“Seriously. We can pretend I didn’t go out tonight. You don’t even have to protect me. I will be fine.”
He shakes his head. “There is no way I’m leaving you alone. You can get that out of your head.”
I chew on my lip as I stare at him. Within minutes, he pulls into the driveway of a gorgeous house with a garage. Once the garage is fully closed behind us, he jumps out of the car. He pauses as he stares at me in the car. After a moment, he comes over and opens my door.
“I would rather go home, Gio.”
My nerves are still on edge, but my body wants to go with him.
“Get out of the car, Iz.”
I swallow hard as I stare at the hand he’s holding out to me.
“Come on, I won’t bite. Well, unless you want me to.” He winks at me while giving me his signature smile.
I continue to bite on my lip while my mind goes over all the possible reasons we can be at this house.
“That’s your telltale sign that you’re nervous. Are you worried I will ravish you? Or do you think I’m going to kill you?”
The warmth my body gained from his first statement flees when he makes his second statement. Something must show in my eyes because he drops his hand and kneels between the door of the car and me.
“Do you honestly think I would ever lay a finger on you in a way that would be harmful?” he asks softly. His eyes show the hurt behind his words while his hands rest on my knees.
I feel my body soften as I stare at the sincerity in his eyes. “I don’t know what you would do. The Giovanni from five years ago would have never hurt me, but I don’t know that boy anymore.”
“I’m still that Giovanni. I’ve changed, but my heart is still the same. I would never hurt you no matter what. I would rather cut my own heart out of my chest than for any harm come to you by anyone's hand, let alone my own. I thought you knew that.”
I feel my breathing come a little harder at his admission. Instead of acknowledging his words, I deflect. “I’m cold. Do you have heat in this mansion?”
He chuckles. “It isn’t a mansion.” He holds out his hand, and this time I allow him to pull me from the car. “It’s only a three bedroom, two bath.”
He leads me inside the house, and I’m caught off guard by the lack of decoration.
“Didn’t your mom teach you how to decorate? Where’s the color? What’s with all the white?” I frown.
“I never got around to it. This is how I bought it.” He shrugs, as if he couldn’t care less.
“What a shame. Such a beautiful house being neglected.”
“My mom tried to come decorate once, but I told her I didn’t want her to.”
The green-eyed monster creeps in. “I see. Didn’t want any female company thinking there was a female presence here, huh?” I try and sound as nonchalant as I can as I walk along the back of the couch.
His quiet chuckle causes my hackles to rise as I whip to face him.
“What?”
“You’re about as subtle as a brick through a window, Iz.”
I can’t help the huff that comes out of my mouth. “I have no idea what you mean, Giovanni.”
He walks closer before brushing my hair off my collarbone. “Just ask what you want to know, Isabella. Ask me how many women I’ve brought here.”
My back stiffens at his words. An image of half-dressed women flashes through my mind. I don’t want to know how many women he’s brought here. I don’t want to know how many women he has been with, period. I swallow past the lump in my throat as I push him away from me before turning my back to him.
“I don’t need to know how many skanks you have fucked, Giovanni.”
He leans into my neck as he whispers his next words.
