Billionaire's Possession

Stephano's POV

"Is that all?"

"Yes sir. So, what do you think about the proposals?" Andre asked me, his eyes observing the file in his hand as he carefully studied it. We were finalizing the proposals for this month and had gone through all of them. All that was remaining were the parts I had to crosscheck before the final conclusions would be made later at the meeting, with my board of directors present.

Leaning into my swivel chair, I adjusted myself and took a deep breath. It would definitely be a tough evening for me whenever I finally decide to start sorting them out at home but the earlier those files were dealt with, the better.

Getting tired of Andre's anticipating stare as he awaited my response, I took a calm exhale. "Email me the remaining details and I'll deal with them once I get home. I'll have them finalized."

Andre nodded in understanding. Being my personal assistant for over four years now, he knew what needed to be done. I was a busy man and intentionally decided never to have a female personal assistant because they were a great distraction, and my father's personal assistant had succeeded in destroying my parent's relationship many years ago, one that had been so hard to fix. There was no way I would subject myself to such at a young age. No, I was far too young for any woman's drama.

"Alright, have a good night." Andre finally spoke.

He got up, took care of the needed files on the table, and arranged the rest in a neat stack. It had been a long day.

"You too," I replied after some seconds of gazing out into the city before us like it had an interesting story to tell.

I stared out through the glass that separated me from the world, pleased the glasses were tinted. The building itself had thirty-six floors altogether, and this was just the headquarters for Alfonsi's group of companies in Italy. We still had five other branches here in Italy and several others all over Europe, then even some more worldwide.

I was a man who sometimes preferred brooding, staying on my own and I didn't like unnecessary attention. That was why it was hard for even stalkers to get any juicy information on my personal life. Since my breakup with Barbara, who won the Most Beautiful Woman in Italy when we were in college a few years ago, I hadn't really been with any other woman, and I wasn't ready to be with one. I had so many people around me and that was what an average man needed at some point in their lives.

My mind drifted off to so many things that could be happening out there in Palermo, Sicily, in Italy as a whole, and also in other parts of the world. So many people were obviously laughing giddily, couples were making out with heated passion and some others were celebrating a milestone in their lives.

A glance at my Rolex watch told me it was time to head home.

Picking my suit jacket, I donned it and took a deep breath. I exited my office, grunting in response several times as I walked past some of my workers, who all parted ways for me to leave and greeted me along the way. I tapped my foot impatiently throughout the elevator ride, wishing I was already home.

James, my driver was quick to collect my suitcase when I finally exited the plushy wide lounge. "Where to, sir?"

"Home, straight ahead," I responded with my jaws subconsciously clenching as I remembered the amount of work that awaited me.

"How was work, Sir?" James questioned.

"Hmm, the usual."

That was all he needed to know. I wasn't ready to converse further with him. My mind drifted to the seminars I had been invited to in the weeks to come.

They were much and almost suffocating. I started my own business at an early age, going into so many fields immediately after I graduated from high school. My parents were influential, and that easily paved the way for me, but I didn't rely on the opportunity alone. I never relied on their influence in the business world but on my hard work day and night.

That got me where I was today and I ensured my head was always held high. When my driver drove into the gate and towards the house, I heaved a deep sigh of relief and loosened my tie. Parking right before my mansion, I immediately alighted my Mercedes Benz and strode in, feeling my muscles flex under the heating sunset with each step I took as my suit jacket clamped firmly on my shoulders. I entered my living room with my suitcase in hand. I couldn't wait to take my office attire off.

"Welcome home, young master!" A smiling Natalia greeted me as she approached me from the kitchen, her rosy cheeks sparkling in the brightly illuminated hall of my mansion. I hummed as usual but stood to hear what she had to say. Regardless of how busy I was, I always made time for her because she was more or less the second mother figure in my life. She could never be ignored.

She had been a nanny to me and my siblings while we were growing up and had taken care of us over the years, tending to us whenever our parents had their usual business meetings in other parts of the world.

She was a short, round woman who loved humming with a gracious smile while running around the house, also the only one apart from my parents who ever scolded me and got away with it. I still called her my nanny, even after all these years. Even my parents hadn't brought me up with an iron hand like Natalia had done.

"How was work?" she asked cheerily.

"It was stressful but rewarding as usual."

"Kara will prepare your bath at the usual time then. Go change and relax Sir." She spoke softly.

She sashayed like a car tire into the kitchen in all her round glory and I knew she would immediately start preparing dinner. That was if she hadn't already started.

I didn't give a response as I left for the stairs, already eager to take off my suit jacket and shirt. I changed my office attire into sweatpants and a wife-beater immediately. I entered my room and then rinsed my face and hands, cleaning with a towel. I always took my bath after completing my work at eight PM so I would just have dinner before resting a bit and going to bed.

Walking to my study, I started on my paperwork and was on it for one solid hour. When I was almost through, I doubled the pace, checking through the files quickly and signing forms for whichever needed my signature.

The soft click of the door caught my attention some minutes later but I still didn't raise my head up

.

"Welcome sir." A feminine voice spoke so softly that I almost didn't hear her.

"Yes?" I grunted.

Looking up from my paperwork though, my lips parted, and I reflexively sucked in fresh air as I stared at the girl in front of me. I didn't know it was the beautiful Kara, my nanny's daughter, who had been speaking.

This girl in particular, Kara, Natalia's daughter, was a shining star in a gloomy land, at least to me she was. Her presence alone lighted up my mood. It was a pity she steered clear of me whenever I was around. Kara, in particular, didn't like to be around whenever I was home.

I knew she had just gotten back from her university at Trapani because I always kept tabs on all of my employees. Well, her especially.

"Yes?"

I spoke more clearly, surprising myself. I hadn't really spoken so interestedly to anyone, with so much life in my tone throughout today, apart from with Andre and Natalia. Everyone that got a response at all got a kind of grunt or the other.

My expression was nonchalant nonetheless, so much so that I could see the slight nervousness in her eyes. Her oblivious nature to my lustful desires for her did things to me. She was beautiful in a way that compelled me to just show her what she meant to me but I couldn't. Not yet.

With her five feet four height and a frame that made her look anything but pompous, Kara would make a man proud someday. The thought alone made me seethe with an unfamiliar feeling that tugged at my chest painfully. Jealousy, for the unknown man.

I stared at her in a way she didn't realize I was checking her out, slowly trailing my eyes from her face to her cute pointed nose, then to her rosy lips. They moved to her rich, attractive-looking bust, which in no doubt would make half of both my hands full if I cupped them, and then my eyes darted down to her flat stomach before finally stopping at the spot where I knew her most intimate part down south would be situated. Kara shifted before me and I eyed her short legs.

I didn't like short girls. Most of them were temperamental and, admittedly too cute. I'd never had a short girl to call mine, though, well, except Kara, and she still wasn't aware that she was mine yet.

Kara was short and thick, but there was something that drew her to me: her feminine smell, innocence, smile, and beauty.

Everything about Kara was so intoxicating to me. My groin twitched in a painful way when my eyes zoned on her hands. Those hands would be my undoing someday if she could get her hands on me and there was nothing I wouldn't do at her request, if she was willing to have me in her hold, of course.

I was convinced that I was under her spell.

"Speak," I commanded.

"Your bath is ready," she gasped softly, her hard eyes locking onto mine. Her chest heaved slightly, and I couldn't help but notice the gentle movement of her curves. I suppressed a groan. As I opened the door, Kara hurriedly shut it behind her, practically running out.

‎

A slow, mischievous smirk spreads across my face as I savor the rich taste of the hunt lingering on my lips. The thrill of the chase rushes through me, intoxicating and exhilarating. I flick open my lighter, the flame igniting with a soft whoosh, casting a warm, flickering glow that dances across my fingers in the dim light.

For a moment, it illuminates the shadows around me, before I snap it shut, the light vanishing, leaving me once again cloaked in the darkness where I thrive.

‎

‎Poor thing-she thinks she has a chance.

‎

She can run. She can fight. She can plead.

None of it will make a difference.

‎

She is destined to be mine.

Kara's POV

"What was the name of that girl, the model on that fashion station we watched two nights ago?" my mama asked, her face glowing as she moved to the counter with the blended fruits in the pink glass cup.

Her thick black hair, which I fortunately inherited from her, swayed heavily behind her, and I did an eye roll, wondering why she didn't fix it into a doughnut style since she was cooking. My mama had been asking for the name of the female model for days now and I was honestly getting tired of hearing it.

"The one who wore that purple gown..." She trailed off with a thinking look when I didn't respond.

I stabbed the China breakable plate with irritation when she asked me the question again, glowering slightly at her before rinsing the plate and wiping it clean.

"You didn't answer me, Kara. What's wrong, I noticed you've been brooding for a few days now." The concern was thick in her tone, her Italian accent clearly evident. I shook my head.

"Nothing is wrong. Well, except that you've been asking me the name of the model repeatedly. It's getting tiring!"

"I like her. That's why."

Squinting, I stared at her really hard. How would she say she liked a female model? Oh no, I wondered what she could be up to this time.

The last time she asked me a suspicious question like this, she had ended up getting a golden retriever for the young master Stephano and to say the least, he wasn't happy with her. For days, he kept moping around the house and he kept everyone in the mansion on edge.

"I mean no harm dear." She giggled.

"By the way, when will you submit those assignments you told me about?"

"We are on a short break, mama. I'll submit them when we resume."

Turning around, she gave me a suspicious look. "Wouldn't your lecturer think you a lazy bone then?"

"No. He knows we're on holiday." I stated in a deadpan tone.

"Whatever. I also went to college and I'm just asking because things have changed over the years." She snorted and went back to what she was doing, not before narrowing her eyes at me.

"I am not arguing now am I?" I sang.

Being a third-year student at Premium University in Trapani, Sicily, wasn't all that fun because it was an academic environment where we got challenged and thoroughly equipped in all areas for individual growth and usefulness in our area of study, but I was studying economics which I loved with passion and that was good compensation.

At the age of twenty-two- which would be in a year, precisely in August - I would graduate and find somewhere good to start working. To say the least, I couldn't wait for that to happen.

Despite it being a university with high standards and all, I loved my University because it exposed me to so many things about life, and I already met so many amazing people through it. Not to forget the amazing opportunities it offered to students. The only problem I had was that there was this particular person whom I totally didn't like, and he was somehow entangled in every aspect of my life.

The person was also paying my tuition.

He was my mama's boss and the one taking care of all my expenses, probably since I was in high school. With his cold demeanor and naturally clenched jaws, he just gave me the chills.

His piercing blue eyes were always inspecting like he was waiting to actually find a fault in everything. But I was grateful to him and his family for their constant support since I was a child. I had never even for once been in lack of anything; they even pampered me so much because I was regarded as the last born that deserved all the doting and attention.

I shook my head and did a skyward eye roll, only to come face to face with a young master's portrait hanging on the wall at the far end opposite the kitchen, which was where I was standing. As usual, he was staring blankly even in the portrait. As if he was bored of life.

My hands clenched slowly and I stared at his face impassively before turning back to what I was doing.

My mama left the kitchen, so I wiped my hands and took my phone, checking my notifications on Facebook and Instagram.

I sneered when I saw the model my mama had been asking about, heaving a sigh as I clicked on her account and checked her latest pictures. I couldn't help but heave another dreamy sigh some seconds later.

Melanie Ambrogio was an Italian model and she represented so many agencies worldwide, as long as they could afford her. She was beautiful, carried her body with grace, and she had amazing confidence,, and also had the perfect model shape. Her slender figure and burst were really admirable. Most of those who knew her or had been co-starred with her said she was totally humble and easy to roll with, but then that wasn't really my business.

I double-clicked on her pictures to signify I just liked them and then left her page, moving to Harry Styles and Zayn Malik's posts and making crazy obsessed comments on them with a goofy grin. My mama entered once again with a sigh, adjusting the mitten as she made sure her hands were comfortable in them.

"What did Gonzalo want the other time?"

"Oh. You know how much of a troublemaker he is. He came to see how his childhood friend was doing."

"So, he's also resuming with you guys?"

"Sure. Most universities are resuming the same week. It was just a week break for lecturers." She checked the corn soup and hummed in approval, stretching the spoon in my direction for me to have a taste.

"The taste of love is what I call it."

"Yeah, you've given me the taste for years so there's no way I would magically forget it now, is there?" I raised a questioning brow but she pushed the spoon further into my face.

"Hush and taste it already."

"This is a good mama." I complimented and licked the tip of my finger properly.

"Lest I forget my dear, kindly get the bath

ready for the young master. He's been in his study for a while now." She spoke softly and returned to her chore.

Stiffening, my face morphed into a familiar scowl. I left my Instagram page, not giving Shawn Mendes's Picture-where he was staring at something and smiling-alike.

Young master.

I felt my heart thump repeatedly in my chest, feeling cornered.

Now, the other stay-in house helps; Mimi wasn't available at the moment, Stephanie wasn't around, and the last one, Preeti, was on holiday to see her family in India. Dread filled me. Knowing I had no choice, I wiped my right hand where there was still a soup stain on my dress and got down from the stool with slumped shoulders, deciding to prepare his bath ASAP.

"Yes, mama," I replied gloomily and exited the kitchen. My legs felt heavy with each step I took up the stairs. Halfway through the hallway, I could already smell his musky cologne.

He was using strong, solid Cologne and it fitted him because he was a solid devil. No, he wasn't a little demon but the devil himself. Tall, handsome, undoubtedly good-looking convincingly, and had this unnerving aura around him. The fragrance was really strong and I couldn't avoid it, making me inhale it anyway. I entered the young master's room and shut the door with a soft click as I entered his bathroom and prepared his bath.

I knew I had to inform him that I had done so.

I quickly went into the study and did just that, trying to make as little sound as I could.

"Your bath is ready."

He didn't raise his head up, so I cleared my throat slightly.

The tendrils of his sleek black hair fell over his face as he concentrated on the paperwork before him, and I averted my gaze to keep from staring at him. It didn't feel totally right to stare. His jaws were tightly clenched. I couldn't deny the fact that he was beautiful to look upon though. He had blue orbs that just reminded me of the ocean and a really structured face with a pointed nose. His cheekbones stood proud and defined his slightly rosy lips.

Yes, he was attractive to the eyes and oozed confidence, but he was also intimidating in every way, and I made sure to steer clear of anything related to him whenever he was around. It had been hard to do before but when I gained admission into the private university, I was glad I wouldn't have to move around in an awkward air with the so-called young master.

But for now, I had just returned from the private hostel where I was staying, and I knew I would just have to bear it till I left for school once again.

"Welcome sir," I spoke so softly that it was almost hard for me to hear myself at all.

"Hmm." He grunted slowly. Then he raised his head up and fixed me one of his blank looks, succeeding in reminding me that I was wasting his time.

"Yes?" He spoke gruffly.

His expression was still hard, so hard that I wondered what he would look like when he was in his office. His employees must be really intimidated by him. I kept quiet and watched his two eyes look over me, wondering why they suddenly became intense when he clenched his jaws even tighter.

"Speak."

"Your bath is ready." I gasped quickly, opening the door and shutting it quickly behind me as I walked away from the man. It is more like running.

I knew the man hated me. Now I was convinced that he just did because the raw irritation in his eyes was something I definitely didn't miss. What was it with that man?

He really did have something up his sleeves, thinking he could treat everyone the way he wanted, especially me. He usually took his time staring into my soul and my heart as if I carried the sins of the whole world and he wanted me to burn.

"You did it?" Mama asked when I got back into the kitchen. I did an eye roll and took a calm exhale.

It was about time I started looking for a job so that I wouldn't have to come home during the holidays and could begin earning money to prepare for my future. I needed to become independent. It wasn't as if he didn't pay my... oh yes, he did pay my bills. I had more than enough money in my account to buy land if I wanted.

But still!

Most importantly, I needed to distance myself from him.

Kara's POV

I had just gotten back from the ranch a mile away and as I walked the lone paths back to the mansion, I realized I was missing Adrian. Adrian was my best friend I met in my freshman year in College, and she was also the closest person I had to a sister, which was quite nice as I didn't have many friends because I was somehow an introvert.

The smile slipped into a frown when I realized I was no longer alone. Gonzalo, an estate worker and one of my childhood friends was walking in my direction, a sly smile slowly dancing on his lips.

"Aha!" he shouted once I was standing really close to him and I couldn't help but giggle at how dumb he was. Did he truly think I was so blind that I didn't see him approach me at all?

"I've not seen you in ages Kara..." he grumbled. Instead of entertaining his words, I ignored him and nipped on my lower lip in boredom.

"I'm talking to you."

"Well, whose fault is it that we've not seen in a while?"

"Look bunny face, I know we didn't end on a good foot that day bu-"

"Who the heck is bunny face?" I scrunched up my face in total disgust. How would he call me bunny face? I didn't have a rabbit head.

Gonzalo moved impossibly closer to me, his eyes looking around from their peripheral vision in ways that made me wonder what he was up to. He grabbed me in one swift moment, and I immediately stiffened, staring wildly at his strong arms, which had gotten muscular over the years. Gonzalo was no longer a boy but I wasn't sure if he still had those 'little feelings' he used to nurture for me all those years.

"I know you would deny me again, but I need this right now." The intensity in his tone was so strong but I rolled my eyes all the same.

"Need what?!" I raised a mocking brow.

"You're wasting my time boy."

He huffed. "We both know I'm not a boy," he wiggled his eyebrows and made kissy faces.

"And, you know what I mean, love."

"No, Gonzalo." I released myself from his firm hold. Hearing him say that love word alone... I wanted to puke!

"Just once, please..."

"No. You can't get a kiss!" He didn't even have to tell me what he was expecting.

"Even if it's a little peck?"

I shook my head, my hands itching to slap him hard on the face. We were at the small walkway that led to the ranch in the estate for crying out loud.

Anyone could hear and they'd get the wrong interpretation! In his defense, I knew far well that he had been asking me to go on a date with him for the past seven years and I still shrugged him off all the time.

"You know I love you right?" He asked slowly and traced his tanned hand around my side again, making sure I was trapped against his chest.

"Goodness..." I rolled my eyes.

"Si, amore, ti amo."

"Gonzalo, you're out of your mind."

"And I would be out of anything, just for you."

His breath was tickling me by the back of my ear and I kept jumping slightly whenever his stubbles would slowly prick my chin. This felt familiar; after all, we grew up together,r, and I saw him as a brother.

"I know, but I don't like you that way, Gonzalo." Gonzalo was someone I'd known since childhood, whom I could as well consider a friend, just a year older than me, and his father, who was managing the ranch with two other men.

"I've been waiting for long. I desire-"



Stephano's POV

"Should we give them another chance sir?" Andre asked. The tiredness he probably felt was evident in his tone. The instance I left home for my run, I hadn't hesitated to call him, giving him instructions on the Goslings Company.

They were shareholders in the company, but of late, they had been demanding funds for some nongovernmental organization.

It wasn't the fact that they wanted to support an NGO that infuriated me. No, it was the amount they were demanding and the coercion their group head was willing to use. I would never take idle to threats and threats, he had given.

"Alright, but after that, get straight to action if he insists on the amount," I grunted.

"I'll do just that, boss, and call you to relay the outcome of the things." Andre replied and ended the call with a curt 'later boss'. Tucking my phone back into my sweatpants back pocket, I decided to just keep walking since I was now in my estate. There was no need to keep jogging.

"Just once, please..." I suddenly heard someone say in a pleading tone. I slowed down in my tracks. The voice sounded really familiar but I couldn't exactly place where I had heard it from.

"No. You can't get a kiss!" The feminine voice replied. I knew she was the one before I even took the corner and saw her. They were both standing close to a tree and also close to each other.

Her creamy legs were on display in her short dress and her backside was round and admirable. A great view that had me sucking in a deep breath. My jaw ticked when I heard her male companion mutter something.

She was talking to him and she had that defiance in her tone, the defiance I loved most about her and the same defiance that always melted into softness and sweetness whenever she saw me.

"Even if it's a little peck?" looking from her, I looked over at Gonzalo, son of Marcus as he trained his eyes on her. Now I knew why his voice sounded familiar. I had spoken with his father and my ranch manager on my way out of the estate about an hour ago.

Even from where I stood, the lust in his eyes was evident, and he had a smirk plastered on his face, one I was sure she couldn't notice with how she was looking up at him with confused eyes.

I walked around the corner and stood at the walkway, the one that led back to my ranch. I made a move to take a step but stopped when I heard his next words.

"You know I love you right?" he asked slowly and traced his hands glistening with sweat from labor around her two sides. Something swirled in me immediately.

Irritation and intense jealousy burned in me.

He didn't love her. He was merely drunk with her beauty. What did he know about loving someone so beautiful as my Kara? I wouldn't be surprised if he even said he would marry her. All he wanted was in her pants.

"Goodness."

"Si, amore, ti amo."

Even a blind man would know he was lying. He was fooling her but the girl couldn't even hear the deceit in his tone. His eyes might have hidden the lust from her but I could see it clearly.

"Gonzalo, you're out of your mind," she said again, looking conflicted.

"And I would be out of anything, just for you." Was she seriously falling for this? He sounded more like a pathetic being and that line was just used wrongly.

"I know but I don't like you that way, Gonzalo." She said grudgingly. I took a harsh breath in. I should just walk up to them instead of hanging around. They were too close for my liking, and I wouldn't mind burning his hand with something if it would mean he would stop looking at her that way.

He was visibly eye-fucking her.

"I've been waiting for long. I desire-"

"What is going on here?" He released her and they pulled away, albeit clumsily. Immediately, they realized they had company, and the girl let out a startled yelp. Kara avoided my eyes-like she had done since she was a little girl.

"I demand an answer." I calmly spoke again. I was not calm but the fearsome look Gonzalo was sporting made me realize that what I was doing was more satisfying than making threats.

I could see the other expression Gonzalo tried but in vain to mask and it was that of surprise. The feeling was mutual, as he stared at me almost in awe while I looked back questioningly.

I had never had a one-on-one interaction with him, and the way he was looking at me, I could only guess he was surprised to hear me do something other than grunting.

"We...we were talking and she felt something itchy and..." he explained cautiously when I shot him a dark look, his voice immediately trailing off.

The lamest excuse I'd ever heard.