Kyle entered the room like a god returning to a temple that had dared to doubt him. He didn't take the head of the table immediately. Instead, he pulled out a chair directly to his right—not for a director, but for me.
"Sit," he commanded.
I sat there, my back as straight and still as a rod
Across from me sat the directors, including Marcus, who looked at me with a mixture of pity and calculated interest. Sofia was there too, tucked in a corner chair like a discarded accessory, her eyes burning holes into the back of my head.
"The Naples port is secure," Kyle began, He spoke in a low, smooth voice that oozed arrogance. that vibrated through the room He ignored his notes and looked straight at the men holding his family's stock. 'The incident was just a small move by a rival on their way out,' he said. 'It's already taken care of.'"
"Handled?" Marcus leaned forward, his eyes flicking to the diamond collar on my neck. "Your father is in a hospital bed, Kyle. And you're bringing the girl who caused it into a level-four security meeting? The board is concerned about your... focus."
Kyle's hand moved under the table. He found my thigh, his fingers digging into the dress and the skin beneath It wasn't a soft touch. His hand was tight and possessive, locking me down like a chain."
"My focus is exactly where it needs to be," Kyle said, his thumb tracing a slow, agonizing circle on my leg. "Valentina isn't a distraction. She's the key. Moretti wants her, which means as long as I have her, I have him."
"And what happens when he stops wanting her and starts wanting your head?" another director asked.
Kyle leaned back, pulling me closer until our chairs were touching. He draped his arm over the back of my seat, his fingers tangling in my hair at the back of my neck.It was an act of possession, a way of branding me as his own in front of the most powerful men in Italy, using me to prove he was still in control
"He won't," Kyle rasped, his eyes turning to me. "Because I'm going to make sure she's too valuable to lose. Val, tell the board what you found in the third drawer of my vanity."
My "loud mouth" didn't fail me, but I knew I had to play this carefully. If I shamed him here, he'd break me later. But if I played his game, I could take Sofia's place as the one he couldn't ignore.
"I found a man who's terrified of a ghost," I said, my voice clear and mocking. I leaned into Kyle's touch, my shoulder brushing his chest. I reached up and placed my hand over his on the table, my fingers interlacing with his. "Moretti isn't coming for the Vanguard legacy. He's coming for Kyle. Because he knows that Kyle is the only one arrogant enough to keep something that doesn't belong to him."
The room went silent. Kyle's grip on my neck tightened for a second—a warning—but then his lips curved into a dark, satisfied smirk. He liked the fire. he's happy I was fighting back in a way that made him look even more dangerous.
"You see?" Kyle said to the board, his eyes never leaving mine. "She has spirit. Moretti wants to break it. I prefer to own it."
He stood up, pulling me with him. "Meeting adjourned. Marcus, stay. The rest of you, get out."
As the directors filed out, Sofia tried to catch Kyle's eye, but he brushed past her as if she were a ghost. She looked at me, her face contorted with a silent, jealous rage, and I gave her a slow, victorious smile. I wasn't interested in Kyle—I don't even love the monster—but I wasn't going to let a "proxy" win the war.
Once the room was empty save for Kyle, Marcus, and me, the atmosphere shifted. Kyle slammed his hands onto the glass table, the arrogance fading into something much sharper.
"He's moved his assets to the border, Marcus," Kyle hissed. "He's not waiting for another gala. He's going for the heart."
"Then you need to move her," Marcus said, gesturing to me.
"No," Kyle said, his hand finding the back of my neck again, his touch turning intimate and frantic the moment we were 'alone.' He pulled me against him, his face buried in the crook of my neck. "I'm not moving her. I'm going to use her as the bait.
He looked at me, his dark eyes mix with an obsession and cold calculation. "You wanted to be more than an asset, Val? Now you're the lure. And if you survive maybe I'll let you pick the lock on the bedroom door."
He didn't wait for an answer. He kissed me—not the performative kiss he gave Sofia, but a hard, desperate one that tasted like salt and impending war.