Total pages in book: 51
Estimated words: 48854 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 244(@200wpm)___ 195(@250wpm)___ 163(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 48854 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 244(@200wpm)___ 195(@250wpm)___ 163(@300wpm)
He’s not.
The man is evil.
“Perhaps for tonight, we’ll go on as strangers,” she tells me. “Isn’t it more exciting?” Her gaze flickers with excitement. It’s the innocence in her that beckons. She wants the fairy tale I cannot give her.
“Fated to meet but never to learn more?” I challenge. Perhaps she’s right. It may be terrifying to kiss someone you don’t know, especially when you’re in the house of your mortal enemy, but this girl doesn’t look like she’s dangerous. She certainly doesn’t look threatening at all. I could take her down with one hand.
“Exactly.” Her excitement brightens her expression. My chest fills with something I can’t quite put my finger on. I want to see her smile like this all the time. Not the maudlin princess I saw earlier. She shines like the North Star.
“A little Polaris here on earth,” I say as I think about her being a light in the dark.
Her gaze lowers to the floor, her cheeks darkened with a shade of red now. I’m thankful the clouds have given way to the moon, and it’s allowed me to see her the way I long to—happy and shy.
“I don’t know about me being a star,” she says quietly. “There are many girls at the party tonight who are far more suited to you.”
“And what makes you think I want them?”
She shrugs.
“I may think you’re far more beautiful than any of them put together,” I admit, once again reaching for her chin and tipping her head so she’s looking at me.
This time, she laughs. The tinkling sound reminds me of wind chimes. When a gentle breeze has tipped them against each other, the sound is musical. And I decide then and there, I want to hear it all the time.
“I have to go back to the party,” she tells me after a long, silent moment. Her admission makes my stomach drop. I don’t want her to go back. But I can’t stop her.
“Hey, Domenico. The fucking Vitales have spotted us.” Gian’s voice rings through the night air, and that’s when my little star looks up at me, her eyes wide with shock.
And then the emotion turns to anger.
Chapter 8
Lelia
The name rings in my ears like alarm bells.
Montesano.
Oh God.
I cringe inwardly when I realize my father will have my neck and his for what we just did. It may have just been a kiss, but they’re our enemies. I’ve never seen Domenico Montesano before. My father kept me far from the family he would love to see decimated.
“You’re Domenico Montesano?”
He glances my way before smiling. “Indeed I am.”
“Oh God,” I mumble, running my hands down my thighs in an attempt to calm myself. To stop the shaking from taking over my whole body.
“Why?” He doesn’t know. He still doesn’t realize who I am.
“Lelia.” Cassio’s voice comes from somewhere in the maze, and I realize he’s going to get here and see me with Domenico.
“You have to go,” I hiss quickly, panic taking over as I push Domenico toward the side of the maze where there’s a secret exit. His two friends follow, their laughs echoing in the darkness. All I can do is pray Cassio doesn’t hear them.
“Lelia Vitale, where are you?” Cassio seals my fate and I wait for Domenico to do something. To hurt me. To wrap his hand around my neck and squeeze the life out of me. I wonder if he has a weapon on him. Perhaps he’ll kill me quickly.
“Go out there,” I tell him quickly before he hurts me. But what he does next is something I don’t understand.
He swipes his thumb along my lower lip. “An angel with the mouth of a sinner,” Domenico murmurs as the corner of his mouth lifts slightly. It’s a small, infinitesimal movement, which makes my spine tingle. He releases me and turns to his friends, who are watching our display with rapt attention.
“Let’s go,” one of them shouts. They disappear into the darkness, and I flop back onto the bench, my knees weak as I ponder the kiss he’s just given me. What I told him is true. I’m not at all an expert with boys, men. He was my first kiss. And I’m almost certain he will be my last.
It can’t be love because I don’t know him. He’s nothing but a stranger to me, but deep down, I have a feeling he’s about to become so much more.
“There you are,” Cassio says as he reaches the middle of the maze. “I’ve been calling you,” he tells me. “Did you see some guys running this way?”
“No.” The word is out of my mouth with confidence. I never lied to anyone before. But right now, the need to hide the fact that Domenico was here is the only thing I’m focused on.
“Fuck,” he curses, turning to two of his soldiers. They’re angry. I can tell from the way their fists clench and their jaws tick.