Giovanni

by Coco Miller

  “This is fine.” I didn’t even get to take any of my things.

  I finish up in the bathroom, and head into the small bedroom in the back of the cabin. It’s weird not documenting my whole day on social media. Not that I was a social media whore, but it still feels weird not having my phone. I keep reaching down to check it. To see if a text comes in from my mother. See if my boss texted to say I was approved for more overtime this week. It’s insane how much we as a society depend on the simple thing as having a phone. I feel kind of lost without it.

  I try to sleep, but it never comes. Instead I toss and turn, dreaming of dark, sad eyes haunting me until I finally awaken to the sounds of men talking in the hallway. The sun shines through the window of the bedroom, and I glance at the clock on the bedside table. Eleven am.

  I actually did get some sleep.

  I pad my way down the hallway, trying to hear the voices clearly.

  “I don’t know why Henry asked for you,” Giovanni says from the kitchen.

  “Well, I don’t feel right leaving.”

  “We’ll be fine.”

  I round the corner to the kitchen and Leo is dressed in boots and a jacket, like he’s going somewhere. “Are you going somewhere?” I ask him.

  “I am, but you have Giovanni here to take care of you. No need for both of us.”

  The two men exchange a glance and I let the two of them talk in silence as I gaze outside.

  A car pulls up, and I try my hardest to see who’s driving but I can’t see a thing. Leo opens the front door and slides into the passenger side. Then, the car drives off and the air is stale between Giovanni and I.

  “Looks like it’s just you and me, Kid.”

  Is it weird that butterflies instantly burst through my system and take flight? Because that’s how it feels. Sure, I shouldn’t even be thinking about liking a man like him.

  I don’t know anything about him.

  He looks like a henchman. In fact, I’m pretty sure he is a henchman. And I’m his sitting prey. Waiting in the wings to be feasted upon.

  I give him a slight grin and watch as he rummages through the fridge.

  “Are you hungry?” he asks me.

  “Starved.”

  I watch as he takes out all the things he’ll need to make pancakes. “Sorry I don’t have any blueberries.” He laughs as he gets to work.

  I’ve never liked blueberries in my pancakes. My mother did. My mother used to wake up every Sunday morning and make a fresh batch of pancakes. Half with blueberries. Half without. It was always my highlight to my weekend. She was always so full of life. She is still full of life. I hate that I can’t go and visit her. I hate that soon she will be worrying about me half to death.

  “Why the frown?” Giovanni asks me, breaking me from my thoughts.

  “I just miss my mother.” I stare into his eyes. “She’s in the hospital. She’s going to wonder why I haven’t come by.”

  He holds the spatula in his hands and I can’t tell but he almost appears sorry for me. “I didn’t know.”

  I shrug. “It’s ok.” It’s really not but what else can I say. “The person you’re protecting me from. What if he hurts my mom?”

  I can see it hidden behind his eyes. He doesn’t know. “I’m sure my boss has thought of that. He wouldn’t let any harm come to her.”

  “But you don’t know that.” I call him out on his lie.

  He flips a pancake sizzling in a pan on the stove. “No, I don’t know, Kelly.”

  It’s the first time he’s called me by my name, and it does something to me. It makes me feel as if for the first time he acknowledges my humanity. But, I try not to focus on the way he speaks and the feelings it provokes in me. I focus on my mother.

  “I need to see her.”

  “I can’t let that happen.”

  I cross my arms, not in a defiant child throwing a temper tantrum type of way, but more in a I need this more than you could ever know type of way. I need to stand my ground. “Do you have a mother?”

  He scoffs. “Of course I do.”

  “Well, what if she was sick and in the hospital? What would you do?”

  He turns away from me, focusing all his attention on making the pancakes. “She’s already dead...I think.”

  “You don’t know?”

  “She left me when I was a kid.”

  My heart breaks just a bit for this man. “I’m sorry. I don’t know my father. He left when I was born.”

  “What has your mother said about him?”

  I shrug, remembering the one and only time my mother has ever mentioned my sperm donor. “She said he’s a crook and a low life and that I’m better off not knowing him.”

  Giovanni doesn’t say anything and I worry if I’ve offended him since he is basically a crook and a low life himself.

  Then I remember...this man kidnapped me.

  Fuck his feelings.

  After the pancakes, we sit around doing absolutely nothing. I hate it here. No TV. No phone. Not even a book to pass my time with. I really am a prisoner.

  “Do you want to walk with me?” Giovanni asks. “I want to check the perimeter.”

  I jump at the chance with a big fat yes. Being cramped indoors all day, is making me crazy. And it’s paving the way to fantasies of Giovanni and I together. A fantasy I shouldn’t be having.

  He opens the door. “After you.”

  I step over the threshold, letting the bright sun beam down on my face. I even lift my arms up to embrace all of the rays. It feels so good against my skin.

  “Feels good to be out of that prison.”

  “I just want to make sure I’ve assessed our surroundings.”

  “You like being in charge, don’t you?” I ask him.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Knowing all the options. Being prepared so you can make sure you have all the angles played out.”

  “It’s called being prepared. For all I know there’s a cabin on the other side of the fence line with some nosy neighbors.”

  I laugh. “That wouldn’t be bad for me.”

  “Trust me, there are far worse people out there than me.”

  “I have no way of knowing that.”

  “What would soothe your mind, cara?”

  “Cara?”

  “It’s just an Italian term.”

  It sounded sweet.

  “Oh...well you could tell me who is–”

  “Anything but that.”

  I chuckle. “Okay, tell me three things about you that no one else knows.”

  He considers my question as we continue to walk. The cabin sits on a large plot of land.

  “I love calamari, I wanted to be a soccer player when I was a kid, and I am a great shot. I could shoot a walnut off the top of a Coke can from several feet away.”

  I flinch at his mention of shooting anything. I don’t like guns.

  He notices my reaction, stops walking, and places his hands atop my shoulders. “I promise you, I’m here to protect you not hurt you.”

  I want to believe him, I really do, but without any definitive answers about why I’m here it’s hard.

  “Okay.”

  “Okay?”

  “I’d obviously prefer more information about exactly why I’m here, but I’ve decided to trust you for now. At least until you prove otherwise.”

  He leans in, like he’s going to kiss me, and I find myself closing my eyes. He’s super close to my lips and my insides tighten, bracing for the kiss. And then, he goes for it. His lips feather over mine, and a jolt of electricity runs straight through me.

  He doesn’t stop, his hands stary tracing down my arms. I wrap them around his neck, stepping even closer to him. Crazily, I want this. I do. I think I’ve been attracted to him since the moment I opened my eyes in the back of the car.

  It’s crazy though, right? This strong attraction to him. I shouldn’t be feeling this way. I hope this isn’t some sort of ridiculous Stockholm syndrome.

&nbs
p; I step back, dropping my arms to my sides. “You shouldn’t do that ever again,” I tell him.

  “You’re right.” He steps even further away putting a serious look on his face. “Let’s check the land.”

  I turn away from him, trying my hardest not to think about that kiss anymore.

  “Ok.”

  Easier said than done.

  Chapter Six

  Giovanni

  The boundary lines between us are beginning to become muddled. Am I going to watch her sleep all night? Well, fuck yeah I am. There’s no way I’m going to let her run. Let her slip through my fingers now that I’ve got her.

  Not after that kiss.

  I shake my head as her breathing even outs. I stand and tower over her sleeping body, watching her.

  So beautiful.

  The sun went down ages ago, and my body rose to her. Every sound. Every smell. Every soft glance of her eyes in my direction had my body on high alert. I can’t concentrate. I am way off my game.

  Yes, I’ll admit I was a dick to kiss her in the field outside today; her lips were silky soft, like the petals of a rose. I could have kept kissing her all night, but she sure put me in my place about it. Even that was sexy.

  Her brow crinkles as she tosses a bit in her sleep, and I fret she may wake up with me standing over her. I freeze until her breathing evens out once more and then I walk a few steps away from her bedside. Who knows what she would think if she caught me looking like some sort of psychopathic creeper. Watching her. Plotting on her.

  And even though I may not be that person, I am something much worse. Something she could probably never understand or accept.

  Ironically it was her father who first showed me the path of destruction. He pulled me aside, placed a gun in my hand and told me to shoot.

  I gazed at the man he wanted me to kill.

  His gray eyes staring back at me. He was afraid, begging for his life with everything he had.

  Henry leaned close to my ear and said, “Son, it’s survival of the fittest. Either they survive, or we do, now shoot that motherfucker.”

  And a second, no less than a second, before I pulled the trigger, I glanced in the man’s eyes. And I saw no fear there.

  He knew his time had come.

  I often think about that. My first kill. How hard it was for me. Right after I shot him, I ran to the bathroom and puked. I have to say, since that first kill it has gotten easier.

  Now, it’s nothing. The feeling, the emotion has been ripped from my chest, and I don’t even think about the person in front of the gun.

  Sometimes it’s quick, not a second thought as a gun is pointed at you and you shoot first. Yet, most times it’s calculated, planned, meticulated so carefully that it takes the rush away when you kill in cold-blood.

  Sometimes I think Leo and I were the luckiest kids in the world. Getting taken in by Henry from the Andolini familia of all people. No one in our world could wish for anything more. But, other times, I think of how unlucky we truly are. I can never have that normal life that some men have. I can never enter back into a normal society and pretend I haven’t done some of the horrible things that I’ve done.

  As if I’ve never stolen from someone, threatened someone, hurt anyone, or killed anyone.

  There’s no place in the real world for a man like me. Instead, I reside in a world of monsters and demons. A world I’ve created for myself. It’s my own damn fault. Not Leo’s, not Henry’s, but mine. It was a choice I made that I’ll have to live with for the rest of my life.

  “Giovanni,” her sweet sleepy voice fills the room.

  “I’m here.” I rush over to her side of the bed.

  “Will you stay near me until I fall back asleep. I had a bad dream.”

  Fuck me. I know what that means. She’s vunerable right now. Everything running through my head would be a bad idea right now, but like the idiot I am, I do it anyway.

  “Of course.” I unbutton my white button-down. “There’s nothing to be afraid of.” I try to reassure her, but the person she should fear is the same one taking off his shirt and sliding into bed with her. I should lock her door and stand guard on the other side of it, but my dick has other ideas.

  I promised Henry that no one would touch her. That I wouldn’t touch her. I’ve already broken that promise. Twice. And I think I might keep breaking it, especially if she keeps letting me.

  She leans over, our lips meeting, and I open myself to her. Our tongues tracing along one another, and I also open my heart to her. Laying it right there before her, sliced open, bleeding and wounded, and I pray she knows how to make it whole again.

  I slip a finger past the material of her panties and deep into her wet core. She moans into my mouth, and her legs spread open.

  Removing my finger, I pull her to straddle my lap, and with both hands on her hip, I grind her down onto me. “Feel that? This is how much I want you.”

  The moonlight streams into the window, highlighting all her best assets. Her tits are so close to my face that I reach out and smooth my hand over one.

  “Giovanni,” she moans as her body continues to grind against my hardness.

  I start making excuses to myself to justify my blatant disobedience.

  We are grown.

  She is a consenting adult.

  I haven’t gotten laid in weeks.

  I need this.

  She needs this.

  Leo getting called away was a sign.

  This is supposed to happen.

  No one will know.

  With aggression, I move Kelly back under me, lying her on her back. I move on top of her, and gaze into her eyes. “I’ve been thinking about your pussy since the first moment I saw you.”

  She grabs a hold of my face. “Do you want it?”

  “Fuck, yes.” I practically growl.

  I kiss her with all the pain, trust, fear, lust, and any other emotion that ripples through me causing my skin to burn with heat.

  I’m rock hard, and there’s no stopping now. The exhaustion I should be feeling dissipates, and the only thing my mind can think about is her. Being so deep inside her. Making her feel good.

  My hands fly under the oversized t-shirt Leo picked up for her to sleep in, ripping the lace of her panties to shreds, tossing it across the room.

  Her eyes widen at my possessiveness. My aggressiveness. It only fuels me on.

  This was never part of my plan, bedding her after kidnapping her. But I can’t help the way I feel about her. The shit is primal. It’s a thirst that must be quenched.

  She sits up, grabbing the hem of her shirt and slowly lifts it over her head. I growl at the sight of her. She takes my breath away as she reveals her beautiful breasts to me, and I can’t take much more.

  I remove my slacks and my boxers, and she licks her lips when she sees my thick cock rise to attention.

  This girl.

  Fuck, she will really will be the death of me.

  But, right now I’d rather be dead than never get to experience her like this. I’d rather be dead than never hear her moan my name like she’s doing right now.

  Her body so ripe and ready for me, makes my dick pulse. I run it through her wetness, and she bucks up to grind against me.

  “Such a needy girl.” I smile down on her.

  “Please,” she begs. “I’m aching.”

  I don’t answer her pleas quite yet, but only sheath my cock with a condom and position myself at her tight entrance.

  I push in slowly, ever so carefully afraid to hurt her. I’m only a few years older than her but have a feeling I have way more experience than she does.

  “Are you ok?” I ask.

  She smiles and takes my lips with hers.

  The moment I’m completely inside her, I stall. Fuck, I never thought she’d feel this damn good. I’m almost embarrassed that I may come too soon, her pussy is so tight.

  I start slow, pumping my full cock inside her as she takes every inch. She’s so warm to the to
uch and it turns me on.

  I run my hands all over her, trying my best to not let this moment end anytime soon. “Fuck,” I groan out.

  My cock slams inside her as she moans my name melodically over and over. It’s like music to my ears, and I love hearing it more than anything.

  “Yes, Giovanni. Just like that.”

  There’s meaning behind her touches, and I want to study them for the rest of my life. To understand everything she’s telling me every time she places her hands on me. My body climbs as I keep pushing deeper inside her, claiming every inch of her. She’s mine. And tonight, I won’t let her forget it.

  I slant my lips over hers, kissing her with no mercy. I kiss her until we both gasp for breath from each other.

  My gaze drops to her round, perfect breasts and I lean down to take a dark nipple into my mouth. I gently bite down, applying more pressure the longer I suck on her. She likes that so I do the same thing to the other.

  Our bodies climb together now, her moans growing to high-pitched screams as I ravage her body harder and faster.

  “Yesss!”

  She begs me not to stop, she begs me to keep going, and then she begs me to never let her go. And more than anything I want to keep these promises to her. To be the man she obviously needs and to never let her go, but even though tonight I am everything she needs, I can never be the man she deserves. Those are just facts.

  For tonight only, I treat her as if she is the only star in my sky. And tomorrow when the sun rises, and all the stars fade, I’ll have to be man enough to walk away.

  I drive into her pussy deeper than before and her nails rake down my back. It turns me into something wilder, more crazy with lust, and I pound harder. Our bodies are both so close, and I want more than anything to bring her to where she needs to be. To her most ultimate pleasure. In this moment, I wish more than anything that I could always be the man to bring her here.

  Even though it’ll never happen, a thought flits through my mind, about a future with her. She’s Henry’s daughter and I’m almost like a son to him. What if she could be my wife one day? To treat her like the princess she is. To give her everything I am. Wouldn’t Henry like that? Couldn’t he consider it?