Page 100 of He Should Be Mine

Molly is on the bed. His knees are drawn up and he is hugging a teddy bear to his chest so tightly it looks like the stuffing is going to pop out.

Molly’s blue eyes are wide, and his face is pale. He understood how serious mymessage was.

My heart pounds. I don’t think I am looking at Molly right now. I think this is Matthew. The terrified young man who knows he is far out of his depth. A dazzling man who never meant to get tangled up with the mafia.

For all of Molly’s bluster and confident act, underneath it all, he is a scared boy who needs me to protect him.

“You can breathe now,” I say in an attempt to lighten the mood.

Molly blinks.

“Everything is fine,” I reassure him. “But the Don is here, so we need to get you out.”

Molly swallows and nods. He understands the situation. There is no point in explaining to him that the Don knows, because while the boss might be surprisingly fine about his son being gay, he would not tolerate running into his boy toy. He couldn’t be seen to be permitting it under the same roof as he is in.

So I still need to sneak Molly safely out. Nothing has changed in that regard.

“Do you have any normal clothes?” I ask.

Molly’s eyes narrow. But he doesn’t bitch. He is smart enough to know that this is not the time and place to be a drama queen.

“Umm.” He clears his throat. “Some black jeans and a gray hoodie?”

“Are the jeans stupidly tight?”

He shakes his head.

“Good. Are they in the bags here or still in the car?”

His blue eyes flick to the suitcase by the wardrobe. “They are in that one.”

Thank fuck for that. “Good. Get changed. I’ll be back in ten minutes.”

He nods and scrambles off of the bed.

I dash off. It doesn’t take me long to find what I need and I’m slipping back into the room less than ten minutes later.

Molly is already dressed. Standing in the middle of the room in plain jeans and a hoodie. He looks impossibly young like this.

I step behind him, maneuver his hands behind his back, and start tying them together. His nail polish is a little bright but if I keep his hands between us, nobody will see.

“Never knew you were kinky,” he whispers. Attempting to tease. Attempting to pretend that he is not terrified.

“There is a lot you don’t know about me,” I rumble as I finish off tying the knot.

I step around to his front. I lift up the sack to his head. He blanches and steps back. Sweat is beading his brow and his blue eyes are frantic.

“Trust me,” I plead. It is turning into my mantra.

He sucks in a breath that shakes his slender body. He stares at me, really stares. I gulp. I have never felt so seen in my entire life. All of me is laid bare before him.

“You’d tell me if I was going for a swim, wouldn’t you?”

My chest restricts. For a moment, I think I might actually be having a heart attack because the pain is so intense.

“I would never do that, Molly. Ever. I would not follow Riccardo’s order. I’d slaughter anyone who tried to hurt you.”

Molly blinks rapidly, as if fighting back tears. He nods weakly and swallows audibly.