Gino looked at me with such a dirty expression that I felt completely exposed even though the dress protected my body from his eyes.
Nicolo and Nunzio seemed just as tense as I did, which made me realize all too well that Gino was probably in charge here, who even took a step towards me so that I should have lifted my face to look at him. But since my courage had failed me, I just looked at the ground and hoped he would let it go.
"Gino!" someone behind us suddenly interrupted this silence and startled by his menacing voice, I jumped slightly and turned around, holding my breath, so that I looked straight into the blue eyes of an elderly gentleman. "Is that how you treat guests lately?"
He gave Gino a warning look, who immediately took a few steps away from me.
"Scusa, Papà," I heard him next to me and he sat down again on the couch with Nicolo, which Nunzio did as well.
Okay, that had to be the boss then...
"You must be Ludovica Grasso," he asked with a smile that was anything but genuine. Nevertheless, I replied and hesitantly took his hand, which he held out to me demandingly.
"Si, señor," I confirmed politely, and when he released his hand from mine and seemed to be examining me, he straightened his black tie.
"My name is Vincenzo Mancini and I hope my sons and Nunzio have been nice to you?"
I nodded, but he already seemed to know that Gino wasn't a nice fellow, because his admonishing gaze was immediately directed at him.
"Fine, Nunzio take her outside. I need to talk to my sons."
Somehow he looked like Robert de Niro... This thought was my last in this large living room, because I already felt Nunzio's hand on my arm, leading me outside into the fresh air.
"He's really nice," I said to myself rather than Nunzio, feeling good that I might not be sold for any purpose after all.
"Don't let that fool you," Nunzio said dryly, and when we got to several really fancy cars, I put my face in the sun and basked in the hope that everything would be fine.
We just stood there for a while and while Nunzio was typing on his phone I took a closer look at the surroundings.
The villa looked even bigger from the outside than from the inside. The white facade looked impeccable, the surrounding bushes seemed freshly trimmed and the gunmen lounging about seemed to be enjoying the sun over Palermo as much as I was.
I took a deep breath several times and could even smell the sea from here, which made me mentally dive into another world for a moment, until Gino's voice unfortunately transported me back to the here and now.
"Get in," he ordered me coolly and confused I looked at Nunzio who only gave me a tired smile.
"Remember one thing. If you think Gino is bad, then you don't know Enzo. He's friendly, but his views are only based on his interests. I wish you a nice evening."
I gaped in disbelief after Nunzio walked back into the house while Gino stood by a black Porsche and watched me expectantly. His black hair shone in the sun, the dark glasses blocked my view of his eyes and the suit fitted his body perfectly.
"Are you sure you want to tease my patience further?"
His voice was once again so warning that my feet moved immediately without even thinking twice about protesting.
With great reluctance I dropped into the passenger seat of his car, feeling the heated leather under my thighs and taking in that manly smell that Gino probably had not only on himself but also in his car.
When he got in, he started the engine without paying any more attention to me and deep house music immediately sounded from the speakers in front of me, while luckily for me the air conditioning was also doing a good job.
I would have loved to say something or ask, because the silence was kind of overwhelming, but Gino was different from Nunzio. It certainly wasn't easy to make small talk with him, and besides, I wasn't particularly keen on provoking him again.
My gaze fell out of my window and while I continued to listen to the music and nervously fidgeted with my fingers on my lap, I looked at the beautiful villas in the area as the sun slowly but surely prepared to set.
The further we drove, the longer I sat in this car and the more I tuned out Gino, the more my nerve-wracking tension disappeared until I suddenly felt his hand on my thigh and took a deep breath.
I jerked in panic and looked over at him with wide eyes, but he gave me no reaction. He continued to drive his car casually, looking out the windshield while his hand was now squeezing my thigh so hard I was holding my breath, my skin tingling with pain.
"Gino," I addressed him, but he only shook his head slightly.
"I don't want to hear a word."
His hand slowly moved higher and higher and in a panic I put my hands on his to push him away again, but he grabbed again so hard that I took my hands away in renewed pain and my heart pounded in my throat.
Tense and on the verge of tears, I sat frozen, looking down at his hand, which was slowly finding its way under my dress, causing me to hold my breath.
I really wanted to fight back with every fiber of my being, but something inside me told me that no matter what I did, he would get what he wanted anyway.
When I suddenly felt his fingers on my panties, I flinched and let out all of my held breath, not knowing what to feel anymore. His fingers slipped sideways under my panties and due to the heat in the car, the music from the radio and the smell that was in the air, I closed my eyes and felt foggy for a moment.
Shit! What was wrong with me!
"You're wet," he said amusedly and I immediately looked over at him in disbelief while he thankfully removed his hand between my legs and grinned dirty. "Who knows, maybe today I'll pay off your debt."