ARIEL
"Oww" I sit up, looking out the windshield to see a car blocking the road, diagonally, preventing all traffic from crossing the one way road. But the area seemed to be very isolated so there was no one else here.
"Mì dispiace, signora. This car come from nowhere." The driver explains, italian accent thick.
"Are you hurt?" I ask him, watching him clutching his arms.
"No--"
"Yes you are. Who does this driver think he is." I fume, opening my door and getting out of the car. I stomp over to the car, that is not even a feet away from collision to ours. "Hey asshole, where did you get your drivers license, Mexico?!" I shout.
I am so angry. I don't know why. The last few days have been incredibly infuriating and I am about to be the biggest disappointment to my parents and this idiot with his stupid completely tinted mercedes was not making me any happier.
The drivers side door to the car opens and I see black, shiny Alexander McQueens step out of the car, first.
Wait, Alexander McQueens. Oh--
Before I can finish internalizing the situation, the very face I was dreading comes into view.
Griffin Moretti. In all his chiseled jaw, green eyed, model like infuriating beauty. My mouth parts, then closes, like a fish. My heart clenches, a burning sensation spreads out in my chest as he holds eye contact, walking closer till he's standing a few steps away.
My breath catches midway and I stagger backwards, my heel causes me to twist my ankle and my spell of Griffin induced brain paralysis breaks when the pain makes me wail.
"Fuck." He catches my arm, steadying me as I grip my ankle, standing on one leg.
"Ow. Ow ow ow ow." I cry, actual tears spring to my eyes at the pain. "It's broken." I cry, hissing when I hold it too hard.
I open my eyes, feeling the tears slide down my cheeks. My arm burns, in an entirely different way where he is holding it. At the realization, I quickly snatch it away from his hold.
"Don't touch me." I grit. His eyes flash with hurt before he masks it with indifference.
"Sit on the hood of the car." His deep voice grinds my entire universe to a halt.
God I missed that sound. Nothing, not even Henry Cavill matches his level of hotness.
Stop it.
"No. Move your car out of the way, or I will drive through it myself." I gently put my foot down onto the ground, wincing at the fresh pain.
"Yeah? With the broken foot?" He snarks. I snap my angry gaze towards him. His eyes momentarily soften. "Sit on the hood, or I will have to touch you." He says. I roll my eyes.
"I'm not scared of you, I'm only sitting because my foot hurts." I say forcefully, walking on one leg to his cars hood.
"I have to snap that back into place, it will hurt less." He kneels infront of me.
"No, don't touch--" but I squeak when he twists it twice and the pain goes away. I wiggle my ankle as he stands up straight. "How did you-- Never mind." I slide of the car and go to walk away but he stops me.
"We need to talk." He gruffs.
"Yeah? What about? How you called my husband to be--"
"Don't." He grits. I frown. "The only thing he is to be, is dead if I see him anywhere near you ever again." he seethes.
"Grow up, Griffin. This is not a game. And I am not playing." I turn around.
"Russo Securities stocks." That makes me stop.
"What?" I turn around to face him. He's holding up his phone, opened to some sort of graph.
"Russo Securities stocks, right here, at the mercy of my fingertips." He repeats. "And ofcourse, yours." His face is malicious. Like I've never seen it.
"What does that mean?" I ask him.
"It means, if you don't do exactly as I fucking say, Russo Security's stocks fall to nothing by tonight. And by market close tomorrow, it doesn't exist."
Tears spring to my eyes, at the unexpected ruthless coup he's staging, at seeing him be so mean for the first time since that day.
From simply seeing him.
"What? What does that mean? Exactly what you say. What could you possibly want from me?" I ask him, my confusion heightens when his face turns stone cold.
"You have to marry someone so your father doesn't loose his company." he starts off. How can he possibly know that? "I have to marry someone aswell." He adds.
"And? What does that have anything to do with me?" I ask. Even when I could physically crumble right here at the thought. Because the thought of him just touching another girl, let alone marrying her, makes me want to suffocate to death. I hate how I am acting unfazed when all I want is him. Even if he is the person who's hurt me the most.
"Keep the snark at bay, Ariel. I don't appreciate it." His cold remark makes me shiver.
Ariel.
I don't know why my name sounds so cold coming from him. He never used to call me by my name.
"Fine. Then tell me, please, what is it that you want." I ask.
"You and I will be getting married. I will give you 24 hours to decide on an answer. If the answer is yes, great. If the answer is no, then one click of a button and Russo Security goes down like a house of cards."
"Griffin." I sputter, the shock renders me speechless. "You're blackmailing me into marrying you?" I clarify.
"Take it as you will, I need an answer, this time tomorrow."
"Why are you doing this? You hate me, you wanted me gone 2 years ago now you want to marry me? Like this?" My confusion gets the better of me.
"Make no mistake, I still harbor the same feelings towards you. I have my reasons for what I am doing. My own gain, my own purpose. You are just a piece of the puzzle, so don't flatter yourself. I would wed a musk rat for what I want. You are just another pawn, like always." His lips curl in a cruel smirk.
My heart sinks at his words.
He turns, walking to his car, getting in and driving off. As if he hadn't just snatched the floor from right under me.
He had left me hurt, confused and all I could do was gawk at the night sky.
