Page 504 of One More Kiss
Dad used the guesthouse as a place to run his meetings. It wasn’t often he allowed people into our home, which brought my mind back to the man with sapphire eyes. Marcus hadn’t seemed happy to have the blue-eyed stranger in the house.
I gingerly got to my feet, placed my book on my bed, and I took a deep breath. I made my way to the living room and paused in the doorway to try and get my emotions under control.
The war from four years ago weighed heavily on my mind. The last thing I wanted was for my father to realize how afraid I was. I was scared each time my phone rang that I would have to head into hiding.
If Frank Carpone killed my father, he would come for me. He’d made that threat known over the years, and I knew that he would make good on those threats. But I would be damned if I ever let that old man touch me. He believed the ultimate prize would be to make me his wife.
Once I felt calm, I strode into the kitchen, a soft smile on my face. The men stood a little taller.
“Principessa,” Marco said, stopping me in my footsteps, “your father is expecting you in his office.”
I grinned at him.
“I’ll go see him.” I turned my back toward to my father’s men and whispered to Marco, “Did everything go okay?”
“Everything is fine, Avery. Don’t worry your pretty head about it.”
“I worry about him,” I said. “And what about you? You spend all your time protecting my father. When are you going to make time for you?”
He grumbled. “Watch it,” he said with no heat. “I’ll have you know that the ladies love me.”
“Of course they do. What’s not to love?” My smile widened. “When will I meet one of these ladies?”
He shook his head.
“Go,” he said, but he was unable to keep the grin from his face.
“See you later. I baked this afternoon. Make sure to grab something.”
His eyes lit up. “You did?”
I nodded. “There’s a sticky chocolate pudding in the fridge that has your name on it.”
He laughed as I exited the kitchen. I sauntered toward my father’s office.
When I reached the double doors and knocked.
“Enter,” Dad’s deep raspy voice called out.
I opened the door. My father sat behind his desk with his head in his hands.
My heart hammered against my chest and my breath hitched. I squeezed my fingers into a fist to calm my nerves.
The man I’d seen earlier sat across from my father. My heartbeat even faster. Nobody new ever entered my father’s office.
The handsome man’s sapphire eyes connected with mine. His dark hair was cut short but there was still enough so that someone could run their hands through it. A black jacket covered his biceps, but I noticed the bulge of a gun. He was at least six-foot-five, taller than the majority of my father’s men. His eyes were filled with a purpose, but as he looked at me, it was as though he saw right through me, all the way to my soul.
I fought the urge to shudder.
This man was dangerous. There was no doubt about that. He was a danger to a woman’s heart. He screamed bad boy in all the right ways and probably left a trail of broken hearts in his wake.
“Avery, this is Paolo,” my father said. “Paolo, this is my daughter Avery.”
“Hi,” I replied softly. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Paolo stepped forward, his hand outreached. I placed my palm on his, and his hand engulfed mine. My heart beat frantically as electricity pulsed between us.
“Principessa,” he murmured, his voice husky.
