Chapter 2 ALERA

My eyes fly wide as I shove against his chest, but his hold only tightens. His fingers dig into my curls, locking me in place, while his mouth remains unrelenting.

I try to scream and twist free, but my protest is swallowed whole as his tongue slips past my lips.

Heat envelopes my entire being. My fists bunch into the folds of his jacket, and instead of pushing him away, I cling to him. My body leans in naturally, because God help me, it feels good.

Then, just as suddenly, he pulls back.

My lips tingle, as my chest heaves, and when I look up, he is smiling. And it basically steals the air from my lungs.

Before I can even process it, his fingers slide down to capture my hand. Then he turns, tugging me with him.

I stumble after him, dazed, my brain is still a scrambled mess. The guards haven't moved. They just stare wide-eyed and stunned into silence.

So the weirdness of this whole thing isn't just peculiar to me. Excellent.

He leads me to the car, opens the door like a gentleman and leads me in.

Sitting in the car, I stare at the tinted glass, trying to piece together how in the hell I go from marching up to Moretti Towers like some fearless avenger... to being kissed within an inch of my life in front of the entire building.

It's all because of one damn article, I fixated on this morning. I was infact ready for work when I saw the post on Instagram. It was of Dante on the cover of Forbes, celebrated for his empire genius and so-called vision. Seeing him do so well while my father can barely get out of bed, while we starve and scrape, triggered something in me. That's why I marched into his tower. I just wanted some accountability.

Now here I am, and instead of answers, I have his kiss burned into my mouth.

I turn to him, but the man beside me isn't the same one who grabbed me and kissed me in front of the entire building. That man was warm and expressive, this one is every much the cold bastard he is.

"So," I say tightly, "not only are you a thief, you're a sexual predator too?"

He finally looks at me, and I shrink under the weight of his eyes. His mouth curves into a slow, predatory smile.

"Now I remember you," he drawls. "You're Glover Vance's daughter. I was really struggling back there. You look so different."

That stings.

"Different? You stole from us, that's why! You ran my father's company into the mud, that's why!"

"All of that was three years ago, Miss Vance." His voice cool like ice. "I don't understand why it has brought you all the way here."

"Because my father is sick. And every day since then has been hell. We are in debts, almost homeless and it's all because of you and...and your greed. You did this to us!"

"And what, exactly, am I supposed to do with that?"

My hands curl into fists. "I want you to acknowledge you're a fraud. Take responsibility for what you did. Frauds like you shouldn't be placed on pedestals."

"You know you should really be in jail right now."

I let out a sharp and bitter laugh. "Me? In jail? For what? For telling the truth?"

"The truth?" His jaw hardens. "The court already decided I did nothing to your father. Six lawsuits, Miss Vance. Six. He disrupted my business, tried to poison my investors, and when all else failed, he tried to drag me down with him. And yet you sit here calling me the thief?"

"You are," I snap. "You came into our lives, offered him a partnership we never asked for and he took it, because of all your lies. But all it took was three months for everything to crumble. Make that make sense, Mr. Moretti."

His eyes narrow. "That wasn't my doing. That was your father making terrible decisions. I should have sued him for fraud. He was already in ruin before I arrived." He leans closer, voice low and cutting. "I suppose daddy never told his spoiled princess he was bankrupt, did he?"

Those words snap something in me.

"Stop the car," I say.

He doesn't flinch.

"I said, stop. The. Car."

The driver keeps going.

My chest tightens. "I'm not playing, I swear to God.."

Dante sighs and motions to the driver.

The car slows and pulls to the curb.

Before it even comes to a full stop, I yank the door open.

"I hope you rot, you manipulative bastard," I spit. "I hope every single dollar you make turns to ash in your hands. You're evil. You ruin lives, and one day you will pay!"

I slam the door with everything I have. The sound echoes like thunder on pavement.

Then I walk.

Fast and furiously. Blinded by tears, by the sheer stupidity of what I have done.

What did I think was going to happen? I couldn't even articulate myself well. I should have...I could have demanded for money.

The car speeds off behind me.

I don't turn around.

I can't.

But each step away feels heavier.

My pace slows.

Stupid, idiotic me. Completely gullible. I had the opportunity to get some money and I didn't even think of it. That kiss, that kiss would have been the perfect opportunity to get some money...

I stop in my tracks. The kiss.

My eyes go wide in horror.

I let that kiss slide.

He kissed me. In front of so many people. In public. Without my consent.

My chest rises and falls erratically. I wipe my face once, twice, but the tears don't stop.

Now it makes sense why he even let the conversation about my father go on for that long. He was distracting me.

That scammer.

Oh my God.

"Fucking bastard," I whisper, choking on my breath. "You will fucking pay for that."

I roughly wipe my tears and head towards the train station.

Let's see what the cops think about kissing strangers without their consent.