He was right, and I knew it. This part of the city belonged to the Ajellos. Anyone who saw us would turn a blind eye.
Still, as he half-dragged me toward the building, I fought him every step of the way, though it was futile. My hair was falling around my face in wild tangles.
“You can't do this,” I kept saying, even as he pushed open the door to the brownstone.
Inside, a single man waited, an older gentleman with thinning gray hair and glasses. He stood behind a small desk covered with papers, looking anything but nervous, which told me all I needed to know: There was no help here.
“Don Ajello,” he nodded at Gastone, his eyes then flickering to me and then quickly away, as if he couldn't be bothered by the sight of my bound hands or the terror in my eyes. As if he couldn’t care. It was as if he’d already seen situations like this play out a million times.
“Let's make this quick,” Gastone said, dragging me toward the desk.
I renewed my struggles, twisting violently in his grip, trying to jerk away from him with all my might. “I won't sign anything! You can't make me!”
My sudden movement caught him off guard, and I managed to pull free. But with my hands still bound, I stumbled, crashing into the corner of the desk. Pain shot through my thumb as it slammed against the hardwood. I cried out, clenching my fists to ease the pain, desperate for the ability to cradle my hurt thumb.
Something shifted in Gastone's expression. He rushed over. “Let me see,” he insisted.
“Don't touch me,” I hissed, backing away until I hit the wall.
He ignored my protest, reaching for my hands with surprising gentleness. “I need to make sure you’re okay.”
I was so shocked by the change in his demeanor that I didn't resist when he carefully took my bound hands in his. His fingers were warm and surprisingly gentle as he examined my thumb, which was already beginning to swell.
“It's just bruised,” he said, his voice almost kind. “Not broken.”
I stared at him, confused by this glimpse of tenderness from the man who had just kidnapped me. His green eyes met mine, and for a moment, just a moment, I saw concern.
Needless to say, it confused the hell out of me.
“I didn't want to hurt you,” he said quietly, his thumb running softly over the injured spot.
I was just about to tell him that if he really didn't want to hurt me, he would untie me and take me home, when he reached for the pocket knife again. For a terrifying second, I thought he was going to threaten me with it, but instead, he carefully cut the zip tie binding my wrists.
The relief of having my hands free was immediate. I rubbed my wrists, wincing at the red marks left behind.
“Thank you,” I said cautiously, still not understanding this strange shift.
“Does it still hurt?” he asked, his eyes now fixed on mine as he took my hands in his own and gently caressed them in his palms. He slid his fingers over mine, curled into the crevices, gently flicked his thumb down the back of my hand, and as I drowned in the depths of those gorgeous green eyes, I swear, time stood still.
“A little,” I whispered, feeling a shiver go down my spine at how he looked at me.
“Come,” he tugged gently, walking me back toward the desk, his back to it, me moving forward. I should have protested, should have stood my ground, but there was something so gentle about him, so very concerned that my mind started to believe he was finally seeing sense.
He made me sit on the chair and turned to the older gentleman. “Bring her some ice, will you?” he asked.
The man nodded and went out back through a door while Gastone turned to face me, his back to the desk, my hands still in his. His eyes flickered to where we touched, and then he tilted his head back at me.
“Perhaps… I was too harsh,” he declared.
I sighed with relief. “You’d be doing the right thing,” I whispered softly. “By letting me go.”
He nodded. “Yes. I don’t know what I was thinking,” he groaned. “It was the anger, the unexpectedness of it all.”
“I get it,” I said, feeling lighter.
“Mm-hmm,” he nodded.
“So, you’ll let me go?” I asked, wide-eyed, in utter disbelief over the luck I was having.
