After Dark (Mature) *Completed*

Thirteen

As the guards at the gate cleared them for entrance to the compound, Serenity stared out the window in awe. It was nice to be out of the busy city streets-the green yard and trees surround the home was a refreshing sight.

"Isn't it a bit risky to have so much glass?" Looking back over at Angelo, she noticed he was still on his phone.

"It's all shatter and bulletproof. I'm not that stupid." Although he carried the conversation, his eyes had yet to leave the slim black device. Shrugging it off, Serenity turned and stared in awe at the design of the house. It was the most breathtaking thing she'd seen. She quickly exited the car and began skipping up the stairs. Once again Angelo trailed behind, his eyes trained on the screen.

"Hurry up, slow poke!" She called down. Turning back to the door, she nosily peeked into the window. The home seemed to be empty and her eyes took in all the expensive decor.

"Stare any harder and you just might phase through the glass." Angelo lightly bumped her shoulder before unlocking the heavy wooden door. Serenity felt her cheeks heat in embarrassment but it quickly faded as she took in her surroundings.

It smelled slightly of vanilla and the soft golden lights made everything illuminate. Her feet took her around the home, her eyes hungrily taking in each detail.

"Who are you?" Looking away from the painting she'd been staring at in a hallway, she took in the appearance of a slender blonde woman. Her features were sharp and her green eyes seemed to glow.

"Wow you're gorgeous. I-I mean, sorry, I'm Serenity. Just a friend of Angelo's." The smirk on the woman's face made Serenity's skin feel warm.

"Thank you. You're quite beautiful yourself- yellow is really pretty on you." The woman pointed a manicured nail towards Serenity's dress. Serenity nervously looked down at the fitted material, the hem slightly hiked up her thigh.

"Oh! Thanks. I never caught your name?"

"Adrena." Serenity held her hand out for the woman to shake, but she instead pulled Serenity in for a hug.

"Adrena, chi parla?" A deep voice spoke from behind Serenity. She kept her face expressionless and pretended to look at Adrena for translation. Adrena took a step towards the man and Serenity finally turned to find out who it was. Vinni, the brother of Angelo, met her eyes and she felt her heart jump at the recognition in his eyes.

"I remember you. You were at Mi Tino's." He pointed his finger at her, a smile on his lips.

"Ha ha, yeah, I was there." She spoke as she mentally tried to read the situation. Adrena offered no help as she boredly looked between the two.

"You still with that pussy?" He folded his arms across his chest. He had on a dark red t-shirt with dark wash jeans. Serenity admired the way his t-shirt seemed to perfectly accentuate his rippling muscles.

"You must be mistaken. If you see a man with me, he's the farthest from a pussy." She spoke stiffly. Although Tate could be annoying at times, she'd established that she was the only one who could make fun of the man. Vinni scoffed as he stepped closer to the pair.

"You must not know what a real man looks like if you consider that bitch anything close to it. But I can help you with that if you'd like." The smirk once again returned. Serenity bit her lip to keep the smart remark at bay. She was outnumbered here and there'd be no one to back her up if shit went down.

"Sir. I suggest you take a step back and refrain from speaking about my boyfriend in such a way." A tight lipped smile was all she gave away as she stared into his eyes- challenging him to continue. She noticed the flurry of emotions behind them before he nodded and took a step back.

"I respect a woman who stands up for her man. The offer remains though." He winked before grabbing Adrena's arm and walking down the opposite end of the hallway.

"Your boyfriend, huh?" Serenity almost jumped around the entering voice. She rolled her eyes as Angelo stared down at her harshly.

"Don't start." Walking down the hall, towards the entrance, Serenity heard his heavy footsteps following.

"So how many are there? The pussy from the restaurant. The wanna be G.I. Joe-" Serenity quickly spun around at his accusations.

"And you? Is that what you want, Angelo? You upset because you're not on the list?" Her words were like venom as she stared into his eyes. They darkened as his jaw tightened- she'd struck a nerve.

"I don't need to be on the list. You're mine from here on out." Serenity quickly put herself between him and the rest of the walkway.

"No, Angelo. We're just fucking! That's it." The room seemed to shrink as he stepped into her chest. She could practically feel the anger radiating off him but she didn't let it change her mind. They were just opposites who happened to have amazing sex.

"So what was that in the car? That's just us fucking?" His voice boomed in the open space. At this point, she was sure anyone in the house could hear their spat.

"No, Angelo. That's called being a decent fucking human being. Maybe you should try it sometime instead of ruthlessly murdering people!" She yelled in frustration as her arms waved wildly. He had some nerve to try to use that as an excuse for them being anything more.

"Oh get off your high horse, sweetheart. You've probably killed just as many people as I have. But I don't have a shiny badge and a special parking spot so I'm the wrong one huh." Angelo waved her off as he walked around her. His strides were long and Serenity struggled to keep up. The anger inside her bubbled like hot soup and she could feel her nerves bunching.

"There's a stark difference between you and I." She finally caught up to him as they made it to a sitting area. It didn't escape her view the numerous eyes that were now on the pair. So this is why he wanted to get over here so bad? He thought she wouldn't openly defend herself in front of people just like him. As he turned to her, his arms crossed, she noticed the smirk on his face at her silence.

"You're a ruthless, murderer with no care for anyone other than yourself. You murder for some sick power trip. You murder innocent people with loving families and your ego is so big you walk around as if you're some God because of it. Newsflash, you're not! I've killed in self defense. I've killed for the sake of justice. I kill people like you so that the city can finally be safe at night. You and I are nothing alike." She took a deep breath after her monologue. It felt good in the moment but a part of her consciousness knew she'd regret this sooner or later.

Angelo looked as if he was seriously weighing her words- the room now dead silent. Serenity didn't dare move her eyes from him as she knew the others in the room were simply waiting for the signal to kill her.

"I didn't know you felt that way." The whisper nearly caused her knees to buckle. Angelo stared down at the floor, his head hanging between his shoulders.

"It's not how I feel. It's the truth." She wasn't sure why she kept this up. Deep down inside- somewhere unreachable to her conscious- she knew Angelo was more than that to her. Angelo nodded his head, his hands coming up to quickly wipe at his face.

Was he crying? She questioned in her mind as she watched him roughly swipe at his face. Her suspicions were confirmed as he sniffled and then cleared his throat to cover the sound. Her heart broke at the sight. She unconsciously moved closer her hands outstretched towards him.

"Angelo-" she stopped as he held out a hand to silence her. The trembling among the digits further caving in her chest. It suddenly became clear. As her heart broke into pieces at the realization of what she'd done in an attempt to deny the feelings brewing within herself.

"You're right. I can't continue to be blind to the realities of this. I'm sorry, Serenity. In asking you to be with me I asked you to ignore everything you've spent years enforcing in yourself and others. Everything's clearer now. I'll send someone to take you home." Before she could speak again, he quickly left the room. Serenity finally caught a glimpse of his face. Tears raced down his cheeks. His eyes red and in the beginning stage of puffing up. The skin beneath them enflamed and burned red.

The air froze in her lungs as she realized she'd managed to break American's most notorious mobster's heart.
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