to my parents and friends and then stood on the balcony, watching the city bathed in celebration and the night sky sparkling with stars.
When everything died down, I lay on the bed with sleep being the last thing on my mind, recalling past New Year’s celebrations I’d had with my loved ones and how much I enjoyed them.
The door opened, and Luca wobbled on his feet, a drunken mess, before vomiting on the floor and falling beside me.
It was three in the morning, and the party was over, and no one answered the phone when I called the front desk.
Removing his shirt and somehow hauling the drunk hulk on my shoulder, I took him to the washroom, cleaned him, and threw him on the bed.
It sounds so easy, right? Ha, it wasn’t.
Looks like Luca is difficult to manage even when he’s drunk. Firstly, he couldn’t stand on his own, and secondly, he couldn’t sit in one place.
I gave him the toothbrush to brush his teeth, but he must have thought I was his chocolate on a brushy spoon because he swallowed the toothpaste and gave back the brush.
I made him gargle mouthwash and pushed him into the shower, but as soon as the water hit him, he moved away and fell right on top of me.
This made me lose my balance and hit the floor with his heavy weight on me. He refused to move away from me, saying, “It’s comfy, baby.”
By the time I pushed him off me and pulled him up on his feet, we both were drenched, and he gave me a hard time removing his clothes.
Then he slumped on the bed with his naked butt facing me. I washed and removed my clothes, throwing his heavy arm around me and snuggling closer to him.
Our naked flesh rubbed against each other as he moved closer to me in his sleep. I took the liberty of staring at his sleeping face and kissed the tip of his nose before drifting off to sleep.
I expected to be woken up just the same way as I slept, but I was alone in the cold bed. The wet clothes were no longer on the floor, and the vomit was cleaned from the floor in the hall.
I was still naked underneath the sheets, and I wondered how he was able to beat a hangover so early.
Pushing aside the disappointment, I took a shower and ordered room service for breakfast.
When the doorbell rang after a few minutes, the guy wheeled the trolley inside and gave me a piece of paper before leaving the room.
“Wait,” I called him out and ran after him, but the hallway was empty, and he was nowhere in sight.
I opened the folded paper and read the words scratched on it.
Meet me in the parking lot at seven this evening.
-Bill