Page 51 of Brutal Heir

“Yeah, Sienna’s right,” says Lance. “The Velvet Vault is a great place to work. This is my third bar since I moved to Manhattan and it’s by far the best.”

A hint of warmth blooms in my chest at the way they talk about Alessandro. He may be a cranky gobshite sometimes, but he really cares about this club and apparently his staff.

Blue Dreads stomps off in her hooker heels, and I have to restrain myself from racing after her to give her a piece of my mind. As I watch her disappear into the lounge area, Alessandro catches my eye.

He moves through the Velvet Vault like he owns every square inch of it, which, technically, he does, but it’s more than that. It’s the way the shadows bend around him, how every head subtly turns as he passes, drawn to the dark gravity he exudes.

Alessandro in his element is something else entirely, commanding, lethal, devastatingly beautiful. The low lighting catches on the angles of his face, the scars only enhancing the sharp cut of his jaw, the brutal strength in his frame.

My chest tightens as I watch him, all calm confidence and quiet menace, and those feelings surface again… emotions I shouldnotbe feeling for this man.

His eyes lift to meet mine again as if he’s sensed my heavy gaze. How embarrassing. I’m supposed to be getting intel on the person stealing money from the club, not ogling the owner.

Still, my eyes remain pinned to his for longer than appropriate considering our relationship. So with a deep breath, I force myself to spin around and run into a hard body.

“Oh, shit, I’m sorry.” Lance catches me, his arms encircling my waist to keep me steady.

It’s just a bump, a mistake, no harm?—

But then his hands close tighter around my waist, and my vision tunnels. After today’s encounter, my body remembers things my mind has buried.

My heart lurches up my throat, then riots. There’s something about his hands on me that has my entire body revolting. “Let go,” I hiss. Then I wrench myself free of his touch as if I’ve been burned.

Alessandro is beside me an instant later, and I have no idea how he got here so quickly when he was across the lounge a second ago. I’m shaking, breaths coming in ragged pants again.

“Never touch her,” he growls, eyes throwing daggers at the poor bartender before he spins to me. “Are you okay?”

Drawing in a lungful of air, I shake out my head, freeing myself from the panicked haze. “I’m fine. It wasn’t Lance’s fault,” I mumble.

“Go,” he snarls at the poor guy who looks completely lost.

“Yeah, no problem. Sorry for bumping into you, Rory.”

I wave a dismissive hand, but I can practically feel myself paling. Alessandro moves closer, but doesn’t touch me, his calm, steady presence enough to temper the fear for now.

“That was because of that man from earlier, wasn’t it?” he whisper-hisses.

Forcing the fear to dribble away, I allow the irritation to take over. “I already told you I don’t want to talk about it.”

“But there’s clearly something wrong.”

“It’s my business. Not yours.”

His hand snakes out, wrapping around my wrist and he hauls me closer so I’m flush against his body. I want to push him away, to scream that he has no right, but whenhisfingers tighten around my wrist, I don’t pull back. I can’t. Because in that moment, I don’t feel afraid anymore, I feel owned, possessed, and cared for.

“You are my business,” he snarls.

But if he knew who I really was, he would run in the opposite direction.

“No, I’m not. I’m just your nu—” I bite off the end of the word when I feel curious gazes lancing in our direction. “I’m just your assistant. Now let me go.”

His jaw ticks, eyes flashing with barely restrained rage, but his fingers uncurl around my hand, and he releases me. The moment I’m free, I make a beeline toward the door. I need to get out of here. Now.

As I sprint toward the exit, I can’t decide if I want to run back to him or never stop running at all.

CHAPTER 22

JUST BLEEDS