Lucca (Made Men #4) Page 5

  Following him downstairs, the wonderful smell of food entered her nose, making her empty stomach growl. When they reached the dining room, she was met with the same vision as yesterday, except for some slight changes, like there was only one plate at the dinner table and Lucca was already eating his steak and mashed potatoes.

  “Sit with me,” he ordered as Drago disappeared, leaving them alone.

  Chloe cautiously sat down next to him, squeezing her hands in her lap, as Lucca cut deeply into his steak, carving off a small piece before eating it.

  Once the piece was chewed, he finally addressed her. “I want to make a deal with you, darlin’.”

  Chills went up her spine. She wasn’t sure anyone would come out alive from a deal with the boogieman.

  “What kind of d-deal?”

  An evil smile appeared on his lips. “You will stay here with me, and if you still want, I promise to let you walk out that front door at the end of your first semester.”

  “T-That’s it?” He won’t let it be that easy.

  “I have rules.”

  Chloe swallowed the lump in her throat, too scared to even ask what they were. I knew he wouldn’t.

  “The first one’s easy, as I will also do the same for you.” He began cutting another piece of his steak. “When I ask you a question, you must not lie.”

  Her brow furrowed. “So, I can ask you anything and you will tell me?”

  “Yes, but only ask me if you want the truth.”

  She had been ready to ask him a question before his warning changed her mind. She would have to think harder about if she really wanted to know certain things about him.

  “W-What else?”

  “I want to spend the evenings with you. You will eat dinner with me every night, and after, I want to help you overcome”—Lucca’s blue-green eyes rose, holding her gaze—“your fear of touch.”

  Chloe’s blood ran cold, not wanting to take part in those plans. “N-N—”

  “Then you will stay here for as long as I like,” he said nonchalantly, going back to eating his food.

  Her nails dug into her palms. He was giving her an ultimatum. She feared if she was ever going to walk out of that door, she would have to give in.

  “Is there anything else?” she whispered.

  Lucca looked back up at her. “One last thing. When I ask you to do something, you will do it. But know I will not ask anything of you I don’t think you can handle.”

  This was it. She was signing her life away. Lucca was going to take away everything she had clung to, the things she had used to survive.

  Chloe solemnly nodded her head. Seeing no other choice, she would be lucky if she walked out the front door alive.

  He raised his eyebrow. “Deal?”

  This was the moment Chloe would give her life over to Lucca in hopes that one day he would return it back to her. “Deal.”

  It didn’t take long for the impending doom to creep in. She could see he saw it as a game. A game he already won.

  “Are you hungry?” he asked simply, like the conversation they’d just had didn’t happen.

  As much as she wished she could run back up to the room, she no longer could. This was a part of the deal now. You will eat dinner with me every night.

  “Yes.”

  Using his fork, Lucca picked up a piece of his steak and held it out for her, expecting her to take it with her mouth. His eyes told her this was no offer, but a demand.

  “I-I don’t want to take y-your food. I can make a plate.”

  He put his hand down. “Maybe I decided not to make you any. You have yet to sit here and have dinner with me.”

  Chloe stared at him. Something in her sensed he was hurt that she hadn’t sat with him and eaten one of the meals he had prepared for … me?

  “I understand.”

  I want to spend the evenings with you. She did understand now. He had made dinner every night, and every night, she hadn’t joined him. Drago had warned her; told her she was playing with fire, which was exactly what she had done.

  Lucca raised his hand once more, bringing the juicy steak close to her lips, demanding she take it.

  When I ask you to do something, you will do it.

  Slowly parting her lips, she wished she could shut her eyes, but his gaze held hers prisoner. She took the steak into her mouth and slid her lips away from the fork. It wasn’t until then that he let her eyes fall to her lap as she began chewing.

  He smiled. “I told you, Chloe, that I wouldn’t ask anything of you I didn’t think you could handle.”

  She didn’t expect him to set the fork back down then get up, going to the kitchen. When he returned to the table, he set a full plate down in front of her.

  Somehow, in some way, he always seemed to surprise her.

  “T-Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome, darlin’.”

  It was easy for Lucca to eat after he sat back down, but for her, it wasn’t. She had just sold her soul to the boogieman.

  They ate their dinner in silence and, when he took their plates to the kitchen, she hoped he would release her. However, he had other plans.

  She watched him go into the living room, taking a seat on the big leather chair before motioning her over.

  She reluctantly stood, walking toward him with her hands desperately clutched together.

  “I want you to sit”—removing the pillow at his side, he placed it on the ground at his feet—“right here.”

  The hand clutching turned into wringing as she grew extremely nervous.

  Looking over at the big sectional, she tried to get out, “W-Why c-can’t I-I s-s-s—”

  “Because I want you to sit at my feet.” Lucca smiled.

  Chloe began shaking her head. “I-I don’t think I-I can.”

  “Yes, you can, darlin’.”

  Seeing him lazily sit back in the chair, she figured any other woman would think he looked incredibly sexy and wouldn’t have to be told twice. All she could think about, though, was how widespread his legs were, knowing his left leg might touch her.

  When she didn’t make a move to do as he asked, his voice took a commanding tone. “We made a deal, remember?”

  I want to help you overcome your fear of touch.

  She was sure she would never be able to explain why she followed his commands when his voice deepened. Yet, there she was, swallowing her nerves as she slowly placed herself on the pillow at his feet. She kept her back against the arm of the chair, sitting stiffly, careful not to even graze his dark jeans.

  Now that she was down here, Chloe was too scared to even move, too afraid to be this close to him. He frightened her to the core, making her wonder what other games he had in store for tonight.

  Lucca turned on the big screen TV. Scrolling through the channels, he settled on an old football game.

  Staring at the screen, she didn’t move an inch, waiting for him to move or make her do something else. Thankfully, he never did, seeming to be into the game, never even acknowledging her.

  When she finally relaxed into the chair, the warmth from his leg less distracting, he turned the TV off, bringing her attention back to him.

  Please let me go, she started pleading in her head.

  “You may go—”

  Chloe quickly jumped up before the last word was said. She didn’t even look back as she went straight up to her room, afraid he might change his mind.

  Now in the safety of her room, she rubbed her hand over her arm that was still warm from his close body. She did this unconsciously for several minutes, rubbing it over and over, before she dropped her hand, realizing she was trying to keep the warmth in. His warmth.

  Chloe didn’t know it yet, but the part of her that craved human touch was coming back to life. And soon, she was going to meet the part of her she had buried long ago.

  Eleven

  Always

  Lucca moved from his laid-back position to leaning forward, putting his elbows on his knees. He ran
his hands roughly through his hair, thinking about how he hadn’t even finished his sentence before she had disappeared.

  Where Chloe couldn’t run fast enough from him, he had wanted the opposite.

  The whole time she had sat beside him on the floor, it hadn’t been a test only for her, but for him as well. Lucca had told her he was going to help her overcome her fear of touch, but what he hadn’t told her was that he was also going to fight the darkness of claiming her too soon. He wanted to make sure he could handle her closeness. To be close to his grasp, yet not claim her was one of the hardest things he had ever done. The twisted part of his brain had kept whispering, Touch her, kiss her, take her … But he hadn’t. He had fought his dark urges … for her.

  He planned to get closer to her every night. He imagined it was only going to get harder, painful even, to fight the darkness when his fingers finally moved over her scars.

  Raising his head at the sound of footsteps, he saw Drago had come into the room. He put his head back down to run his hands through his hair.

  “I don’t see her handling this … you. She’s too fucked up,” Drago said, crossing his arms as he leaned against the far wall.

  There was only one option. “She will learn.”

  Another question from Drago circled the air around him, “Is this girl really worth all this?”

  Lucca closed his eyes for just a moment …

  Chloe rejected the hand that came toward her. “S-Sorry. I’m germophobic.”

  “No, I’m sorry,” Lake told her, holding up her hands. “If you ever need someone to talk to, I’ll listen. I know what it’s like to be alone.”

  Lucca watched the exchange from a distance. He had followed Chloe outside, but Lake, one of his soldier’s daughter, had followed her out as well. She must have sensed Chloe’s distress, just as he had, as he had watched her during the graduation party.

  Before the girl turned, she left Chloe with some final words.

  “You shouldn’t hide your face. It’s beautiful.”

  He didn’t know what to expect from Lake when she had approached Chloe, especially after he had heard the horrors Chloe and Elle had gone through in high school, but he honestly hadn’t expected that.

  Staring at Chloe now under the lighted gazebo, surrounded by the flowers in bloom, it took his breath away. He had been waiting for this day for months now.

  Keeping his distance from her and only watching her from afar was making him crazy. Not once had he been able to talk to her since that last time, but now the time had arrived.

  Caging her in like last time, he blocked the entrance with his frame. “Hey, darlin’.”

  She looked up at him, startled.

  Pulling out a cigarette, he placed it between his lips, making the stick bounce as he said, “I hear you’re still saying you’re a germaphobe. Have you ever thought of telling the truth just once?” He lit the end with his Zippo.

  Averting her gaze to the pressure she made in her hands, her soft, unsure voice settled something inside of him. “I-It’s not a lie.”

  Prove it then.

  Taking a few steps forward, he stood over her, holding out his hand. “Come on, darlin’; just try it once.”

  If he still prayed, he would have in this moment. Watching her stare at the hand in front of her, he needed her desperately to just reach out and touch it.

  Being too focused on her face, Lucca almost missed it—the slightest movement of her hand moving toward his before she stopped.

  “I c-can’t.”

  What she had just done was a sign. She feels it, too. Even if she was ignoring it, there was no denying there was an electrifying pull between them.

  His voice took a commanding tone, not wanting any more lies, as he asked, “Why can’t you?”

  Her eyes met his, looking up through her dark lashes as she whispered her secret, “Because I’m afraid to.”

  She feared touch. That was something he knew from the beginning, but getting her to admit it to him was something he needed if they were ever going to get her to overcome it one day. He needed her to begin to trust him with her secrets.

  He took a seat on the chair in front of her. “That wasn’t so bad, darlin’.” Taking a hit off his cigarette, he wanted more. “It’s summer now, and you’re still wearing long sleeves.”

  She gave no answer, but watching her check their length and pull down the sleeves of her black dress was all he needed to know he had been right again. Not once had he seen her in short sleeves, no matter the weather, which told him she was hiding something beneath the material.

  Catching her eyes moving over him showed him some part of her was still intrigued by him.

  Wanting to intrigue her even more, he pulled out his Zippo, flipping it open. It didn’t take long to charm her with the glow weaving through his fingers.

  “Are you going to college?”

  “Yes, of course.”

  He began to weave faster. The importance of this question was something she wasn’t going to be able to understand yet. “Where?”

  “Stanford … in California.” She talked so easy when she was entranced by him, no stuttering.

  He shut the lighter off with a flick, having got what he needed. “That’s awfully far, darlin’. I guess you do get to keep running.” Standing, he looked down at her again, taking in everything he could about her until the next time. It made the wait less painful.

  Holding her breath, she didn’t move.

  The marks on her face had him thinking about what Lake had just told her.

  “She is right, you know. Those scars are beautiful.”

  He had dreamed of touching them every day, and he was envisioning doing it right now. Touch her scar … the darkness whispered.

  Walking away from her before he did something he would regret was him walking away from his dreams. For a moment, he had almost felt what it would be like to touch her. For a moment, he had almost felt what it would be like to be with her. It was the most blissful thing he had ever felt in his existence…

  Opening his eyes, there was no inkling of a doubt in his mind that, “She will always be.”

  Twelve

  The Freak and the Boogieman

  It was now a week since her and Lucca’s arrangement had been made, and she had already grown used to the schedule of living there. Her days were spent keeping herself busy with schoolwork, which was surprisingly nice as she spent them alone. Well, as alone as she could be with Drago watching her.

  Her fear of being there ceased, and she couldn’t even admit it to herself, yet a part of her was learning to be happy. Since her scars, she had feared for her life, not only at school, but her home, too. To be in fear almost every moment of your life for years was something she’d had to grow used to, to keep her sanity. She had almost forgotten what it was like not to feel that way.

  Chloe had hoped to achieve that at Stanford, but she still feared being all alone there, surrounded by new people who would stare at her like she was a freak. That didn’t happen at Lucca’s. She was never stared at nor treated like a freak because … here, with Lucca, I’m just like him. We’re both monsters.

  The freak and the boogieman.

  She didn’t mind dinners with him anymore, either. They were quite peaceful in each other’s company, and Lucca was a surprisingly good cook. If she didn’t have to sit next to him every night, he wouldn’t even bother her.

  There was only one thing she truly missed, and that was Elle. Yes, she missed Amo, Nero, and even Vincent, too; but she had never been this long without talking to her best friend, and it was starting to get to her.

  If Elle were here, it might not be …

  Pushing away the thought, she went back to the now finished assignment she had struggled with for hours. She went to submit it when a chat box appeared on her screen.

  They are all wrong except for #8. Try again.

  What the …?

  Chloe blinked at the screen, seeing if she was just exhausted fr
om working on it all morning. However, the chat box was still there, proving her wrong.

  Lucca’s friend. The third person who knew she was here.

  Ignoring the warning, she went to submit it again when another message came through.

  You’ll fail the assignment.

  Biting her lip, she hovered over the submit button, contemplating. Her answers seemed right to her, but she had struggled a lot through them. She wasn’t used to math being taught over the computer, let alone calculus.

  She held off submitting just yet, and typed into the chat box, Can you tell me how #1 is wrong?

  The problem immediately began to work out in front of her, making her mouth drop open at how fast it was completed. Needless to say, she was wrong.

  Typing into the box once more, she quickly responded, Thanks. I’ll try again later, before she slammed her laptop closed.

  Dang it. Calculus was killing her, and it was becoming too hard for her to understand from over the computer.

  Accepting defeat for now, she headed downstairs for some lunch. Once there, she noticed a motion in the backyard that made her curious to look out the back door for a better view.

  Chloe peeked out to see Lucca down in the dirt. He seemed to be … gardening?

  “I see you finally decided to come down,” Drago said in a gruff voice from behind her.

  She quickly turned around, nervous that she had been caught staring at Lucca. “I-I came down to g-get something to eat.”

  “I’m sure you did. You don’t come down for anything else.” His sour tone told her he was not being sarcastic.

  She looked out at the backyard again, at Lucca, knowing what Drago meant. The times she had spent with him weren’t of her own accord; they were just when she had to, to honor the deal.

  “He’s not at work today?” The words seemed to slip out of her mouth as she watched Lucca wipe sweat from his forehead onto his black shirt.

  “No, it’s Saturday. You would know that if you quit acting like such a prisoner.”