Without looking at her, his gaze burns into my face, and he taps a wireless earpiece. “The winner is Buffalo,” he bites out. “Challenge over. Everyone return to base immediately.”
I stay quiet, my teeth clenching so hard they ache.
“Thank you, Dragon.” The woman nods respectfully.
Before she has the chance to say anything else, he repositions my goggles first, then his, grabs my wrist, and turns off the flashlight.
“I’m watching you,” he snarls, brushing past her. “Burn the body and pour the ashes in the sea.”
“You didn’t need to kill him. The girl thought on her feet. Said she’d been planted to distract us,” Buffy calls after him. “He understood she was part of the challenge.”
Giovanni looks over his shoulder at her. “I gave you an order,” he snaps back, the tone of his voice cold, his temperament at subzero.
Dragging me deeper into a warren of tunnels, I do my best to keep up with his pace while using the night vision to see the greenish surroundings.
The fingers around my arm lock tight and he doesn’t say a word. Not even when I whisper his name.
It doesn't take long before he manhandles me into a vaulted room where a wall of television screens survey the movements of the masked soldiers.
The door automatically shuts behind us. He lets go when it does, as if touching me pains him and marches across the stone floor to the opposite side, using distance as punishment.
With his back to me, he removes the goggles, checks his clip before setting his gun down, and combs his fingers through his thick hair, muttering under his breath.
I take off my goggles too and drop them on the desk by the door. “I didn’t know all those people would be––”
“For fuck’s sake, India.” He cuts in. Giovanni does a sharp one-eighty on the spot and runs a hand down his face. “What the hell are you doing here, huh? I told you to stay in Blackwater. What part of that didn’t you understand? It was a simple fucking instruction.”
The way he looks at me breaks my heart and makes me tingle all over. I stomp farther into the room.
“Don’t you dare talk to me like I’m a child, Giovanni. I needed to clear my head… to put some distance between me and that prison for a few hours. I went for a run on the beach. The same stretch of coastline that you told me belonged to you. I thought it was safe.”
He stalks toward me, his presence driving me backwards without our bodies touching and slams both fists into the wall beside my head when there’s no space left to retreat to.
Electric green eyes pin me in place. “Why the fuck do you think I didn’t go home?” he growls, sliding his fingers into my hair. “Don’t you think I’d have you next to me if it was safe?”
I keep my chin high in defiance and suck the stinging cut on the edge of my lip. “Stop treating me like a kid you’ve been told to babysit.” I fist his chest, but he doesn’t budge. “I thought they were going to torture you… that you’d suffer… die a gruesome death. And then… last night… you gave me the phone… and hope. I’ve missed you so much, Gio. Is it such a bad thing to want to see you? How was I supposed to know they’d be here too?”
“Your disobedience drives me fucking crazy, India.”
In a tornado movement, he seizes my throat and drops his mouth close to mine. The combination of coarse hairs tickling my cheek and his throaty timbre has me shivering all over.
“We aren’t living together because I have to deal with this shit before I can come home. I thought I'd made that clear to you,” he says behind gritted teeth, the tips of our noses brushing. “I gave you a goddamn phone, so we could keep in contact. But this place…” His chest heaves. “It’s not safe for you.”
My jaw clamps shut, and I hiss at him between clenched teeth. “Oh, really?”
I elevate to my tiptoes and roll back my shoulders. “So, it's okay for you to keep your distance while you’re playing games in a cave with random women. What does she get for winning your challenge? Dinner with you? A few drinks to celebrate and a quick fuck while I’m out of sight.”
He bares his teeth at me, a dark shadow of anger passing over his face. “Don’t––”
“Don’t what?” I shunt into him. “Don’t point out the reality of it? Or don’t dwell on the fact she gets to spend time with you when I’m stuck in the library, haunted by memories of us and desperately waiting for the phone to beep.”
My nostrils flare when the grip around my throat becomes tighter and his groin presses hard into my hip.
“Don’t…”He overemphasizes the word. “… ever doubt my loyalty to you, India.” His gaze narrows on my lips as his deep voice sends chills right through me.
“And don't ever underestimate the lengths I would go to protect you. Don’t ever think I’m not desperate to hear your voice… bury my face in your neck… stroke your tits when you’re next to me in our bed… anddon’tever wander into a fucking cave on your own.”
“I didn’t realize you’d have company,” I whisper, staring into his eyes. “And after you set the challenge, I wanted to prove to you that I could take care of myself. That I’m much stronger than you think I am. After leaving you behind at the warehouse, it’s important for me to earn your respect. I’ll never leave you behind again.”
