He could feel her slipping through his fingers.
Amo had always thought himself one step ahead of Lucca by becoming friends with her, hiding the family and the things that made him a soldier, only ever showing her the good in him. He even had the one-up of being closer to her in age and protecting her at school. Now, he was sure Lucca had always been a step ahead of him.
Drago pushed him, making him walk faster down the stairs.
“This is fucked up what he’s doing; what you’re doing to her,” Amo spat to the man behind him.
Drago pushed him again. “Shut the fuck up. You don’t even know what you’re talking about, kid.”
“I know there is no fucking way she agreed to come here. She’s afraid of him.”
“Did she look afraid of him to you?” Drago questioned.
Silence was his answer.
“To me, she looked afraid of you … when you touched her.”
Amo stopped walking. His jaw flexing.
“Don’t be a dumbass. I’ll kick your ass, and that girl won’t be able to stop me.” He shoved Amo’s shoulder to get him to start walking again.
“I’m going to kill him,” Amo said under his breath.
Drago quickly pushed him into the office, closing the door behind him. “You are a fucking dumbass for even thinking those words, let alone having them come out of your fucking mouth,” he told Amo with a look of warning.
“What, you going to tell him? Is Lucca your family no—”
Drago grabbed him by his jacket. “Get your shit together. Then maybe, by the time he gets down here, he’ll spare you your fucking life.”
Amo spat in his face. “He’s a fucked-up piece of shit who should be nowhere near her. He took away the girl I love, and you’re crazy if you think I’m leaving here without her.”
Letting him go, Drago laughed in his face. “You better pray to God that girl is doing everything she can up there to save your ass.”
Fucker! The thought of Chloe up there, touching Lucca, sent him in a rage.
Amo went to punch Drago, but he grabbed Amo’s fist, squeezing it so tightly that Amo could feel his bones starting to bend.
“You fucked up by touching her. Touch her again, and he will kill you. Chloe is his. Get that through your fucking skull before you get yourself killed.” When Drago heard something snap, he released him.
Amo held his broken hand to his chest. “I see how it is. The family over family. I guess Lucca is your blood now.”
“You don’t get it, do you? You think he’s done all this just to steal away your high school crush?” Drago started to leave, opening the door, but then paused and looked back. “He’s the underboss; you are a soldier. Learn your fucking place.”
Amo wanted the last words before Drago could close the door. “Thanks for the advice, Uncle.”
Thirty-One
A Nightmare That Will Have You Begging Me Not to Wake You Up
Even after Drago closed the door behind them, Chloe continued holding on to Lucca, not wanting him to change his mind and go after Amo. Her heart thumped out of her chest now that she was alone with him. She had no idea what to expect from him as he continued to remain still. All she knew was that he was still. Too still.
The heat from his body began to warm hers. It was like she could feel the darkness boiling inside. Like a bottle that had been shaken too many times and was about to burst. Somehow, in some way, she was going to have to try to contain it to keep her friend alive. Unfortunately, she knew that was going to come at a price.
Lucca suddenly moved, turning around and grabbing her, then pushing her up against the wall of her room. It made Chloe gasp at how quickly he had turned the tables. Now all that heat and darkness were directed at her.
He pinned her with his body, keeping her caged in. Both hands firmly gripped her hips as he leaned forward, resting his head in the crook of her neck and taking deep breaths.
She stood there stiffly, too afraid to move. She wasn’t afraid for herself, though, knowing by now Lucca would never hurt her. Not even the darkness would.
“W-What are y-you going to do with him?” she managed to get out.
“He touched you. I told you what I would do if anyone ever laid a hand on you,” Lucca spoke with finality.
“H-He won’t do it again. I-I won’t let him get close enough to, if that’s what it takes.”
“Baby, I’m not ever letting anyone get that close to you again.” He removed a hand from her hip and gently grabbed the wrist that had been touched by another man, lifting it up to eye level. “Did he hurt you?”
She knew her reaction to Amo touching her made it seem like he had, and in a way, he did, but it hadn’t physically hurt her. It was only mentally. “N-No, it just felt … strange.”
“How so?”
She stared at his thumb as he rubbed it back and forth over her wrist. Why doesn’t it feel this way with him? “Like it felt wrong.”
He brought the inside of her wrist up to his lips, his cool breath hitting a sensitive area. “Good.”
Chloe bit her lip hard, knowing exactly what he was about to do, and when his lips touched her skin with a kiss, her heart stuttered from his tenderness. It was like he was trying to replace the touch that wasn’t his, washing away any trace of another man. She had expected it, prepared for it to sting, never before having a man’s lips touch her, but that wasn’t what happened.
Her mind had repelled Amo’s touch, only to accept Lucca’s. It shouldn’t have accepted either’s, since her mind had belonged to the devil for years.
However, when he placed another kiss on her wrist, she could feel that the old chains that had ahold of her mind were actually weak and broken. It was only a matter of time before her mind would finally be freed from the devil.
With the hand that was inches from his lips, she reached out, lightly touching his hauntingly beautiful face, caressing. “W-Will you let him go for me?”
Letting go of her wrist, he returned it to her hip. “He saw you, darlin’. He knows you’re here now. If I let him go, it’ll put your life at risk, more than he already has by coming here.”
Continuing to touch him in hopes it would help Amo escape death, she trailed her fingers down to his beard, the rough texture tingling her fingertips. “Maria came here; you let her know I was here.”
“That was strategic. Maria also knows I’d kill her if anyone found out you are here because of her.” He moved his head to press deeper into her touch.
“Amo won’t tell anyone if it could get me hurt. You know he won’t. Please, just let him go.”
“Why should I?” Lucca’s eyes and voice became dark, letting her know she wasn’t going to like what was going to be said next. “What do I get out of it?”
Chloe’s hand fell from his face, her heavy chest becoming heavier, making it even harder to breathe. “W-What do you want?”
Lucca leaned down, bringing his lips to her ear and sending shivers down her spine. Then he whispered, “The things I want from you, darlin’, will give you nightmares, ones like you’ve never had before. A nightmare that will have you begging me not to wake you up.”
Even though his breath was cold and she shivered with each word he spoke, her body betrayed her as it began to burn, making it feel as if she had frostbite. If I say it, there’s no turning back.
“I … I’ll do anything you want.”
His cold breath whipped at her skin again. “Prove it.”
“H-How?”
Raising up to his full height, he stared down at her, moving one hand up the back of her body to her hair where he grabbed a fistful, forcing her to look up at him. “Let me kiss you.”
The little part in her mind that was still chained by the devil screamed at her not to do it, knowing that if she agreed, her mind would be free of him. She also knew that new chains would take their place, claiming her once again. Her mind would belong to the boogieman.
Chloe nervously licked her lips before she nodded, succumbing to
him.
Both the hand on her hip and in her hair tightened as he positioned her just the way he wanted her before he leaned down, claiming her luscious bottom lip between his.
Her eyes slammed shut the second his lips touched hers. She kept perfectly still. The only thing moving was her heart as it attempted to beat out of her chest.
“Kiss me back,” he growled hungrily.
Chloe gasped. He seemed like he had been starved of any affection for years.
When he took her bottom lip between his teeth and bit down, a noise escaped her throat. It wasn’t a sound of pain, but pleasure, scaring her to her core.
She moved her hand to his chest to try to put some distance between them, but when her palm landed over his heart, she could feel it beating fast and strong. The rhythm matched hers, as if their hearts beat as one.
Instead of pushing him away, she found herself moving her mouth with his, lightly kissing him back, wanting to satiate the part in him that clearly needed her; the darkest parts in him that had been starved. It ignited a small fire deep down inside of her that had been hidden.
The devil’s chains keeping her mind captive began to melt away by the small fire Lucca had ignited, and Chloe’s mind found freedom for the smallest fraction of time, before brand-new chains claimed her mind as his.
The boogieman had successfully claimed her body and mind. Now her soul was the only thing left to steal from the devil. Her soul, however, wasn’t going to be taken as easily.
Swiping his tongue over her lip, he suddenly pulled away. His heavy breathing was just as harsh as hers, revealing it had been hard for him to pull away, and his voice was strained when he told her, “If I don’t stop now, I’ll take you right here.”
She froze, knowing exactly what he meant, as his hardness that was pushed against her belly was now evident. “I-I c-can’t.”
He calmed himself, taking deep breaths. “I know, baby. That’s why I stopped.”
Trusting that he wouldn’t, she relaxed into him again.
She could feel the darkness seeping deeper and deeper, going back to its home inside Lucca. The darkness had been calmed for now.
Looking up into his intense blue-green eyes, she hoped what she had given up had been worth it. “Promise me you won’t hurt Amo, and that you will let him go.”
Lucca moved the hand that was in her hair to her throat, lightly gripping her fragile neck. “Say that you’re mine, darlin’. I want to hear you say the words and mean it.”
It wasn’t the dark voice that commanded her. He wanted her to say the words herself.
“I am yours,” Chloe whispered, giving herself fully over to him … forever.
He leaned down one final time, again taking her bottom lip between his teeth and biting down before pulling back and releasing it. “I hope you know what you just did,” he whispered sinfully before he released her, removing his hand from her throat.
The chains that now captured her mind tightened. I know.
Walking away from her, he had another request. “Pack up all your things.”
“W-Why?” she asked in confusion.
“You’ll see.” The way he said it made her think she didn’t want to find out, but she was more worried about someone else.
“S-So you won’t hurt him?”
He smiled. “Pack up your things, darlin’.”
When the door closed and he was gone, all she could do was hope he wouldn’t hurt Amo.
Alone, she touched her swollen lips. Lucca was right; what did I just do?
She couldn’t believe she had been the one to reach out and touch him, when she was only just learning to accept Lucca’s touch. There hadn’t even been a sting, no wrongness in it. Scariest of all … Chloe had just gotten her first kiss, with the promise it wouldn’t be her last.
She wasn’t the type of girl to dream about her first kiss. How could she when she only ever wanted to never be touched again in her life? Therefore, never had she thought she would get a first kiss, let alone have her first be with Lucca, the boogieman.
Everything that had just happened scared her shitless. She kept repeating the same words in her head, trying to keep her sanity. You had to. You had no choice. You did it to save Amo.
After a while of repeating the words, the lines began to blur. She didn’t know if that was what she truly believed, or if it was what she had led herself to believe.
You had to … You had no choice … You did it to save Amo …
Did she?
Thirty-Two
How Beautiful It Is. How Painful It Can Be.
Flicking his lighter open, Lucca lit the end of his cigarette while staring across his desk at Amo. Neither of them spoke, both simply silently killing the other in their minds as Lucca continued filling the room up with smoke.
“How’d you do it?” Amo was the one to speak first, unable to stand the silence any longer.
Understanding what he was asking, Lucca told him, “I grabbed her before she could get on the plane. Then Sal handled everything else, making it appear like she got on and has been in California.” Taking a long hit, he finished with a smile, “Then she woke up here, where she’s been well taken care of.”
“So, you fucking kidnapped her,” Amo stated matter-of-factly.
Exactly. He hit his ashes into the ashtray. “Yes, for her own good.”
Amo stared at him like he was deranged. “I thought you were fucked-up, Lucca, but I didn’t know you were this fucking psychotic.”
“There are reasons for what I did, Amo.”
“Oh, I’m sure your fucked-up self has come up with a whole list of reasons to justify what you did.” He laughed mockingly. “Let’s be honest, though; we both know that you’re delusional, a stalker, and now a kidnapper.”
“I am well aware of what I am,” Lucca told him darkly, taking a final hit before he crushed the butt out in the ashtray. “But do you know why I would go to those lengths? To have Drago stay here just to watch her? You know what he’s capable of; the things he provides to the family.”
You could see it start to turn in Amo’s head; the things he had been missing from the second he had walked in the door. However, he quickly made them disappear, unable to face the facts.
“No!” His booming voice rose. “You wanted her all to yourself, to fill that sick obsession you have with her.”
“I would have taken her the moment she turned eighteen if that was it, and you know it.” He decided to reveal how fucked-up he really was, letting Amo begin to understand how important she was to him. “I thought about taking her before she was eighteen. Then, when she turned eighteen, it was the hardest thing I ever had to do not to take her then and there. I almost did it, too, but I had to wait. I waited seven fucking months for her.”
Amo knew his words were true. And even though she might have been there for a reason, he couldn’t take it.
“You know I’m not leaving here without her, and if you let me walk out that door, I won’t stop till she is free.”
“Did she look like she wanted to leave?” Lucca reminded him.
Standing up abruptly from the chair, Amo clearly wasn’t able to handle what Lucca was telling him.
A part of Lucca enjoyed it, reveled in it. He’d had to watch him from afar with Chloe almost every fucking day for far too long, wishing he had been in Amo’s shoes many nights. The other part of him felt pity for Amo for losing her, knowing she was the most beautiful creature on this earth, but she’s mine.
“She has been freer here with me than she ever was outside these walls.”
“What are you trying to say?”
Lucca stared him down. “You know exactly what I am saying.”
The rage and adrenaline that came from Amo had him squeezing his broken hand into a fist. “Those seven months you stalked her, just watching her, I actually spent with her, talked with her, got to know her. I was her protector and her friend. She was free with me. Then you fucking stole her from me before I had the ch
ance to make her more than that.” Amo’s face twisted evilly, a snarl coming into his voice. “You couldn’t handle it, could you? Couldn’t handle that I was with her and you weren’t. How does it feel to know you had to kidnap her to get her to spend time with you?”
Lucca slowly stood, having reached his limit. He had been generous enough to speak to Amo man-to-man instead of underboss to soldier. That time, however, was over.
Coming out from behind his desk, he got face-to-face with Amo. “You need to remember who you are talking to.” His voice was dark, forceful, and commanding. “Leave, and if anyone asks why you came here, you came to talk to me about your position at work. Someone finding out she’s here will only put her life at risk.”
Amo didn’t make a move to leave.
“The only reason I’m still giving you the option to walk out of here alive is because I know you care about her enough not to risk her safety. I would have killed you the second you got here, but I need Chloe to want to look at me for the rest of her life,” he threatened.
“You think you’re going to get her to fall in love with you?” Amo went to the door, agreeing to leave, but clearly not giving up on her. Then, deciding to part with final words, he delivered his final blow. “You are a psychopath who’s incapable of love or ever being loved. She belongs with me, and you know it; that’s why you took her. You will never love her the way I do. You just want to fuck her.”
Before Amo could even open the door, Lucca struck out, shoving him against the door swiftly while pulling a blade from his pocket and holding it to Amo’s throat. It was a blur for Amo, but a calculated move for Lucca, showcasing the difference in the positions they held in the family, and why he was the underboss, while Amo was only a soldier.
Seething with the rage he felt on Chloe’s behalf, Lucca pressed the knife bitterly against Amo’s throat, spewing, “You looked at her every goddamn day at school for three and a half years, and not once did you ever give her the fucking time of day. You claim to love her, but where the fuck were you!” he yelled, digging the edge of the blade in deeper, his harsh words lashing at Amo like a thousand whips. “When she and Elle were bullied, when Elle was taking beatings to keep her from being touched, when she was called a freak, where were you, Amo? How could you pass her in the halls with those scars and not do something? Not protect her?”
Lucca (Made Men #4) Page 14
