XX

We arrive back in our room and I am unhesitatingly thrown onto the bed. Marco pulls a pair of handcuffs from his bag with a vicious smile and ties me down, blindfolding me in the process. I twist and pull against the restraints but to no avail. Defeated, I go slack against the sheets.

"Making yourself comfortable?" He asks with the same vicious smile from earlier. His voice is like grit and gravel before a landslide, and its proximity surprises me.

"Super. This isn't the first time you've tied a girl to your bed." I assume ironically. "And this isn't your first time being tied up." He remarks as his hand brushes past my bare arm, sending shivers palpitating through my body.

Now is not the time to be turned on, Milana. Now is time to fight.

I shift uncomfortably, bothered by the fact I can't see where Marco is or what he's planning to do. "Are you going to kill me, Mr Cortez?" I ask teasingly. "Maybe." He replies.

I hear Marco light a match, and then smell a burning wick. "Is that a candle your lighting up? How romantic." I express. "This is a trust building exercise." He announces.

"I will never fully trust you, Marco." I spit. I flinch as boiling wax drips and quickly cools on my skin. The sensation makes me tense on the bed and Marco's lips brush against my ear so that each word is thunders in my head.

"We'll see if you still feel the same way by the time i'm done with you."

He removes the blindfold masking my fuscous globes and I glance up at Marco towering over me. "Are you shaking with fear, bella? He questions tauntingly. I look away and smile. "Fear of you? Never" I snap back.

He spills more wax across my arm. This time i'm expecting it, and pain is quickly subsumed by something altogether more charged. "What happened at the club?" He asks, dripping more hot wax on my belly.

"I don't know what your on about." I reply.

Marco lowers the candle and wax begins dribbling down my thighs. A gasp of pleasure escapes my mouth when a new wave of hot wax drips between my thighs.

"What are you doing?" I ask. "You seem to be enjoying this, and I'm starting to remember how much I enjoyed making you moan." He replies with a smirk.

My body's betraying me. I am enjoying this, just like he said, and I don't want him to stop.

"All you have to do is ask nicely and I'll keep going for you." He says, licking his lip. "Don't stop." I reply.

I almost change my mind when I see the satisfied grin on his face. But all my self-consciousness disappears when Marco lets more wax run between my thighs.

I push my chest forward, and Marco's hand meets me there, his fingers grazing my nipples. "You still tremble when I touch you, Mila." He states as I attempt to wiggle out from his touch. I let out a sigh and stop fighting, resting my head back on the pillow.

"And you still get off from touching me." I snap back, converting my gaze to his growing erection and getting a low growl from Marco in response. "Turn around." He orders. "Why?" I ask.

"Turn. Around." He repeats, the tone of his voice growing more and more demanding. "Make me." I challenge as I bite my bottom lip.

He meets my defiance with a vicious laugh, and then lifts me up, turns me around, and bends me over the chair. I suppress a gasp when Marco squeezes my ass and brings his lips close to my ear, his breath warm against my skin.

"Tell me, have you let many men touch you down here in the last few years?" He asks, rubbing his thumb over my thin lace panties.

"Enough to make me forget all about you." I reply as I desperately try to remain unfazed by his touch.

"Then maybe I should remind you exactly how my touch makes you feel."

He traces his fingers all around my body and a hushed moan escapes my lips. "You like this don't you." He assumes. "No." I respond. "You like this, and you want more." He adds.

I shake my head vigorously as he flips me over once again. "On second thought, I think i'll let you beg me for it." He exclaims.

I straighten my back and mask my disappointment with a cold laugh. "That's funny considering I don't beg. Now, untie me." I demand.

With a satisfied grin, knowing very well that he rattled my cage, Marco finally lets me loose. I rise from the bed and blow out the candle before entering the bathroom. I exhaustively rinse off all the wax from my body and feel myself almost doze off on the spot. After I am done I pick up my phone and lazily scroll through my messages.

I open Fran's messages and the latest one catches my eye.

Come to my room now, Mila. It's urgent.

I scan over the message a few times trying to understand what could be so important she would want me going to her room at almost midnight. I block out my irrational thoughts with a more concerned one. I step quietly out of the bathroom and sneak out of the room when Marco's back is to me.

As I am walking through the hallway, an electric like shock thrums through my exhibited body. My eyes scan each and every door looking for room 22. When my eyes finally land on the numbers, I knock quietly with little hesitation.

My sister frees the lock and leisurly opens the door, her gaze falling behind me instead of on me. She gently moves me aside and peers left and right. Once she is sure nobody has followed me, she closes the door.

"What is this about?" I ask toilsomely. "I have something to tell you about Nico... And Marco." She says, pausing for a moment before mentioning Marco's name. His name rolls off her tongue sharply and I can't help but notice her pace the room restlessly. I nod for her to continue speaking and she settles down on the edge of the bed.

"Nico and Marco met up before coming here." She says. "And it looked a bit too... friendly." She adds.

"How do you know?" I ask unsurely. "We have tabs on Nico and they were both spotted outside Denny's." She explains.

Denny's diner.

Hearing this was enough for me. Nobody betrays me or disrespects me and gets away with it.

Why the fuck was he with Nico?!

"I am going to fucking kill both of them." I snap before releasing my clenched fists and storming out of the room. "Mi-"

I slam the door, hushing Fran's voice and head back to my room.

It's late and the clock striking midnight hides my footsteps as I creep through my hotel room, scanning it for Marco. Heat creeps up my cheeks at the thought of my task. Confronting then killing him.

*Click*

"I must admit, i'm impressed." Marco calls out from behind me. Before he can say another word, I kick the nearby coffee table toward his shins and spin, a kick already aimed at his head height.

I catch a glimpse of his strong jaw and steely eyes before he flips the table up and ducks, my kick glancing harmlessly off the wood. "Easy there, killer. I know why you're here." He announces, speaking in a level voice as he slowly lowers the coffee table back to the floor. I relax my muscles just a fraction and wait to see what he does next.

He pulls out a gun from his jacket pocket and raises it slowly. His gun hand doesn't even waver and my heart hammers in my chest. "Tell me what you were doing with Nico." I spit, breathing heavily in indignation.

"Someones angr-"

He doesn't get a chance to tell me what he thought, instead, he's cut off as I whip around, snatching a huge vase and flinging it at his head. Marco pulls the trigger and i'm narrowly missed by the bullet that punches through the vase.

The vase shatters into tiny pieces as a gunshot muffled by silence rips through the air. He looks at my hand which holds a large glass bottle and his perfectly aimed kick meets with a sharp jolt that sends the bottle smashing to the floor.

In desperation, I haul another bottle towards his gun-hand. It connects squarely, sending the gun flying across the room to land somewhere behind the furniture. At the same time, Marco's hand whips out towards me, aiming directly for my trachea.

He's faster than I thought.

I dodge the next blow, his fingers grazing dangerously across my throat to leave a tingling trail on my skin. Whether it's from danger or excitement, i'm not sure, but the touch leaves me momentarily dumbfounded.

"You wanna know why I was with Nico?" He questions dangerously. I steady my breathing and nod. "I killed him." He announces.

"You're lying." I assume.

I kick out hard, aiming for the spot between his legs, but he blocks my blow with a smooth hook of my leg. The touch of his thigh against mine is like fire, exciting and dangerous.

"Stop fighting it." He snaps.

His touch leaves me panting and on fire for all the different reasons. I shake my head, trying to keep out the distracting thoughts. "Even if it was true, why would you kill him now?" I interrogate. "He was feeding information to Luca Martínez. Why wouldn't I kill him?"

I guess that makes sense.

His words have caught me off guard enough for him to execute a fast dash to my side, flanking me against the wall. With one swift motion, he spins me, pinning my hands against my back and my back to the wall. His body envelopes me, crushing the air from my lungs as his chest presses against my own. I can barely even wriggle.

Now or never I guess.

There's no time to think. I lean forward, lips parted, and kiss Marco passionately, tongue dancing against his own. The next moment, an altogether too-familiar flavour touches my tongue.

Blood.

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