A Dance With Hades

Chapter 15 | Sprinkled In Blood

NYX MANSON

I WALK OUT out of my bedroom, staring down at the screen of my phone as I hope to receive a message from him. I've been hoping for this for the past week.

According to Nicola and Angelo, Vincenzo has left on a business trip. They only told me this two days ago, so I was losing my mind for five days. A simple text from him would soothe my worries right about now.

I'm already worried about this man, and I've only been his woman for a week – a week where he hasn't been present in any form.

I probably sound clingy.

It would’ve been wonderful if he informed me that he’s going off the grid for a while, but I guess he has good reasons for it. I hope he does or we are going to have a problem.

In layman’s terms, I miss the man. I have to admit that he is more gentle than I thought he would be. The way his arms curled around my body as he held me on my damn kitchen counter was comforthing. I had my head on his chest as he softly stroked my skin while I listened to the soft thumping of his heart.

In contrast, the heated we shared mere moments before that had me craving much more. I regretted my words after we shared that kiss, but I respected and admired him for respecting my rules. Though it may be short-lived

I walk to my kitchen and grab a green apple and red apple from the refrigerator. I shut the door and head on over to the front door. My refrigerator is full to brim with food, my cupboards too, all thanks to the work of Angelo and Nicola.

It's truly a nice gesture, which I'm grateful for, but I honestly don't know if I'm even going to eat most of the food before it goes bad.

It’s just so much.

I open the door and step out, beaming at my two friends who quietly stand their posts outside my apartment. I find it unnecessary for them to stay out here for long periods of time, but it's what Vincenzo assigned them to do, and they definitely don't want to go against the word of the Don.

If I were to get hurt in any manner, it would be their heads in the guillotine. “Morning,” I chirp while handing the apples to them. The tall men smile down at me as they take large bites out of the fruit.

We've been getting much closer. I love the feeling of having friends – amazing friends no less.

They've told me about their lives before they joined the Mafia, and now, as they are two of Vincenzo's best Made Men.

They started training for the organisation at the age of fifteen – a time where I was a child worried about my grades. The things they went through to get where they are now sound gruelling. I don't understand how Vincenzo's men pass such tests as if their lives aren't always at risk.

In turn, I told them about my life, too, revealing a few things that hurt me in the past. They comforted me, and such a bond is something I've never truly had.

“Are you going out today?” Angelo asks while chewing the bits of his green apple.

“I don't think so. I already went to see my father, so there's nothing else for me to go do,” I say with a shrug.

My father has never looked so disappointed in me. When I told him I'm in a relationship with Vincenzo, he couldn't even look me in the eye. He didn't want to hear my reasoning at all. He just kept scolding and lecturing me on what a stupid mistake I was making.