The Mafia Boss's Rose

Chapter 9

     I spin around to see who it is and suddenly an arm wraps around my waist, he pulls me backwards into him, his shirtless chest up against my back.
     The person who cleared their throat is his brother, looking a lot better than the last time I saw him. He's standing with five other people, two girls and three guys.
"I'd ask if you wanted to come with us, to go out but it seems you're preoccupied." I feel him tense behind me and his arm wraps a little tighter. I don't know how to feel about any of this. I'm giving a questioning look but not one I expect to be answered.
"Sooo anyways, call when you... want to you know, do whatever it is that we do." I can tell the girls are giving me a once over to see if I'm going to be trouble, almost as a protective, you better be good to him type. I can tell because none of them appear to be jealous of his arm wrapped around my waist which is a good sign. When the doors shut I pull away and shove him.
"Don't do that!"
"Are you always gonna be yelling at me?" He's smirking again.
"Probably!" I'm usually a quiet person but all I've done so far is yell at him.
"Good cause it's hot."
"Jackass!" I yell and throw his water bottle at him which he of course, catches. His smirk turns into a full out grin and he stalks towards me.
"Stop it!"
"Make me," this time it isn't a challenge, he walks towards me and I'm once again trapped against the poll on the corner of the ring.
"I don't even know your name! Why do you keep doing this?"
"Because your too good to be true."
"I'm what?!? That doesn't even make sense!"
"Your beautiful and you have a temper, you know how to fight and your not scared of me."
"I fucking sold you out to a cop!" At that he freezes and my blood runs cold. I feel so guilty for what I did. I can't take being that type of a person. Fear runs through me, he may just kill me.
"So that's what you did huh?" And I realize what he's done, how he's gotten it out of me. I shouldn't have given it up that easily.
"Who was it."
"It doesn't matter, it's too late now."
"It's never too late." He still hasn't moved and I'm worried he'll get mad and kill me or worse.
"Sometimes you can't change it." I whisper, suddenly not talking about the cop or anything present. My mind floats back to my best friend before his voice knocks me back to realty.
"I already changed the dates and the place. So who were they? Italian cops? The type of cops who refuse to take money because they're
do-gooders."
"Something like that," I whisper.
"Italians?!? Because I swear if it's Italians!" His voice raises for the first time and I flinch. I'm still scared of him but the guilt is eating me. I want him to stop being mad at me and I want to be wrapped up in his arms, breathing him in.
"You'll do what? Huh? Kill me? Hurt me in some way that death would be better?" His jaw ticks and I can see him tense.
"No."
"No?" I look up at him trying to decide if I should believe him. He goes to walk out of the ring and as he's walking away he yells over his shoulder,
"I already told you I couldn't hurt you even if I wanted to."
"Where are you going?!?" He stops and turns back.
"To get my men out of the city, where else would I be going. Thanks to you, the Italians know that we are gonna plan a surprise attack. I won't sign my men up for suicide if it's unnecessary." He turns back around and I swear under my breath.
"He was a do-gooder." He stops once again and turns around,
"What?"
"He wasn't Italian he was a do-gooder." I look up at the ceiling, my legs still shaking from the workout.
"Why didn't you just say that?" He gaze turns steely,
"Because what's the fun in that?" I smirk at him and he shakes his head at me.
"Your trouble,"
"I warned you." I start laughing. He just stands there taking me in. For the first time in such a long time I want to know someone's name, somehow I feel like I may end up sticking around for a little while.
"What's your name?" His eyes meet mine,
"Dimitri."
"Dimitri?" I say, seeing how it sounds. He walks up to the edge of the ring and leans on it.
"Yours?" I think about the next name I have to stick with. The next lie I'm going to tell.
"Vanessa."
"Don't lie to me."
"Why would I lie about that?"
"What's your name?"
"Vanessa."
"Stop."
"Stop what? You asked my name."
"Don't play dumb with me,"
"Me?" I say pointing to myself as he enters the ring. "Why would I ever do such a thing?" I say being completely sarcastic, my smile bright. He closes his arms around me so I can't back up.
"Stop lying to me."
"How do you know I'm lying?" He gently trails his thumb along my jawline.
"Because I can feel it." I give him a look like he has two heads.
"It feels wrong."
"It feels wrong?" I question.
"Yes. What's your name?"
"Ariella," I whisper softly as if that's gonna change the truth.
"Ariella." He repeats, trying it out. "Beautiful for a beautiful girl,". My stomach does flips and my heart starts racing. I find it hard to breath and he leans down to rest his forehead on mine. I breath him in and am instantly relaxed.
"What will it take to keep you away from me? I don't want anymore trouble."
"Nothing will keep me away from you, you are and forever will be mine." His breath whispers across my lips and I want to kiss him. I deeply want to but he pulls back and walks away.
"I'm not a possession, you can't just own me." I yell at him as he walks away.
"That's where your wrong, I can control every aspect of your life. I could have you thrown into a dungeon or I could put your face all over the news for whoever your running from." Fear covers my body but also comfort because I know he's lying.
"You wouldn't."
"Says who?"
"Me."
"Mhm and how do you know that I won't?"
"It feels wrong."
"I don't even know that I won't." He quietly whispers under his breath but I still here it.
"If you can't hurt me why would you be able to throw me to the wolves?"
"Because that way I wouldn't be the wolf."
"This is just got way too complicated."
"Is it though? Is it really? Because I'm a wolf in this world and you're just a small little lamb waiting to be killed."
"Are you calling me weak?" He shakes his head.
"No, I'm calling you vulnerable. You've walked yourself into trouble, a trouble that you can't get out of."
"I can get out of anything, I've had a lot of practice."
"I'm sure you have." My blue eyes meet his greys and we just stand there taking each other in.
"I'm not vulnerable, I have Rosco."
"You mean the dog who wouldn't attack me? What happens if someone really wanted to hurt you?"
"Rosco attacks if he sees a threat and he didn't see you as a threat."
"He barked at me."
"That's just his way of telling you to be careful."
"Bullshit. That dogs not good for anything." Seeming like he heard him he starts growling. I watch as Rosco walks up to a gym bag starts sniffing and than sits down. He looks up at me and starts barking.
"Clearly he's good for something." Dimitri makes a pfft sound and walks over. Opening up the bag he finds cocaine hidden away.
"Good enough?"
"No, he didn't attack me." I frown. It was strange that Rosco wouldn't attack him.
"Well if it makes you feel better you're the first person he hasn't attacked."
"And probably not the last." He states as he puts it back and does up the zipper.
"Your not even gonna find out who it belongs too?"
"Nope." I raise my eyebrows at him. "It's my brothers, he's probably just giving it to the next dealer. He knows better than to smoke it." He says not surprised. I put my hands on my hips and just look at him waiting to find out if we're gonna spar again.
"Go home and get some rest. You've done enough for today."
"What no! I can't just afford to work whenever I feel like it."
"You can now, I've paid for you place for the next year and a half."
"I'm not going to be here for that long!" He turns and faces me.
"Unhu." I glare at him.
"It's the truth! And stop taking care of me!! I was doing just fine on my own!"
"You mean how you got approached by the cops and than walked into a pub full of mafia men? If I hadn't been there you'd be dead," He makes a slice of his throat movement with his hand, "not to mention whatever shit you got yourself into when you left my guy on the bridge." He states it all so calmly as if my life wasn't falling apart at the hinges.
"I have a right to my own freedom!"
"Not in my city you don't,"
"It's not yours it the Italians!" I yell throwing my hands in the air.
"Yeah and trust me you'd much rather have me in your life than the Italians."
"You don't know that."
"Yes I do."
"I don't care what you think you know but I want some peace! I've earned that much! I leave one trouble to run into the next and then you tell me I'm better off with your kind of trouble than anyone else's! All I want is a nice steady job, a place to grow flowers and a cute little boyfriend who works at some law firm or something normal!"
"You want a boyfriend?"
"Not a possessive, I own you type boyfriend."
"To bad cause I'm the only option you have."
"Ugh! I'm not gonna date you!"
"Surrreee," he drags it out in a sarcastic tone making it seem like I'm lying.
"You know what?!? I'm out! I'm moving again." I go to walk out of the ring and am suddenly pulled backwards as an arm wraps around my waist. He buries his head in my neck. We've been working out for a while and we are both drenched in sweat.
"I'm not letting you run away from me."
"I can do whatever I want!" I cringe at how much I sound like a child but I don't care because it's the truth.
"You don't get a choice."
"Yes I do and I choose to leave!"
"No." I hate that word! I try to elbow him but he just takes it.
"Let me go!" I try to wriggle free but it doesn't work either.
"No. We're going to talk this out."
"No! I'm leaving!" This time I throw my head back in an attempt to get him off me but he grabs my ponytail and keeps my head back against his shoulder, exposing my neck.
"Not yet." He lets go of my hair and my anger is seeping from me.
"LET ME GO! YOU CANT JUST DO THIS TO ME!!" He chuckles, I can feel the vibration against my back. He spins me around and I throw punches at his chest but he still just takes them.
"You can't run away from all of your problems."
"Watch me!" I try to knee him in the groin but he uses his leg to block it.
"We're gonna talk about this." His voice is calm against my anger.
"No! We're! Not!" I yell, trying to still get free.
"You don't have to date me, I'm just gonna be your only option."
"How does that even make any sense?!?"
"Because I'll scare them all off and if they're dumb enough to mess with me, I'll put a bullet between their eyes." I freeze and look up at him. He's so sincere that I know ever breath of it is true.
"You can't just kill someone I want to date."
"If you want to date someone that's different but I'm not gonna let them come near you."
"Why?! Why do you have to do this to me?!"
"Because I-" his voice becomes quiet, "own you." He's taunting me, and finds my anger amusing.
"No! You don't get to do this to me!"
"Yes I do." He releases me, "cause your doing something far worse to me." He suddenly becomes serious and I can feel the fact that he's shutting me out.
"Like what?!? Huh? What could I possibly do that's worse than you taking my freedom away?"
"I want you and I'm gonna get you." He turns and walks away, completely ignoring my question. As he walks out of the gym I yell,
"Don't be so sure of that!" He won't get me. For the life of me, I'll make sure that he won't get me. "Prick" I mutter under my breath.