“Sebastian!”

Janet was startled as he stepped out of the car and slammed the door.

His body language exuded anger as he approached them, and before Janet could react, Sebastian grabbed her arm and forced her to stand.

“What are you doing?” She shot him a fierce look as he pulled her closer, their eyes locking. A hint of pain and frustration lingered in his pitch-black eyes that Janet couldn’t fathom.

“Hey, leave her.” Dane stepped in and tried to loosen his hold on her, but Sebastian responded by choking him.

“Sebastian!” Janet yelled in panic as she watched them. “What are you doing? Leave him!” Sebastian glared at her with a deadly look. “Who is he?”

“He’s a friend,” she answered. “Leave him right now!” she exclaimed in a commanding tone, their eyes locked in a fiery stare, only breaking apart a few seconds later.

Dane coughed as Sebastian pushed him, and he caught sight of Janet’s black sling bag.

“Let’s go,” he said as he dragged her to his car. Janet tried her best to resist but ultimately gave in to his Hulk-like strength.

He made her sit in the passenger seat and fastened her seat belt while she seethed with anger.

She had never been treated this way before, and she couldn’t help but wonder what his intentions were. Her eyes followed him as he crossed the car and settled into the driver’s seat beside her.

“Good to go?” He looked over to check if she was alright.

“Fuck you!” She had tears in her eyes, showing her frustration and helplessness.

“I will fuck you good. Don’t be so desperate.” He exited the car again and approached Dane, who was ready for a counterattack. However, Sebastian bent down, grabbed Janet’s bag, and left without saying a word.

He tossed her bag onto the back seat and quickly sped up, driving at full speed. Janet clung on tight as he sped down the road.

“Wear your seat belt,” she said, but he didn’t reply to her.

“Sebastian Genovese, slow down the damn car and wear your seat belt. I am scared!” she shouted.

“You should be scared!” Without even glancing her way, he kept driving and suddenly slammed the brakes, making the car jerk forward.

“Step out,” he demanded firmly, and Janet reluctantly looked around the unfamiliar place through the window.

“What is this place?” she asked him, but he ignored her and stepped out of the car. She watched as he came over to her side and opened the door for her.

“Are you coming out?” he asked casually.

His dark demeanor frightened Janet. “No,” she said innocently. “Look, we just went for dinner. I don’t understand why you are so angry?”

“Are you coming out?”

She gulped and asked, “Are you going to kill me?” Her forehead broke out in sweat.

In a swift motion, Sebastian unbuckled her seatbelt and pulled her out. She was testing his patience, and he was on the verge of losing it.

“Why are you so angry? What have I done wrong?” Sebastian dragged her to the elevator, and as the door closed, her incessant rant stopped.

Her breath hitched as the elevator door opened, and she stepped into the luxurious, shadowed penthouse with an unspoken darkness. She blinked, scanning the room until her eyes landed on Sebastian.

Leaning against the door, he watched her closely for a while, leaving Janet confused about his actions. His emotions shifted from intense anger, like a volcano, to a peaceful calm, like the sea.

“What’s wrong, Sebastian? You’re really starting to scare me!”

“Why didn’t you come home before the time?” he asked.

“I had dinner plans with Dane. I told dad I’d be late!”

Sebastian took a step in her direction. “Date?”

“Dinner,” she corrected him as he approached her.

“What were you doing with that bartender?”

Janet shot him a ridicule-filled look. “Who are you to ask me? You’re fucking acting like a possessive boyfriend….” She gasped as Sebastian grabbed the collar of her white silk shirt and pulled her close.

“He was this close to you, and you didn’t mind him!”

Janet forced down a lump in her throat, feigning strength. She couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling in her stomach as she watched the way he handled her. He was rough with her, yet it gave her butterflies.

“I am not answerable to you.”

“You are sold to me!”

Janet’s eyes instantly glimmered with anger, but she held it back. “Don’t forget, I have won myself. I’m no longer your slave.”

“Were you going to let him kiss you?” Anger dripped from his every word.

Janet blinked her eyes. “Sebastian, you’re a mafia. How in the world do you have so much time to poke your nose into my business?”

Sebastian chuckled, his eyes burning with a demonic glare in the dim light. “Answer me.”

“Yes. I wanted him to kiss me!” She looked straight into his eyes. “And I would have kissed him back!”

Sebastian felt his heart stop. “Did you forget you belong to me?”

“I do not belong to you. Only a part of my body belongs to you, and I know which part, you pervert.” She clenched her jaw and tried to push him.

“Really? Enlighten me, please,” he knitted his eyebrows.

“My vagina. What else do I have that you would want? And what else would a ruthless mafia like you ever ask for from me?”

Sebastian chuckled at her reaction and walked away, leaving her annoyed. “I don’t like the sound of your laugh. Shut up!”

“Really? People are eager to see me laugh. Until now, I have exclusively reserved it for you.”

Janet rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, unaware whether his statement was true.

“Anyway, you think I would claim your pussy?” He still couldn’t believe her. “I can get it from you willingly. I don’t have to claim it.” He stared at her.

“But the bold stunt you pulled off tonight, I wish I had claimed it. How could you let that douchebag get so close to you?”

“If that’s not your claim, then what is it?” She eyed him suspiciously.

Sebastian leaned in and gently touched her lips with his thumb. “The one you were going to let him touch tonight.” He planted a kiss on her lips, leaving her surprised.

“Your lips are mine. You can’t let any man kiss you,” he whispered, his warm breath brushing her skin before he claimed her lips in a passionate kiss.

Her response only intensified his growing desire for her.

A soft blush graced her cheek as she trembled. “You aren’t quite as tough as you act, or maybe my charms are casting a spell over you?”

“This is wrong,” she said. The air was heavy with silence, stretching for half a minute as Sebastian anxiously waited for her response.

“Whatever it is between us, this should stop here. We belong to different worlds.”

His eyes softened as she spoke. “Really, how?”

“I came here to meet my father and persuade him to come back with me. I want a normal life with him, not one filled with guns, violence, and blood.”

She stepped forward and held his hand. Sebastian looked at their joined hands. “Sebastian, please release my father and let him go without harm.”

As she made a request, his gaze drifted to her luscious lips. “It seems like he’s scared. Might be thinking your dad would kill him if he leaves his side?”

“Sebastian?” She arched an eyebrow, and he met her gaze.

“Connor is scared?” He stifled a chuckle.

“What’s so funny? He commits crimes under your father’s orders. He knows your family’s secrets. Of course, you guys won’t let him go easily. That’s why he’s lost hope of living a normal life.”

“Perhaps he is hesitant to leave because he has amassed numerous foes, and he wants to ensure your safety by preventing them from targeting you in retaliation against him.”

Janet turned silent at his comeback. It was too challenging for her, and her innocence prevented her from devising a contingency plan. She felt foolish for not considering the opposite perspective.

Sensing her dilemma, Sebastian pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her waist to hold her tightly against his chest.

“Don’t worry. I’m the one they have to deal with before they can reach you.” His voice carried a promise.

She blinked at him. Something about his sexy, deep voice made the hackles on the back of her neck rise. The scent of his cologne filled the air, its spicy notes mingling with each breath she took.

The unspoken sexual tension between them was dangerous yet desirable, and she was too weak to turn away from him.

“This is not right,” her gaze darting between his captivating, dark eyes and his irresistible lips.

“Who determines the moral compass?” he whispered, her skin tingling with goosebumps as he kissed her neck.”

“I’m not here for long. This means nothing to me.”

She pushed him, meeting his lustful gaze filled with love for her. The sparkle in his eyes revealed his deep longing for her. Still, she was resolute in not surrendering this time, even if she wanted to.

“If I persuade your father to leave with you, what’s in it for me?”

Hope flickered in Janet’s eyes but quickly faded as she looked up at him. “I have absolutely nothing to give you!”

“You have everything I want.” She blinked her eyes innocently at his smirk. “I want you to give yourself to me. Willingly.”

Her face flushed red, and anger suddenly surged through her; she felt steam rising from her ears. “You want my body?”

“I want you.”

“Same thing!”

“Nope. I want you to express how you feel about me while I make love to you.” He kissed the back of her hand. “Not only cooperate. Show me how you’d make love to your man.”

She stayed in a daze as he kissed her palm. “Just for one night. Treat it as a transaction.”

“Just one night?” she blurted out before she could stop herself, her heart pounding in her chest, her body betraying her with an undeniable craving to be touched, loved, and fondled by him.

Sebastian’s lips curved into a smile before he pressed them against hers. Janet wrapped her arms around his shoulder when he lifted her, and she locked her legs around his waist as they headed to the bedroom.

Connor impatiently took a long drag of his fifth cigarette, the smoke swirling around him as he anxiously waited for Alex.

“I told you Janet would ruin your revenge plan!” Alex burst through the door, raging.

“What’s wrong?” The mention of Janet made Connor feel a bit anxious. “What about Sebastian?”

“Sebastian and Janet have a thing. He left the meeting to meet Janet, and they are together right now.”

Connor paused to collect his thoughts. “Where are they?”

“At his penthouse!” Alex answered and observed him in deep thought for a few minutes. “If it turned into something serious, would you be able to exact revenge at the cost of your daughter’s love?”

Under Alex’s watchful eye, Connor took another puff of his cigarette and erupted into fits of laughter.

The room was filled with the echoing sound of Connor’s sinister laugh and smoke.