My mafia | Daerin

23.

POV: Haerin

Fuck, she looked gorgeous.

Every time I see her, I am in awe of how beautiful she was. The way she smiles while cooking, the way she rests her hands on my chest while looking up at me with those beautiful eyes, and the way she looks so peaceful while she sleeps. I still can't understand what I did to deserve her.
Well, what ever I did, I know for a fact I'm not letting her go. I glanced down to her face which was close to my bicep that she held onto while she walked, and felt the need to let everyone know she is mine and I am hers.

"You ready?" I asked.

She met my gaze and nodded. I smiled at her and she smiled back. Her smile is so fucking stunning. I turned away to open the door, so we could walk in fashionably late.

Danielle stared in awe at the extravagant ballroom, decorated with chandeliers and marble columns.

"Wow, this is beautiful," she whispered, barley over the music.

Not as beautiful as you.

"It is. How about we go dance?" I offered.

She chuckled. "I don't know how to do the fancy moves, but I can manage basic steps.

I pulled her to the floor and spun her around. "That's all you need. Just follow me."

We swayed to the rhythm and I can't lie: I sure did enjoy having her body close to me. We didn't need to say anything. Our bodies swayed to the rhythm when I briefly thought how could she ever think she was a bad dancer. Danielle might not know the steps, but she makes it seem like she does. The way she moves around the dance floor so gracefully, it was like she was meant to dance.

It was moments like these, which quite frankly happened frequently with her, that made me question why she was even with me when she could have every unmarried man in the room. I just knew one thing for certain: I was too selfish to let her slip away, whether it be by her family or safety, I would not let her leave my arms.

Suddenly, Danielle left my arms.

I quickly glanced around to find her, but she was right in front of me, with her hand reached out for me to take. I took her hand and let her lead me to the bar.

"I need a drink," Danielle exhaled, "Dancing is actually hard."

I chuckled. "You run for - What is it?- 40 minutes a day, but dancing is hard." I tried to tease her.

She rolled her eyes. "Running is easy, but dancing is moving in all directions and you have to think about the steps," she paused, " Plus, I have heels on."

I held up my hands, " Okay, you win. I don't understand how girls walk in those."

"Practice." Danielle shrugged nonchalantly.

I waved the waiter over and ordered two glasses of white wine. She didn't like red.

"Thank you," she smiled as I gave her her glass.

I opened my mouth to say something, but another voice cut me off.

"Danielle?"

Her eyes widened a little before she turned to the voice. I glared at the man who stole her attention.

Oh fuck.

I recognized him from the photo. It was her brother.

I put my arm around her waist and pulled her to me, keeping her close by.

He held his hands up, "I'm not here to steal her away. Everyone here knows you two are together," he turned towards Danielle, " I just wanted to talk to you."

My grip tightened and she leaned into me, probably wondering why someone at this party full of mafia members wants to talk to her.

"Who are you?" Danielle asked, confusion clear in her voice.

"I'm Felix," he offered his hand.

"I'm Danielle," she shook his hand, which I carefully watched in case he tried anything.

"Je suis votre frère," Felix said. (I am your brother.)

Fuck. I couldn't understand anything if he was going to speak French. Why didn't I learn french in high school? I just had to test out a second language with Italian and English. My mind was going a hundred miles a minute, trying to come up with a plan to keep her safe, but all I could do was keep her close to me, and let her do as she wants.

"Non vous avez tous tort." Danielle shook her head. (No you're wrong.)

"Je peux vous le prouver," he said. (I can prove it to you.)

"Mon père ne tromperait jamais ma mère," (my father never cheated on my mother.)

"I'll n'a pas. Je suis votre grand frère," (he didn't. I am your older brother.)

"Mais... comment," Danielle shook her head, fuck she looks confused and hurt. (But... how)

Felix opened his mouth, but I interrupted him.

"I think we're done here," I said firmly, leaving no room to argue.

He looked at Danielle then at me and ultimately decided to back down. He reached into his pocket and gave me his business card.

"If she wants to know more," Felix said as I slipped it into my jacket pocket.

I looked down at her. There was a line between her eyebrows and the corners of her lips were turned down.

"Hey, talk to me, what's wrong?" I gently nudged her.

"I need some air," Danielle quickly said before she slipped out of my grip and ran through the crowd.

Shit!

This isn't good. Danielle could get lost or hurt. I quickly tried to follow her, but I didn't see which way she went.

I had to find her.

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authors note: no chapters from here will be proofread