Heartless Prince by Brook Wilder

Chapter 41

Lucas

 

I waited at the Battery docks for Leda, watching as people came and went from their own small boats. The night was early, and while I would have preferred to stay on the yacht with Leda, repeating what we just did again and again, I wanted to take her into the city.

 

Hell, I wanted to show her off, but not for the reasons she thought.

 

I didn’t give a shit whether or not her father heard about our little trip or if anyone else saw us together. I wanted to keep that smile on Leda’s face, to not make her constantly worried that I was going to turn on her and send her back to her father or someone worse.

 

Blowing out a breath, I realized that I was falling for her. That was it, wasn’t it? It fucking terrified me to think of it that way, but to think anything else would be lying.

 

I didn’t want to need her, yet I needed her badly.

 

“Will you be spending a few days in the city?”

 

I looked over at Rocco, who was looking out over the dark water.

 

“Yeah, I think so,” I replied.

 

There was other business that I needed to attend to, and what better way than to have Leda here with me? I had a penthouse in the city, one that I hoped lived up to the sunset potential that rivaled what she wanted. Actually, I was looking forward to showing Leda my penthouse, giving her a glimpse of my life that she hadn’t seen yet.

 

I wanted her to believe that I was looking out for her well-being now, not just as her captor but as something… more.

 

“You’re starting to like her, aren’t you?”

 

“Fuck you,” I told Rocco, gripping the railing. “I don’t want to hear a fucking lecture from you.”

 

“Wouldn’t dream of lecturing you,” he chuckled. “What you will hear is a hale and hearty ‘I told you so’ when you realize that you can’t let her go.”

 

“I have no intention of letting her go,” I replied, the thought making me sick. Leda was mine, if nothing more than the fact that I paid for her.

 

“Oh, trust me, I know.” Rocco let a low whistle. “You’ve got it bad. I hope you know what you are doing.”

 

I pushed away from the railing. Sometimes I wanted to deck him, and sometimes, well, he had been there when many hadn’t. “I do. Trust me”

 

“While you’re here,” Rocco said. “Might not be a bad idea to shore up your support with the boys in the Battery. Y’know, considering we are here.”

 

It wasn’t a bad idea, but the sound of approaching footsteps took my attention away. I turned to find Leda heading towards us.

 

Fuck, she took my breath away, dressed in one of those wrap dresses that I was going to have a fun time removing later on. Her hair was down, and there was a tentative smile on her lips that made me want to kiss her.

 

“Hey,” she said, giving me a once-over. “Is this okay?”

 

“It’s amazing,” I said and then turned to Rocco. “Get the fucking car.”

 

He rolled his eyes and walked away.

 

As Leda joined me, the smell of citrus that she gave off drove me wild on the inside. I allowed her to shower alone, even taking one of the guest bathrooms so that I could keep myself from running my hands all over her body.

 

Every time she was in my presence, I wanted her. Every moment beside her was another moment I wanted to spend buried within her.

 

I took her hand and felt her trembling, causing me to pause. “What’s wrong?” I asked immediately.

 

She looked everywhere but at me, focusing on the water over my shoulder. “What are we really doing, Lucas? I mean, what am I doing here?”

 

Hell, I didn’t have an answer for her. “I’m taking you to dinner,” I said.

 

Her eyes found mine, and I swore I saw another person in them, one that I didn’t recognize at all. “You don’t have to lie to me,” she said softly.

 

Unable to help myself, I released her hand and framed her face, forcing her to see past the hard shell of a man that I was. “That’s it. I swear it, Leda. Is it so hard to believe?”

 

“It is,” she whispered, fear shining in her eyes.

 

I didn’t know how to turn her fear into a means of trusting me, but I was going to fucking do it one step at a time. “Trust me. I know it’s a hell of a lot to take in, but I’m not going to hurt you. Not anymore. I promise.”

 

And I meant it. I didn’t want to see Leda hurt.

 

Instead of responding, she leaned in and brushed her lips over mine. “All right,” she mumbled against my lips. “I’ll trust you.”

 

Some of the tension eased out of my shoulders, and I gently kissed her before stepping back. “Let’s go.”

 

Leda nodded, and I tucked her hand in mine, leading her to the car. I made the promise, and now I had to live up to it.

 

We climbed in the car, and it started toward the destination, followed by the SUV that the rest of my guards would ride in. Idly I wondered if Leda was used to being so protected whenever she was in her father’s presence. As a Don, it had been hard for me to get used to the guards’ sudden and sometimes unwanted presence.

 

I was a loner as an enforcer, and I took solace in that fact. But all of that changed after I became Don. No matter where I went, there was always somebody in my shadows. The capos didn’t believe in letting their leader alone. Whether they wanted to keep an eye on me to keep me from doing something stupid, or just wanted to keep an eye on me for other reasons, it didn’t matter.

 

Rocco was right, if I were here, I should check up on the situation with the boys in the Battery. Sometimes, it was worth reminding them just who was the boss and who were his followers.

 

Not tonight. Not yet.

 

Likely, word had already gotten out that I was in the city. We just stepped off a yacht, one that even a blind man couldn’t miss.

 

It both pissed me off and made me weary in the same breath. Being a Don was draining, to say the least, especially when you couldn’t hide.

 

The car pulled up to the familiar place on Mott Street, and I waited for Rocco to open my door. “Make a perimeter,” I told him as I buttoned my coat. “We won’t be here long.” I had every intention of taking Leda somewhere else after this stop. But whenever I was in the city, I liked to make an appearance, to show that this, too, was under my protection.

 

Walking around to the other door, I opened it and helped Leda out of the car. “Chinatown?” she asked, looking around. “I haven’t been here in ages.”

 

“There’s something I need to check up on, and then we’ll head out.” I told her, not wanting to leave her in the car. The closer I kept her to my side, the better I felt that I could keep her safe.

 

“Oh, we aren’t eating here?”

 

I glanced at her. I had already booked a table at Per Se at Columbus Circle, but the wistfulness in Leda’s eyes made me wonder if maybe I had gone overboard. She wasn’t what I would have thought a Mafia princess would be like, and continually surprised me with her down-to-earth nature.

 

It made me want more. “You want to eat here?”

 

“Can we?” she asked before biting her lip. “I mean, it’s been a while since I had some good authentic Chinese food.”

 

Well, hell. Leaning close, I brushed my lips over the shell of her ear. “Of course.”

 

When I pulled away, there was a genuine smile on her face and I shook my head, leading her inside the small restaurant. The smells were instantly familiar; the décor had not changed since I first set foot in the place all those years ago.

 

It almost felt like coming home.