Untangle Me

Chapter 11

Giada

Luciano, true to his word, comes back the next day.

"Hey there. I brought you another something," he greets me, slipping into my room like he did the night before.

"Hi," I greet him, trying not to show my enthusiasm. He's still one of Vince's men. I probably shouldn't trust him just because he's being friendly.

My desperate ass can't seem to help it though, so here I am, nearly bursting into the widest grin when the man hands me a baby donut.

"I hope you like it. I know they feed you twice a day so I figured a snack might be appropriate. We wouldn't want you to starve or lose any of those sinful curves of yours," he says, then blushes and averts his eyes. "Sorry. Oh, god. Please forget I said that. I have no filter around you. That was really inappropriate."

That's it. I laugh, the sound so genuine it surprises me. The way this giant man just starts blushing and rambling in my presence is so refreshing, so different from what I got used to with Vincenzo. It makes me realize I was a true idiot for ever being attracted to that stupid black-haired jerk.

Either way, I can beat myself up over it another time. Certainly not when I'm surrounded by Luciano.

By the time I collect myself and stop laughing, the man in my cell is staring at me.

"Something on my face?" I ask to which he absently shakes his head.

Then he says, "I'm glad to hear you laugh. It's a nice sound. I was a bit worried that maybe Enzo broke you so soon. You seemed so sad last night."

Oh damn. Is he actually expressing concern?

For me?

"Me? Come on, it takes a bit more to break me. Last night was shit but nothing deep," I assure him, all the while wondering if that's why he's here. Is this some kind of charity to him? Something that'll help him look in the mirror after he does who-knows-what for Vincenzo.

And then it dawns to me that he must know what his boss and I did. All guards probably know and I suddenly feel incredibly awkward.

If I could, I'd hit myself over the head with a frying pan for letting things escalate like that. Twice. As it is, I'm just wondering how Luciano can look at me.

And I know I shouldn't care what he thinks of me but truth is, I do. As far as I can remember, I've always been way too desperate for validation from others.

So I find myself saying, "It was a mistake." I shake my head to myself, looking at the ground. "I don't know what got into me. I've been all over the place recently but that must've been the stupidest thing I've done-"

Before I can ramble on, the warmth of Luciano's hand on my shoulder stops me. Still, my gaze stays trained on the floor and he doesn't force me to change that.

"You don't need to explain yourself to me. As long as, you know," he clears his throat a little roughly, "He didn't hurt you or anything," he finishes.

It takes me a few seconds until I realize he's expecting me to answer. I lift my head, cheeks heating up when I whisper, "No. He didn't."

God, this is mortifying.

But rather than disgusted or appalled, Luciano looks relieved.

"Good. So, you got any news? Anything to tell?" he asks, smile returning to his face and brightening the room at once. I feel myself relax pleasantly.

"Yeah, lots of news. You know, whenever you're not around things in here are wild," I tease him.

"Okay, okay. Stupid question, I get it. My bad."

"It's fine. What about you? Had an interesting day?" I ask.

"Meh, it was fine. I couldn't really focus on my job though since my brain was busy planning how I could sneak into a certain cell at night. Enzo will probably have my head for it. I'm blaming you," he jokes. Still, something doesn't sit right with me.

"You're not allowed to be here, are you?" I ask, already knowing the answer.

"Technically speaking? Not exactly. Don't worry about it."

"I don't want you to get into trouble because of me," I insist.

Really, what would his punishment even be? I'm pretty sure you can't get fired once you've worked this close to Capo Crimini. Would he be tortured? Killed? Gut-churning images of a bloody, unrecognizable Luciano fill my mind.

"Earth to Sofia? You okay? You look like you're going to be sick," his smooth voice pulls me back. I try to smile my unease away.

"Maybe you should leave?" I say halfheartedly. It's the last thing I want him to do but what else could I say? I don't want to be the reason he gets into trouble.

"Don't be silly, I'll be fine. So unless you really want me to go I suggest we drop the topic and move on to something happier." I wish I could protest, be more insistent or whatever but damn, the way he smiles at me is too precious.

"Alright. You're right. What kind of work do you do?" I ask. I try to picture him as an assassin or robber but I really can't see it. My best guess would be driver or hacker, perhaps. He really doesn't strike me as a fighter.

Surprisingly, Luciano brushes me off. "No work talk. Tell me what I should get you tomorrow instead."

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I have a few chapter ready for today so stay tuned;)

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