Assassin Thirty Two

Twenty: Jealousy is an Ugly Thing

They were still in the city and while Ivy was becoming bored, with nothing really to do, she enjoyed having the city view as a way to pass time. The day after the dinner with Franco, Ivy had made herself at home and had pushed a chair near the floor to ceiling window so she could sit with her book in her hand and aimlessly stare down at the lives below her.

Morning rays of sunshine illuminated the bedroom and Ivy turned onto her stomach with her head burying into the pillows, trying to block the flooding, bright light. There was a distant noise of the shower running and then turning off but it didn't bother Ivy.

Suddenly there was a soft hand running up her bare leg, massaging her muscles and she hummed in content. It felt nice. "Good morning, Princess." Valentino mumbled against the back of her thigh. His voice was husky and Ivy shuddered under his touch as he ran his nose up her thigh and along her exposed back.

Closing her eyes, she tried to ignore the butterflies in her lower stomach when his hands slowly snaked around her waist and up her chest, squeezing her breasts. Ivy let out a shaky moan into the pillow, hiding her cheeks that quickly tinged a deep red. She hated how her body yearned for his sinful touch. But she couldn't deny the high she got from it. Valentino nudged the shirt she wore up further, leaving a trail of kisses along her spine as something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye.

Another tattoo.

The tattoo was reasonably small and was inked in black. He smirked when he realized she had a knife tattooed on the side of her ribs. He removed one of his hands away from her chest, skimming it along her stomach and dragging his finger along the hem of her underwear. It didn't go unnoticed when Ivy clenched her thighs closed and he tsked in her left ear, pulling his hand away before pushing her thighs apart. Before he could make his next move, Ivy wrapped her legs around his waist and pushed herself up, causing Valentino to land underneath her hold. She strangled his thighs and looked down at him with a triumphant smile. He stared back at her stunned, still trying to process what just happened as she pushed herself off of him and crawling out of the bed.

"You're such a minx." Valentino groaned, rolling out of the bed and fixing the towel around his waist.

Ivy spun around, her eyes dropping to the v line before looking back at his dark eyes.

"You're attracted to me Mr. Black. I can tell you want me."

Valentino barked out a laugh as he wandered to stand in front of her, leaning against the doorway as his eyes gazed down at her beautiful face. The morning sun touched the side of her face, her brown eyes glowing like liquid gold and she flashed him a toothy grin. The body wash he used was dominant and while Ivy liked the smell, she much rather the cologne he used.

"Hm, well a lot of men seem to want you, Princess. But you're mine. And I'm not one to share."

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Her breathing was ragged as her feet continued to stomp, one after the other. She couldn't seem to stop running, the treadmill pushing her to her limits. Ivy couldn't remember the last time she worked on her cardio. Valentino mostly focused on hand combat, knife combat and sniper training. It was nice to be training in a public place with strangers exercising next to her on the various machines the hotel gym had. Valentino spent the day in his office and Ivy decided to use the gym, but he didn't let her go alone, especially with the threat from Franco. In the corner of her eyes, she could see Joseph lifting weights while the other two bodyguards loitered around the gym, pretending to be a gym user.

Pressing some buttons, the treadmill began to slow down and so did Ivy until she was at a walking pace. Her forehead glowed with sweat and she reached for her towel, wiping her face and chest as she stepped off the machine, calling it a day. Nodding her head at Joseph, he dropped the dumb bell and walked towards her, quietly leaving the gym together. The elevator ride was quiet, no one muttering a single word and Ivy found it awkward. She could sense that Joseph wasn't really a fan of her and she didn't really like Joseph either, just because of the glares or scowls he'd look at her with. But she knew that she was far stronger than him. If she was able to sneak into the office and disarm him of his gun, then she would no doubt win a fight against Joseph. The echo of the elevator dinging caused Ivy to snap her attention to the doors opening. A woman wearing a red dress walked in, smiling at Ivy before her curious eyes blinked to Joseph standing next to her. Ivy smiled in politeness but Joseph kept a straight face, his scowl permanent.