Page 111 of Filthy Little Fix

Amidst his Don-like scowl, a deeper frown appears. Comforting me is an absurd idea for him.

"Don't fuck with me, Nyx."

And he's right. Seeing that had me more turned on than disturbed.

I bite my lip. "Then fuck me yourself."

The sound that escapes him is an irritated grunt mixed with a half-laugh. I see the corner of his mouth lift against his will. Took him by surprise.

"You're unbelievable," he says. I smile, my whole face protesting the movement, as he closes the door and leaves me alone.

I really wanted him with me. But now that he's presented me with a diamond collar—head of cybersecurity—this dismissal only postpones the inevitable.

He needs me. And, fuck, Ineedhim.

The time passes.Someone brought me food—liquidfood, as if I couldn't open my mouth.

Fuck it. I accept. I'm still floating.

My boy.

The words echo. A stamp, a mark. I sit on the edge of the bed, the expensive mattress sinking under my insignificant weight. My brain is overclocking, analyzing the syntax of that moment. Dante's calm, the way the gun seemed an extension of his will, the calculated brutality with which he destroyed Sal's hands.Those hands betrayed us. They won't touch anything else.

And he did it for me.

The thought makes a low, dirty heat spread through my abdomen.

The door opens without warning.

It's Luca.

He enters holding a glass of water and two white pills in his tattooed palm. The doctor must have left instructions. The obedient soldier, always following orders.

He doesn't look at me. Not really. His gaze sweeps past me, focusing on the wall, the window, anywhere but the aberration sitting on the bed that he saw kiss his boss.

He stops at a safe distance, extending his hand.

"Painkillers," he says. His voice is a low baritone, flat as always, but there's a tension there, an edge that wasn't present before.

I take the pills. I leave them on my tongue, the bitter chemical taste, and take the water. I let them slide down my throat.

Luca remains still, waiting. A stone guard. But stones don't get this uncomfortable.

I watch him. He saw everything. The execution. The claim. The kiss. The way Dante touched me, as if I belonged to him. Luca is Dante's most loyal man, his closest. What does he think when he sees his general, his icon of strength, being touched like that byme?

"Want to tell me something, Luca?"

He finally looks at me. Just a second. His brown eyes, usually so impassive, waver.

"The boss's orders were to ensure you took your medicine."

He's deflecting. Cute.

"No, not the orders.You. Got something stuck in there, soldier?"

Luca's mask cracks. The muscle in his jaw twitches. He's not used to this, to the intimacy he was forced to witness.

"You've been avoiding looking at me since the warehouse. Your movement pattern has changed. You stop at the door,assess the room, but your field of vision narrows to inanimate objects. You don't include me in your sweep. Curious."