Nikolai finally slowed to a stop and pushed a door open, Angelo’s vision was still limited but the smell of the perfumed room was hard to miss.
Nikolai let him down just as unassumingly as he had picked him up, walking off to graciously take a seat.
Now Angelo could get a look at the room, it was done simply. A sitting area in a corner with a television setup and speakers, and a minibar. There was a bed in the room, it was well decorated but it couldn’t take away from the seedy atmosphere.
"Why are we here?" He asked suspiciously, forgetting his anger for a moment.
Nikolai had already made himself at home in the room was routine. "Drink with me," He invited and as soon as he spoke, a suited server walked in with a tray of drinks.
Angelo’s alarms were blaring, he couldn’t help but feel like the Mafia King was up to something detrimental to him.
Despite Nikolai’s humane enough treatment even though he had tried to kill the Mafia King, Angelo hadn’t forgotten that he was essentially trapped in a lion’s den.
He walked over and sat on a nearby sofa, "Do I have a choice?" He asked coldly, still upset from the scene of being picked up, both times.
Nikolai’s good mood seemed to feed off his anger and misery, the Alpha was completely relaxed, cold blue eyes fixed on the server pouring out drinks. "No."
Angelo didn’t know why he asked, Nikolai always got his way and there was still the threat of the safe room hanging over his head. His experience with the Mafia King gave him a new array of emotions.
He was usually immune to most situations because there was always a way out, death. Any unsavory situation for him was a dangerous one that risked him dying, it was the only certain outcome. And seeing that he was fine with dying, eager to die even, it gave him the upper hand.
But with Mafia King Nikolai, he was a fish out of water. The Mafia King had no intentions of killing him, not even physical torture. It was like being put in a padded box and shaken vigorously, he was physically unharmed but mentally a wreck.
The server hastily made his departure after pouring out their drinks, adding to Angelo’s dread. Nikolai was completely unpredictable, this could be a harmless drinking session or it could have concerning repercussions for him.
Angelo pushed his hair out of his face and emptied his glass of red wine. Nikolai hadn’t even reached for his shot glass of brandy, the block of ice bobbing in the golden liquid. But he reached out to refill Angelo’s glass, his movements measured.
"Trying to get me drunk?" Angelo asked calmly, drinking down a second glass of wine.
Nikolai’s gaze was intense as he stared at him, "How’s your tolerance?"
Angelo placed down his empty glass for the second time, unruffled as Nikolai appraised him, waiting for his response. "So so," He gave a vague answer, cautious.
Nikolai didn’t fill his glass a third time instead the Alpha leaned back, a patient look in his eyes like he was waiting for something.
Nikolai knew that Angelo’s alcohol tolerance was decent, he had caught a glimpse of the assassin drinking before but a drunk Angelo wasn’t his goal.
Angelo grew apprehensive but he hid it under a veneer of cold anger. "Is it poison?" He asked instead.
Nikolai chuckled and reached out to take a drink from his shot glass. "You’d like that, wouldn’t you?"
Angelo knew that Nikolai wouldn’t poison his drink, that would be too merciful, but it was evident that the Mafia King had ulterior motives, he just couldn’t figure it out.
Ticked off, he reached out to pour himself another glass of wine. If it was tampered with, maybe he would take enough of whatever was in it to kill him.
Nikolai just lifted a brow but he made no move to stop him, that watching gaze never leaving Angelo.
By the fourth glass of wine, Angelo slowed down, a frown on his face. Why did it feel like he had drunk an entire bottle of ginger ale?
The heat started from his throat and it spread downwards, coalescing in his middle, it wasn’t uncomfortable at first, like drinking a mug of ginger tea but the heat only spread further and got warmer.
Angelo shot Nikolai a look, genuinely distressed now. "What was in the wine?"
"An aphrodisiac." Nikolai replied casually like they were merely talking about the weather.
Angelo felt his heart sink, he knew the Mafia King wasn’t interested in him but that didn’t mean there weren’t alternatives. "What are you trying to do?" He pressed himself back against again the sofa he was seated on, trying to put more distance between them.
Nikolai’s eyes glittered coldly at Angelo’s visible terror but he didn’t move, calmly sipping. "Nothing. I prepared a variety of escorts, just say the word and they’ll come right in to ease the effects."
Angelo relaxed a little at Mafia King Nikolai’s words, force didn’t seem to be an interest for the crime lord but coercion was a commonly used tool of his.
He rose to his feet and walked to the other side of the room which happened to be where the bed was. "I’ll pass," He said calmly, sitting at the edge of the bed. "You might as well give up now."
Nikolai rose to his feet as well but it wasn’t to close the distance between them, instead, he sat on a different couch, one that faced Angelo directly. "I’ve got time."
Nikolai had expected this outcome, he had banked on it even. More interested in watching Angelo struggle than anything else. He would be disappointed if the assassin broke, he was rooting for him even.
Angelo dipped a finger into the neck of his hoodie and tugged on it, his discomfort visible on his face. He rarely wore anything under his hoodies, it was perfect to regulate his temperature seeing as he wore the heavy outfit everywhere.
But now it came to bite him in the ass because he was steadily on his way to overheating unless he took the hoodie off. His face was damp with sweat, tendrils of his hair sticking to his face.
He kicked off his shoes and got on the bed fully, realizing that he had screwed himself over by being mule-headed and doubling the dose of aphrodisiac. He glanced over at Nikolai to find the Alpha staring calmly at him, it was unsettling, like a predator lying in wait.
He gritted his teeth and left the hoodie on, lying down and turning away from Nikolai’s prying eyes. He was going to make this as unsatisfying for the Mafia King as possible.
Angelo laid down with the intention to sleep, and he managed it for five endless minutes. His breathing deepened, a fine sheen of sweat over his skin, his hair stuck to his face, and he was fighting a losing battle to stop himself from squirming.
"You’re welcome to take a cold shower," Nikolai said generously, the Alpha’s low voice breaking into the haze of heat that enveloped Angelo.
Angelo turned around then, Mafia King Nikolai saw right through him anyway so what was the use of keeping up the ruse? Besides he felt more comfortable with the Alpha in his line of vision.
The tips of his hair fell over the edge of the bed, his face flushed, the tips of his fingers peeking out of the sleeves of the hoodie clung to the sheets.
His skin felt stretched taut, it was uncomfortable, borderline painful. The offer of a cold shower felt like a lifeline, it felt like his blood was boiling, if he was offered, he would take another glass of the cursed red wine to ease the heat.
He didn’t acknowledge the Alpha’s words, knowing that Mafia King Nikolai didn’t say that out of empathy. Angelo knew he would give in and take the offered shower eventually if this went on but right then he ignored Nikolai, his lips parting to get more air in to cool down.
Right then if someone walked up to him with scissors, he would let them chop his hair off, it hung off like a heavy weight, more and more damp strands sticking to his face.
Angelo rose to his feet, fine trembles going through his body. He had reached his limit, it was a difficult kind of torture, it came from within making it feel like his organs were being scorched.
It was either he took a shower or ripped all his clothes off. Doing either of those was evidence that he had lost his composure, he would rather take the cold shower.
Mafia King Nikolai said nothing as he walked off to the bathroom but he could feel the Alpha’s prickling gaze on his back. Angelo would admit, he understood now why the Mafia King was like a boogeyman to most people, his methods were very peculiar.