I was the king's subject?

A shiver ran down me at the deep accented husky voice.

A voice I knew really well.

Slightly turning around, as his hold was still on me, I met with those dark icy blue eyes. The flash light only revealed a part of his left profile as I held my mobile in my hand, far down from his face.

Sharp jaw covered in dense stubble and his intense gaze, that was watching me closely.

A feeling of deja Vu hit me. The memories of five years ago flashed across my mind.

The same heady masculine cologne surrounded my senses.

The side of his mouth pulled up into a smirk. "Like the view, il mio cuore?"

"Huh?" I was well aware of his calloused hands on my arms. His front pressed against my back. His scent in my lungs.

I couldn't help but feel like my world was surrounded by him for a moment. Then I blinked, getting out of the haze that his presence created.

Taking a step back from him, I cleared my throat. And the thing that surprised me was how his hands twitched as soon as I moved out of his hold, as if wanting to reach out to me again. That sharp jaw ticked.

Was he mad because I pulled away?

Then taking a deep breath, he met my gaze again.

Suddenly the lights turned on around the hallway, making me squint against the brightness. But his gaze didn't move away from me.

I couldn't help but steal a glance all over him.

He donned a black Armani suit without a tie. The first few buttons of the white shirt underneath that wrapped around his broad shoulders and sculpted chest were open. And the view of a part of that sculpted pale chest made me stare. The silver chain that ran down his strong neck disappeared down his shirt.

A deep groan that reverberated through his chest made me snap my gaze up.

Shit! Get yourself together, Cassie!

His pupils dilated, fists curled as his flaming gaze burned me. As he took a step ahead, I took one back. And he didn't like it at all.

"W-what did you just say? Il mio what?" I cursed myself in my head for stuttering.

"Nothing." Voice hard.

I frowned. He did say something in Italian.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, getting myself in control. "Don't tell me this is another of your properties."

"What if I do, Ms. Brooks?" His head tilted to a side, the tiny smirk appearing again. "And you seem to remember last night very well…"

At the mention of last night, my cheeks burned.

"I… uh…" I glanced around. "I don't remember much from last night. And you didn't answer my first question."

With a powerful stride, he was in my breathing zone again. And this time, I didn't pull away. But my heart raced fast.

"Who knows, maybe I came here for a stroll, or maybe... I came here to take something that you owed me from last night?" he rasped out. That intense gaze held mine.

My mouth dried up as his words hit my brain. I owed him?

T-the kiss?

The kiss that I wanted to give him in return for the favor he did to me. The kiss that was left unfulfilled because I got unconscious.

"W-what are you talking about? I don't remember anything."

The redness of my cheeks must have told him that I knew very well what he was talking about. Something dark flashed across those icy blue eyes. His gaze fell on my lips for a second.

Flee from here if you don't want to embarrass yourself anymore than you already did because of your stupidness last night, Cassie!

Yes, I needed to leave.

But as I went to walk past him, one big hand of his curled around my waist, pulling me towards him. A gasp slipped through my lips.

"I said I don't remember…"

A husky chuckle left him.

"Don't worry, il mio cuore. I didn't come here for the thing you offered last night. Not yet…" His tone went low with the last line. The squeeze on my waist made me part my lips. Goosebumps spread across my skin.

Not yet?

"I was talking about gratitude. Your friend must have told you that I took you home with utmost care. I was expecting a 'thank you' when you saw me. But instead, I got a bunch of questions. Where is your manners, Ms. Brooks?"

With his gaze set on my mouth, my heart pounding, his scent engulfing my senses, I couldn't think straight.

I had to pull away.

Pushing at his chest, I cleared my throat again. "I, thank you. Beth told me about it. I- I was about to…"

Damn! What was wrong with me?

It was his fault. Did he get so close to every woman he met?

I took a deep breath. "I would have said it if you hadn't sneaked up behind me like a creep! And don't come into my personal space like that! Don't think that I forgot how you literally dragged me away from that dance floor. And you should apologize for that the moment you saw me. Now where are your manners, Mr. De Sylvano?"

My lips pressed when he didn't answer.

Because he was too busy staring at me. My mouth, my neck, my chest.

Damn this man!

As much as I should have been mad at his open staring like a shameless man, like as if I was his property, something tugged in my lower region. Butterflies danced across my tummy.

"Well?"

That intense gaze rose back to my eyes. "All I can say is, you weren't complaining last night. In fact…" Another chuckle. "And you didn't look uncomfortable at all just a minute ago."

My ears burned as I glared at him.

"Of course, I was! Don't interpret anything!" I frowned. "And don't you dare get all touchy like that again!"

Ignoring my warning, those icy blue eyes kept roaming my features with a… yearning in them?

I shook my head. What was I thinking?

Gosh! I needed to leave, away from this man to think straight!

"Anyways, I need to look for my friend. So excuse me."

With that, I walked past him, without him grabbing me again, and started to rush away from his demonic self.

When I was about to take a turn to another corridor, his voice reached my ears.

"See you soon, Ms. Brooks."

Frowning, I glanced back at him.

A small smirk danced at the corner of his lips as he held my gaze. "Very soon."

The firmness of his tone made my stomach flip.

Then he disappeared around the corner.

Soon?

What did he mean by that?

Why was he even here in the first place? Even if he said it was his mall, why was he here? Exactly in this wing where Elizabeth held the photoshoot of her company...

Then realization slowly hit me.

Did she still work for him? She worked for Rossa, so… Was it his?

I heard some Italian billionaire owned it.

Shit!

So Rossa was his? And I was about to start working as a model in his company?

"Cassie?"

Turning around, I found Chad walking towards me with Elizabeth behind him.

"You alright? Sorry, I went to the hall to look for Ellie."

I nodded. "I'm fine. Don't worry."

My eyes went to Elizabeth.

I had to ask her about the owner of Rossa to be sure.

Just as I opened my mouth to ask her, Chad cut me off.

"I have another good news for you! And trust me, you will more than just love it!"

I raised my brows. "What's it?"

A wide grin spread across his face. "Do you know how much you will be paid per shoot?"

Oh, yes! The salary. How could I forget the most important thing?

"How mu…"

"Five thousand dollars!"

I gasped. "What?"

Shocked, I looked at Elizabeth. At her nod, I slapped a hand over my mouth.

Five fucking thousand dollars? Per shoot?

The most I earned for a photoshoot was three thousand dollars. Only after working for a few days.

And they were offering me five thousand per shoot?

That was insane! I wasn't even a famous face.

"Are you serious?"

"Yes, I am," she said. "Though you might have to stay at the shoot more than just some hours as you won't know when your turn will arrive. There are a lot of models, you know…"

Before she could finish, I threw my arms around her. "Thank you! Thank you so much! You don't know what favor you have done on me, Elizabeth!"

Chuckling, she patted my back. "I'm just doing my job. And please, call me Ellie."

Her kindness surprised me. Because I could guarantee that she wasn't like that.

But I didn't care at that moment. I got a job and the salary was too good to be true. Now I wouldn't have to be worried about those men Theresa stole money from.

I will be able to pay them with just some days of income.

I could just go to the cops. But I had tried that before and got nothing. Anyone could be bought with money. Even the police.

Then I remembered that icy blue eyed Italian.

"Hey, Eliza… I mean, Ellie. Actually I wanted to ask you about the owner of Rossa. You know, I would like to meet the boss before starting in the company."

While Chad seemed confused about my sudden interest in the big boss, Elizabeth's eyes widened slightly. Something flashed across her features.

But she composed herself soon. "Uh, actually our boss is an extremely busy person. You don't worry about him. You will work under my guidance. The models don't even get to see a glance of him, they're not that fortunate." A nervous laughter.

"Thank God, they're not fortunate to meet that devil," mumbled Chad beside me, which wasn't caught by Elizabeth.

He knew who the owner was?

From his words, my doubt just cleared up more. It was definitely him.

"Anyways, see you tomorrow?" she asked. "The photoshoot starts at ten."

Should I really do it?

Because I knew, my sanity would be gone if I worked under Duncan De Sylvano's company. And my heart would be at risk too.

The man I had always admired from afar now started to notice me all of a sudden. And when a part of me was thrilled about it, a bigger part of me was confused.

Why all of a sudden? Should I be concerned about it?

Yes. Because that man increased my heart beat whenever he was around. My body burned with his slightest touch. I seemed to forget myself whenever he was close.

"Cassandra?" At Elizabeth's voice, I blinked. Her expectant gaze waited for my reply. "You will be there, right?"

I knew my answer.

Taking a deep breath, I flashed a small smile. "Sure! I will be there on time."

"Great! See you there then. I will take your leave now." With that, she walked away.

"It's Duncan De Sylvano, isn't it? The man who ruined someone's life depending on his mood?"

Chad let out a sigh. "Yes, the one and only. But don't worry about him. As Ellie said, he doesn't have time for his employees or the people who worked under his company. He is a king, you know? He doesn't go into his subjects."

I cringed at his choice of words.

So I was one of his subjects now?

'Soon…'

His words echoed in my mind, causing a shiver to run down my spine.

I just handed myself to the devil, didn't I?

Was I even ready for it?

***

At the grating noise of the violin reaching my ears, I let out a groan.

Turning under my blanket, I stuffed my face in the pillow. But the damn noise didn't let me sleep in peace.

That boy was doing it again this morning. I swear I would kill him someday!

Letting out some curses, I sat up. With a yawn, my eyes went to the clock.

Eight in the morning.

Suddenly the reminder that I had to join today hit me, making me sit straight.

It was eight. That meant I had only two hours to get ready and leave for Rossa.

The company the icy blue eyed mysterious Italian owned. An achingly beautiful one…

I shook my head.

I shouldn't be thinking about him now. Yes, I knew I accepted the job. And there were two reasons behind it. One, I needed the money. And two…

I didn't want to think about that now. Today was the first day of my job and I wanted to make everything go smoothly. Then I would think about my reason number two.

But right now, I need to get ready for the day.

The moment I got out of my shower, my mobile tinged with a message.

Two notifications waited for me. One from Chad, and another from Em.

I opened Chad's message first.

'Hey, I will pick you up today. Be ready at 9.30!'

Good, I didn't want to go to Rossa with that clunker of mine that had no guarantee to stay on my side all the time.

I then clicked on Em's message.

'Meet me at our regular diner. WE NEED TO TALK!'

My brows raised. She was back from her vacation?

Whatever she wanted to talk about, it definitely didn't sound good.

As I typed my answer to her, the doorbell rang, snatching my attention.

Who was it at this time?

This time, I checked through the peephole before opening the door.

There weren't any drunk men. Instead, a man with a bouquet of gorgeous red roses awaited me.

"Good morning, Miss! This bouquet is for you," he said, with a professional smile.

The odd thing was he barely looked me in the eye. His gaze glanced here and there or on the ground, as if in respect.

I frowned. "Morning. But I wasn't expecting anything. Who sent it?"

Adjusting his red cap, he moved the bouquet forward towards me. "The sender is anonymous. But it has a note inside. Please check. Have a good day, Ma'am."

Before I could open my mouth, he already started walking away hurriedly.

Glancing down at the bouquet, I found the note inside.

In between red roses, there were some pink ones. A small smile spread across my face. They smelled amazing!

But who could send it to me?

Aaron?

He looked desperate for me to get back with him.

Yes, it could be him. Otherwise who would send me a bouquet of roses all of a sudden?

Taking the note out, I unfolded it.

But the moment my eyes swept over the words, my heart started racing.

'Welcome to my world…

D'

D?

As in...Duncan De Sylvano?