Over half of the night, my restless sleep is crowded with my childhood terrors mingling with the day's events. I twist and turn way too many times in my state of being somewhere between asleep and awake. 

Until, my overly active imagination takes the form of a deep voice, whispering soothing words, and a toned arm snaking around me, securing my back against a wall of rock-hard muscles, promising safety and calmness. Afterward, for the first time in a really long while, I slip into a deep slumber.

Slowly, the blanket of sleep begins to dissipate. Not ready to wake up and get out of my comfortable spot and face another shitty day, I try to fall back asleep.

As I readjust my position, something holds me back, alerting me instantly. My eyes fly open and I barely hold back a gasp, taking in Elio's long fingers splayed on my boob.

My back is pressed to him while his hot breath hits my shoulder, tingling my skin. But, as if the situation is not bad enough, his morning wood with its notable size is firmly pressing to my butt and our legs are tangled.

I gaze at the thin sword tattooed on his thumb as I try to recall last night; all I can hope for is, Elio didn't hear my ramblings in sleep.

I have to push him off and put as much distance between us as possible, but that'd probably wake him up and I don't want to suffer through the embarrassment it follows.

His right arm stretches over my head allowing me to admire the rose inked to his thumb.

A very small part of me, despite everything, is tempting me not to move and just close my eyes and let sleep consume me again.

But this is wrong. Feeling safe and secure while being pressed to him is so utterly wrong and uncalled for.

Slowly I try to wiggle out of his grasp, but my hips grind against him, and he lets out a soft groan in his sleep, halting me. The sound sets my insides burning and despite how much I hate this man, my thighs squeeze together and the parts that should not want him, clench with desire.

I curse myself for reacting to him so drastically.

Elio still in deep sleep, pulls me to himself, his lips brushing the nape of my neck, causing goosebumps and an involuntary shudder journeys down my body.

His hard cock comes even closer, only the fabrics of my panties and his boxers are separating him from my throbbing core. I bite my bottom lip, mad at myself for growing hotter with every heartbeat. Despite every sense in my head telling me to distance myself from him, I'm tempted to wiggle my hip a bit more, my body aching for more friction and contact.

Fuck fuck fuck. This is so screwed up.

I unfurl his fingers latched on my boob one by one. Once I'm done, I carefully set his hand at a safe distance in front of me.

A loud bang comes from the hallway, startling me and jolting Elio awake.

Even though I was up at least a good few minutes before him, by the time I manage to sit upright, Elio with his gun in hand has reached the door. He cracks it open and peers outside while loud voices, belonging to at least three men reverberate in the hallway.

After a moment, his tense shoulders relax and he turns around clicking the door shut. "False alarm," he announces, his voice still thick from sleep, as he runs his free hand through his tousled hair. He shakes his head and drops the gun on the nightstand while sitting on the bed and diving headfirst into his pillow.

From the corner of my eye, I observe him for a long moment, letting my gaze travel from his toned back and waist to the lean yet strong muscles of his shoulders and arm, admiring his tattoo, the mesmerizing details of the phoenix, the flame underneath it.

My fingers itch to trace its outline, instead, I clasp my hands together and drag my eyes higher up, away from the tattoo and to his messy curls looking so soft. I shake my head.

Unable to stay close to him a second longer, I swing my legs down the bed, grab my jeans and hurry to the bathroom.

Even though the little jump scare distracted me from my utterly unexplainable thoughts, I'm still hot and annoyed at my body.

Elio is hot, there's no use denying it, but he's the boss of bosses of the mafia, a criminal, a murderer! And I'm a prosecutor, the bane of his existence, the one who is supposed to bring him down.

I have to put more distance between us or I'll be the one paying the highest price.

I glance at the mirror, my cheeks are still flushed, but other than that, I look better than last night. I jump into the shower, setting the water on the coldest temperature I can bear, to cool myself off.

I wish it was possible to wash away attraction.

Why couldn't he be ugly? With a fat belly and yellowed teeth and fading hairline. Just the typical appearance of a crime lord. But no! He's hot! Even more attractive than my crush.

Cursing my luck, I leave the shower and put on the same clothes. With the towel wrapped around my hair, I open the door, surveying the room. Elio's sitting, with his back facing me, and his head bowed down.

The door creaks, and he spins on his spot, his chestnut eyes, darkening slightly roving over my body.

I fidget with the knob. "I was wondering when we'll be leaving?"

"The sooner the better."

I nod and step out. Elio gets to his feet, his eyes never leaving mine, not even when he strides to the armchair to pick up his clothes, and not even when I drop my gaze to the floor and busy my hands with unwrapping the towel from around my hair.

He stops in front of me and I glance up, meeting his burning gaze. He opens his mouth to say something but changes his mind and heads straight to the bathroom.

A breath I didn't know I was holding slips from my mouth. I squeeze my eyes shut. He's the enemy. The bad guy.

I take my time drying my hair before setting the towel aside and nearing the window. From the corner, I peek outside. Nothing except a brick wall is visible.

My thoughts reel around, but the clicking sound of the door snaps me out of it.

"Let's go," Elio says as he rounds the bed and picks up his gun, sliding it back into its place.

I inhale sharply and nod, tying my hair up in a tight ponytail, all the while sensing his eyes boring into me.

Silently, we leave the room and the hotel. I don't question him and he doesn't initiate anything. With every passing second, the air around us gets heavier with unsaid words. Half of me worries in the split second between the voice jolting him awake and Elio getting on his feet and reaching to the door, he got the gist of our not-so-appropriate position.

Even though we're walking parallel to each other, we're apart over six feet. The street is not as vacant as last night, people are ambling around, going about their morning chores.

Long moments go by, I catch Elio glancing at me every few seconds. I'm tempted to ask what's wrong, but he speaks up. "Are you afraid of fire?"

I freeze. A second too late I shrug. "No." My voice is pitched and I can't bring myself to check his expression to see if he's caught my lie or not. "I mean, I wouldn't want to be thrown into the middle of flames and left there to burn to death, I don't think anyone would want that."

I sense his gaze boring into me, and run my palm over my other arm, growing more self-conscious. A part of me just wants to scream stop looking at me and leave me alone and the other part wants me to disappear.

Thankfully, he doesn't push the matter.

At last, not bearing the quietude stretching on and on, drowning me in overthinking, I decide to be the breaker. "Any news from Pietro?"

Surprised, Elio's head snaps to me. He really didn't think I'm going to stay quiet for the rest of the day, did he?

"My guess was right. In the past two weeks, exactly a day after your capture's news became official between all clans, Esposito met Fabris and it wasn't their last meeting either. Throughout the past week, the underbosses have been meeting as well as the associates. On top of that, Remo Fabris met Enzo Esposito three times in person."

I nibble my bottom lip, pondering. Capos usually don't meet each other so frequently. "And they think, killing me will affect your business?"

"Esposito knows about the USB, they're fighting for preservation too."

I squint and fidget with my necklace. The question I want to ask reaches the tip of my tongue but refuses to come out. "Are you the strongest? I mean is your mafia the most influential one... making you the... uh, capo dei capi?" my voice trails down with uncertainty.

He quirks an eyebrow at me, the amusement brightening his features a clear giveaway I've pronounced the term horribly wrong.

"Between the crime families, is yours the most powerful one?" I make a lame attempt at fixing my question.

Elio holds my gaze as if evaluating his response. At last, he says, "We're powerful, but not the only one. Between the Sicilians, mine is the most powerful one, but worldwide, there are two other families as strong as mine. But if you're curious about who comes above me, it's no one."

"No wonder why you're so arrogant."

He smirks. "Why? Were you planning on changing sides? Running to the one who has the highest chance of winning?"

I shrug. "Not really, I just wanted to know if there's anyone you take orders from."

"No, there's no one. I'm the capo, remember? Or is it too much information for your fish-like brain?"

I roll my eyes. Asshole. I fire another question. "Why are you so fluent in English?"

"Because I'm smart," he smugly says, throwing a mischievous smile at me.

"That's actually debatable. Smart is an adjective and it's comparative and dumb people are not good at comparing, so I'm not really sure if your standards are to be trusted."

"Don't you ever run out of questions or answers?"

"I'm an attorney, remember? Or is it too much to remember for an amoeba like you?"

He chuckles, shaking his head. "You were dying to throw that back at me, weren't you?"

I dismissively lift a shoulder. "Well, you didn't answer me, why? And why you don't have an accent? And don't tell me being fluent is custom for criminal families, because I've seen Pietro."

"Tesorino, you tell me, why do you care?" his dark eyes glint with mischief.

"I'm just merely curious."

"So, you're interested in me." An impish grin curls his mouth and I glare at him.

"Oh please, I'm only asking to kill time and I don't have anything better to do."

"Sure," he drawls, the smugness radiating off of him.

We set down on another street and I probe, "Well?"

"Maybe once you prove you're not a rat, I'll answer your questions."

I scowl. "What does tesorino mean?"

A smirk lifts up his lips. "I'm not telling you that either."

I huff, twirling a strand of my hair around my finger. "But I think I should know. If I don't know what sort of insult you're using for me, how can I be sure asshole is a good match?"

His smile turns genuine, softening his features. "Don't worry about it, it's a good match."

I eye him suspiciously as a glint of playfulness sparks up his eyes. "Maybe I'll tell you one day."

"I thought no one was supposed to teach me Italian."

"None of my men." He throws a satisfied smug smile and I glare at him. "But you never asked me."

Oh. Fucking asshole! "The rules don't apply to you," I mutter with disbelief.

"Precisely. No rules apply to me, I'm above those trivial things."

"I don't trust you enough to learn a language from you."

My comment earns a burst of deep heart-felt laughter from him. Despite myself, I can't help noticing it's such a pleasant sound, deep and carrying a nice ring. Not a sound one would expect to hear from an outlaw.

I can't drag my gaze away from him until he quiets down and I hurriedly look away before he catches me staring like an idiot. I shake my head, I shouldn't be thinking about him like this.

The sun gradually goes higher up, the day is growing warmer; it's a pleasant spring day. I hate to ruin it by asking questions on a more serious note, but it's not like I have any other options. "Now that Fabris and Esposito are together, what's going to happen?"

Elio rubs his forehead before shoving his fingers through his hair. "We only had to worry about Salazar and Rodríguez, but now they are added to the pile too."

"I'm pretty sure your clan can't overpower four other mafias," I mumble.

He remains quiet, his brows furrowing.

An uncomfortable chill runs down my spine. He can't go to Reyes because of me, Rodríguez has mainly chosen to go against him because of me... I hope he's not considering killing me on spot. I eye him warily.

"I'm not going to kill you if you're worried about that."

I avert my gaze, my cheeks heating up. "But it's not like it isn't the easiest option."

Elio walks into a narrow alley and I follow him wordlessly until he stops in front of an old white car. The color on the corners is peeling off thanks to Florence's humidity. The rear of the car along with the driver's door has dents.

Elio kneels in front of the door and takes out a lock-picking tool that was attached to his gun holster.

"I am not getting on a stolen car! For God's sake can you ever do anything without breaking the rules! What is wrong with you? Are you incapable of following the rules for even half a day!" I throw my hands up.

Elio ignores me, working on unlocking the door. It's as if I'm yelling at the walls of the buildings.

He opens the door and raises to his feet. "Get inside." Without looking at me, he widens the door.

Before he gets in the car, I cross my arms and announce, "I'm not getting in a stolen car with you."

Imagine the humiliation of a prosecutor being found in a stolen vehicle. Nope, not happening.

He whirls around, his lips pressing into a thin line from annoyance as he clenches his jaw. "Fine, don't. Get your ass back to the airport however you find fit."

I glare at him as he sits inside the car and shuts the door.

From the window I watch him leaning over to the passenger seat and open the dashboard, rummaging around. He finds a key and shoves it into the keyhole, bringing the engine to life.

I stay rooted to my spot. Do Italians keep a spare key in their cars?

He throws me an irritable glance. I arch an eyebrow at him to emphasize I'm not backing down.

With a shake of his head, Elio sets the car in motion, driving off, slowly but surely.

As he drives further away, dread and fear climb their way up to my mind. Last night my head was an inch away from a bullet. I chew my bottom lip as I stare at the wall across from me. Fabris' men are close too... and they want me dead. From the corner of my eye, I glimpse Elio still driving. He's not going to leave me here, is he? I'm his prized possession.

I sourly recall him telling me he'll get rid of me if I become more trouble than I'm worth.

Putting my entire willpower to use, I don't spin and sprint after the car.

At last, over the pounding of my heart, the car comes to a halt. I bite my lip to stop the smile from forming on my face. I knew he couldn't leave me.

From my periphery I watch him throwing the door open and getting out. "Un-fucking-believable," he fumes, marching to me.

I twist on my spot and quirk a brow at him. "I told you I'm not-"

He stops in front of me, leaning to me. "Get in like a decent human being, or I'll haul you, throw you inside, and tie you up to the seat, your choice," he growls, his dark eyes burning into mine.

"How dare you!"

Without a warning in one quick motion, he wraps his arm around me, lifting me off the ground. I shriek but it's useless as he secures me over his shoulder and carries me to the car while I holler every curse word crossing my mind.

At last, he puts me back on the ground, caging me between his body and the car, bringing his face close to mine. "Defy me like that one more time and-"

Panting, I fire back, "Or what? You'll kill me?"

He clenches his jaw; his dark eyes never leave mine as he slowly comes closer to me.

Anger boils in my veins, I fist my hands as I glare at him. "Wanna know something? I don't think you can kill me and your lame threats are starting to get boring."

He moves so close to me, with each of our inhales our chests brush together. The anger in the air mingles with something way more dangerous, cackling around us, yet neither of us breaks free.

His hot breath washes over my face. After being so close to him this morning, I know I'm nearing dangerous territory, yet I can't bring myself to push him away.

"Believe me, tesorino, you don't want to challenge me on that. Because when I win, you'll be the one paying the highest price, your life. So instead of making this so damn hard for both of us, try to spare a thought on keeping yourself alive every once in a while, because it truly gets exhausting doing it for you."

Elio is too close. Focusing on his little speech becomes too much of an effort, getting lost in his chestnut brown eyes is way easier... so easy it's almost scary. All the things I should be reminding myself, him being a dangerous capo leading a mafia, fade away.

His gaze drops to my lips and my breath hitches. My skin tingles and my core clenches.

He closes the little gap between us, pressing our bodies together. I bite my bottom lip to hold back a moan and it takes extra willpower to keep my arms glued to my sides even though they're itching to wrap around him.

Our noses brush as his lips hover over mine. My entire body comes to life like never before. It's scary and exhilarating. Feeling his ragged breathing is reassuring. At least I'm not the only one being affected out of mind.

"You're driving me insane, tesorino mio," he whispers in a deep gruff voice turning my blood to fire and my knees into jelly. "Get inside before I lose my control and do things both of us will probably end up regretting." He opens the door for me and to my distaste steps away from me.

Wordlessly I sit inside, trying to catch my breath.

Dammit. Staying away from him is way harder than I thought.

❈ ☯︎ ❈

I hope you enjoyed this chapter [vote if you did =)] and comment your thoughts, tell me what you think about this forming attraction and Cerise's internal conflict, which side do you think will win? hehehe =D

I feel like the story's pace is really slow but at the same time I want to do the build-up the right way, since it's an enemy to lovers and forbidden romance at the same time (something I've never written before)... so I really don't know. I hope it's not too slow for you guys.

Thank you so much for reading this mess of a story, it means a lot :'))

Stay safe, lots of love, happy reading <33