Griselda POV
It felt like my throat was closing up again as, I looked at him to see if there was even a hint of humor in his eyes, but when I found none, my whole body shook with fear. I didn’t know what to say to him, maybe I could lie to him, but yet I knew there was no chance for that, since he knew when people lie, especially me.
As I remembered the nightmare, my skin prickled and it felt like leeches were sucking my blood off. That wasn’t a nightmare, it was my reality, I got sucked into the minute I was born. Growing up, I didn’t have my father’s love, instead I got my mother’s, she loved me until she took her last breath.
We would play in the gardens, until my father came and made us go inside. Those were the moments I promised myself that I would cherish forever. My mother was a woman, who was very patient and caring. Even though my father never loved her, she gave him everything she could. She gave him her body to use, her love to waste and most of all her soul to break.
Warm hands cradled my face and I broke out of my day dream to look at Arcado. He kept his face stoic as always but I knew behind the facade, he was searching for answers that I couldn’t give him. When I am with Arcado my heart feels like it’s going to jump out of my chest, he makes me feel things I haven’t felt before.
“Tell me what happened?”, he commanded.
Looking at him straight in the eyes, trying to not show any fear or weakness I stated “I am not going to tell you”.
Eyes dancing with amusement, he smirked as he glided his wandering hands up my thighs. My breath hitched in my throat at the contact of his skin on mine and I bit my lip hard enough to keep from making any sounds. The effect he had on me was inevitable and surprisingly I wasn’t scared of him. He wasn’t anything like the devil, he had a kind soul but he kept his emotions locked inside of him.
His hands disappeared under my dress and I gasped at the shock that sizzled inside me. Closing my eyes I took a deep breath as his hands wandered towards my panties. I knew what he was doing was wrong but I couldn’t stop the moan that came out from my lips as his hands rubbed me, I could still feel him even though I had panties on.
“Let’s get rid of this, shall we?”, he mumbled huskily.
Pushing the panties aside, his eyes glanced down and his eyes darkened even more. A low rumble of approval runs through his chest, still smirking at me he begins to kiss and suck on my collarbone. Subconsciously arching my head, I give him more access which he gladly accepts as he begins to give me open mouthed kisses.
His hands roam freely through my body and I do nothing to stop him. When he touches me, I am a puddle at his feet. He makes me feel protected and safe. I don’t cower away when he touches me instead I gladly welcome it with open arms.
Looking at me straight in the eyes, he begins to rub me and I gasp as the new sensation continues to build up in my lower abdomen. Closing my eyes, I began to enjoy what he was giving. I felt myself tighten around his fingers and my eyes snapped open as he pulled his finger away, a whimper of protest left my lips.
“Tell me, what you dreamt of Mi Amore”, he commanded once again.
My eyes widened as it all clicked into place. He was tricking me into telling him about my life. I didn’t know where the anger came from, but as I looked into his smirking face, my anger rose tenfold. I had never shown my emotions before but now I wanted to bash at him for tricking me.
With a new found confidence I said “No”.
Glaring at me, he inched his face closer and I could smell his sweet smell. My breath hitched in my throat once again. Eyes wandering down to his lips, I subconsciously licked mine and as I looked up I caught him looking with clear lust in his eyes. Groaning deeply, he uttered a few curse words and closed his eyes while taking a deep breath.
“You”re killing me, Mi Amore”, he uttered, his voice still husky.
Looking at him confused, I frowned not getting what he meant. Seeing my expression, he chuckled deeply and shook his head. Suddenly the air around us changed and we both stared into each other”s eyes not one of us giving in. But to what? I didn”t know.
A knock on the door broke us out of our staring and we both turned towards the door as it opened. Sofia peeked her head in and sighed what seemed like in relief as she strode to the bathroom. She looked between us as her eyebrows furrowed and she glared while looking at Arcado.
“Stop, toying with her feelings”, she hissed through her teeth.
“As I said, what I do is none of your business”, he growled back.
They both glared at each other, silently communicating with their eyes. Sophia huffed and turned towards me, giving me a small smile, she pulled me towards her and hugged tightly. I let her scent consume me as I closed my eyes and enjoyed her warmth. Over the past weeks, Sophia and Lilly has become such an important people in my life.
Before I met them, I thought I would die in pain and darkness. But that perspective changed when I met this family. They were different from the Russians. While the Russians ruled with hate, the Italians ruled with passion. They were from two different worlds and I was thankful for that.
“Sophia, leave us, I want to talk to Griselda about something important”. Arcado”s voice broke us apart.
Giving me a small smile, she walked towards the door and got out, shutting the door behind her. Gulping, I tipped my head towards Arcado preparing for the questions he was about to throw at me once again.
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Griselda POV
“Alright, tell me now”, his voice boomed through, the bathroom as he glared at me.
Even though my heart thudded with fear, I didn”t let it show, instead I leveled him with my own glare. His eyes grew amused and he chuckled darkly as he took several steps towards me while my legs walked backwards. The minute my back hit the wall, he took the chance to cage me in with both of his arms on either side of the wall.
“Tell me”, he whispered.
“Why are you so keen, on knowing what happened in my dreams?”, I snapped narrowing my eyes at him.
“I just am”, he answered with the same tone as me.
I sighed in exasperation and darted my eyes anywhere but him. I didn”t want him to see the depth of my soul, the fear I had of sleeping everyday knowing my reality would haunt me everywhere I went. I just wanted to be free of the shackles beholding me in its tight grip, but I didn”t know who held the key to opening them.
Every time I slept, I would be reminded of the words the devil whispered before. He would call me a whore, a slut, and every word he could find in the dictionary that would describe me. Every time I look in the mirror, I would see a girl, who had scars deep within her soul and a body she was ashamed of.
Scars littered across my skin, each holding what I”ve been through. My back was covered in cigarette burns and belt scars. Every time I disobeyed him, he would puff out a cigarette and burn me with it. He would enjoy my cries of agony and would laugh at my teared eyed self.
No matter how much I begged him, he would continue to torture me until he was satisfied. No one could save me from that hell, if the guards had one ounce of sympathy towards me, they wouldn”t let it show, instead they would laugh along with him. I despised all of them with every fiber of my being and I promised my mother that I would run away from the hell before it was too late, but it was too late, the devil took away my soul and kept it hidden, away from me.
“Griselda, are you okay?”, I glanced at Arcado”s face, which was etched with worry.
My heart swelled in my chest, to see him showing me his emotions that he showed to no one. I wanted to figure out what these feelings inside me meant but I couldn”t quite pinpoint it. It was like he could take my breath away with just a simple look and I would be a puddle at his feet. These feelings scared me so much because he could turn out like the devil, but as I continued to spend more time with him, I was figuring out that he was nothing like him.
“You hungry?”, he asked, changing the subject.
With a bewildering look, I nodded my head a bit dazed, questioning his change of attitude. A minute ago he was growling about me not telling him about my dream, but now he”s asking if I am hungry. With a smirk thrown my way, he grasped my little hand in his large ones. Tugging me out of the bathroom, he closed the door behind us and walked towards my closet.
“Here, put this on”, he shoved a simple red dress in my face.
Getting the dress out of his grasp, I looked at him expectantly while he just stared blankly. My eyebrows furrowed as he made no move to get out or at least turn around. I mean I was used to being naked in front of a guy, because of the devil. But with Arcado, I felt self conscious of my body.
“Hurry up”, he growled, still rooted to the ground.
“Can you um, maybe turn around?”, I asked meekly.
“Ah so that”s what this is about”, he smirked.
His eyes swiped up and down my body and I felt the weird sensation in my stomach, as my cheeks turned deep crimson. He walked closer and his arms snaked around my waist. Beginning to stroke my waist softly, he leaned down and started peppering kisses over my neck.
“W-what are you doing?”, I squeaked out.
Instead of answering, he pulled away and took a few steps back, giving me much space needed to breath. His eyes turned intense once again as he looked at me with an emotion I couldn”t place. I grew self conscious and shuffled on my feet back and forth.
“Get dressed”, he ordered, before turning around.
Shaking out of my flabbergasted state, I slowly peeled off the top and the comfortable pants before putting the dress on. Clearing my throat I opened my mouth to speak before Arcado abruptly turned out by himself.
“Let”s go”. He got a hold of my hand, and began to walk out of the room with me in tow.
His hands felt big and warm, it completely engulfed mine and I couldn”t help but feel the tingles rushing towards my body. Glancing down, I watched as our hands swayed slightly by our walking. A small smile lit up my face but I bit my lip before anyone could see.
Walking down the stairs, we made our way towards the kitchen. Maids were bustling around making breakfast and preparing the dishes. One by one, the guards made their way in and took their seats but not before slightly bowing to Arcado.
Maids began to serve food to the guards and I take a step towards the kitchen to help, but a tug on my arm halts my movements. Frowning, I look behind me towards the arm and follow the path of it, to come face to face with Arcado. I try to get my arm out of his grasp but his grip tightens.
“You”re sitting with me”, his voice is heard throughout the room.
Griselda at the top