The Company

"Marie, since Mr. Raccolto is going to be a while, would you like something to eat while you wait?"

My stomach answered for me with a loud grumble that brought a smile to Michael's face as he stood to leave the room.

"No worries dear, I'll grab something that will be easy on your stomach so that you don't get sicker. I'm sure Mr. Raccolto wouldn't want you getting any sicker because of a careless mistake."

I'm still intrigued by this Mr. Raccolto; he sounds and seems to be very nice. I mean, he has let me stay in his home for five days and he doesn't even know me! His home is beautiful from what I've seen, but that means nothing in the long run. Hell, Trevor's place had also been nice and look how that turned out! Not only has he been hitting me, but he's abusing me in other ways that I can't even think of without wanting to vomit. I can't stand to be touched by him anymore but I don't know how to get away from him without getting hurt even more. I'm just grateful he will be gone with his family when Bella comes to visit.

I could never handle the hurt in Bella's eyes if she were to see how Trevor treats me. Not only would she be angry that he was hurting me, but she would also be disappointed in me for sticking around and letting him continue his abuse. Our parents had taught us better than that growing up, we were taught that a man treated his woman like a queen and never laid an angry hand on her, no matter what. Our father had been an Italian business man who frequented Lyon, France for business, where he met our mother and fell in love instantly. The two were married for thirty-five years before the accident that took them both from me and my twin sister at the young age of seventeen.

Tears filled my eyes and my hands cradled my head as I shook with silent sobs. So much has happened since I last saw my sister and her sudden call announcing a visit had me in a frenzy trying to get everything in order and seemingly normal. With so much stress on my body, I had forgotten to stay on Trevor's good side and not provoke his temper any more than necessary.

My body shook hard as I let out all the tears I have been holding back, from being hurt by Trevor, worrying about my sister and worrying about getting away from Trevor unharmed. I felt two large arms wrap around me tenderly as I cried and found that I couldn't stop the tears that were staining the dark silk shirt of the man holding me.

I cried for what felt like hours instead of the mere minutes it had actually been when my tears finally stopped and my breathing returned to normal. The hands running through my hair and holding me to a rather defined chest stopped their movements as a soft kiss was placed atop my head.

"Here, sip this I'm sure your throat is dry from crying. Don't worry, I've got you and nothing else is going to happen to you while I'm here. I can promise you that."

A masculine, but soothing, voice made my heart beat erratically as I chanced a glance from under my lashes at the owner of the large arms that currently held me close. What I saw from that glance didn't help my erratic heart beat one damn bit. No, in fact, it probably made it ten times worse.

"Are you feeling better now lovely? I have the tray of food that Michael brought for you if you would like to try to eat some now. It might settle your stomach a bit if you eat slowly."

My mouth went dry instantly as I took in the sight of the beautiful man that was holding me to his chest. The large arms were not overly big, but one could tell they were strong whereas the chest was sculpted as if from marble and the legs of a runner now encircled me as I was handed a small glass of water.

The beautiful sexiness didn't stop there, no; his face was dazzling to say the least. Chocolate brown eyes stared back at me, filled with what could only be concern and...

is that longing I see, or is that purely wishful thinking?

High cheekbones, full lips and a strong jaw line had my head swimming but what did me in completely was the curly brown locks that had my fingers aching to touch and twirl the curls around my fingers as I pulled him in to taste those full lips.

Oh my GOD! He's beautiful. Down right beautiful and I'm staring! Stop it Marie, or he's going to think you're a freak for staring at him so openly.

Heat filled my cheeks as I blushed with embarrassment, a soft laugh caught my attention and drew my eyes to the man's once again.

"I'm Jonathon Raccolto, and you are?"

Oh god, he expects me to talk? My brain hasn't left the thought of his gorgeous face long enough to even think of forming words!

"Mmm..M.." I coughed, "Marie, I'm Marie."

He laughed softly again, "Well Marie, you are very beautiful if you don't mind my forwardness. I, uh- I'm sorry I'm not usually like this. It's just that you seem like something very special and I'm angry that someone would even consider hurting you like this."

His big hands delicately held my face as his thumbs soothed one of the many bruises covering my face. His touch sends volts of electricity down my spine and a peaceful smile took up residence on both mine and his face.

****

Long, curly dark chocolate hair fanned out on my pillow as I lower the beauty down to my bed to ravage and worship her. Dark brown eyes stare up at me, filled with lust and need, as I cover her lithe body with mine breathing in her sweet scent. Her tongue sneaks out to wet her lips as she bites down on her bottom lip softly. Her soft delicate voice fills my head as she whispers, "Take me Ryan, please."

I groan and move to thrust into her as I awake with a jolt.

"Son of a bitch! Just five more minutes!!"

I yell out in frustration as I throw my alarm against the wall, shattering it. Oh well, I didn't like that alarm anyways. My sweat soaked sheets tangle around me, trapping me in the very same bed of my dreams, or what I'm considering a nightmare since I can't seem to get what I want from it. I run a shaky hand through my damp hair and curse the now shattered alarm clock. The same dark haired, ivory skinned beauty has plagued my dreams for the past week, making me irritable and horny as fuck.

A sudden thought filled my head, making my stomach find a new home in my feet.

Oh god, she's my intended, but who is she?

My cell phone chose that exact moment to ring, whoever was calling had better had good reason because I was in no mood for bullshit. I untangled myself from the covers and grabbed the phone answering quickly as I noticed the name on the screen.

"Ryan, I need you to go to Marie's apartment and gather a few of her belongings. Also, take a crew for clean up, her sister will be arriving in a few days and Marie doesn't want her to know of the circumstances by walking into a trashed apartment I'm sure. We now have five days to prepare for her sister's arrival, so I need you to make sure the place looks nice and there is no trace of that scum left."

"You got it Jonathon, I'll take care of it. I'll be around sometime later today and I'll give you the full run down of everything that is found."

"Oh, and Ryan, I'm going to need you to escort Marie's sister Bella, here to the mansion. So you'll have to pick her up from the airport on the sixth at nine am."

He took a brief pause, "Look, I know I told you that you're on a vacation right now, but I don't trust Bella's safety with anyone but you. I guess I'm trying to say thank you for watching my back the other night and for being so supportive through this intended bullshit."

"Don't worry 'bout it Jonathon, you know you're closer than a brother to me. I'll take care of everything."

The line disconnected and I made my way to the shower that would hopefully put me in a better mood.

***

I made my way slowly towards Marie's small condo, sticking to shadows so that the neighbors wouldn't get suspicious of a strange man approaching the young girl's place. My crew had arrived earlier and had set into the task of cleaning up for Bella's arrival. The wind was blowing softly, which didn't help in the June heat but did bring a sweet smell that made my eyes darken with desire.

What is that? It smells like warm vanilla!

My heart beat quickened and my mouth went dry. I know that smell. Its faint, but I'm pretty sure I know it. I shook my head and walked on towards the condo where the scent became stronger. My body shook slightly, as I got closer to the front door the scent grew and my heart threatened to burst out of my chest. One word kept repeating in my head.

Intended.

I shook it off as just being stuck in my head from my very detailed dream and opened the door to Marie's condo. My hand was still on the doorknob when my heart sank and sped up at the same time. The extremely intoxicating smell flooded my senses, my eyes tingling and mouth watering.

Movement in the kitchen caught my eye and I suddenly found myself staring at the back of a long haired brunette that was currently fixing a sandwich unbeknownst of my presence. I silently took in every detail of her body from her long flowing hair to her tone hips and waist, even down to the pointy heeled boots on her small feet. I couldn't help but notice that even with the added height from the boots, she barely reached my chest. I quickly, but somewhat painfully, drug myself back to the front door, closing it before knocking properly.

My wait was merely moments, but I felt like it had been hours when the beauty opened the door carefully. Dark brown eyes with full thick lashes blinked up at me questioningly as she took in my appearance. Her pink tongue darted out to wet her lips and I almost came right there. The sight of those beautiful full lips glistening with lip gloss made me want to kiss her until neither one of us could take anymore.

"Can I help you?"

I stared at her briefly before answering. Her face was framed by that dark wavy hair, the very same chocolate brown that plagued my dreams, her brown eyes seemed protective and weary, something I didn't like compared to the lust that filled them in my dreams.

"My name is Ryan, I'm a friend of Marie's and who, may I ask, are you?"

I watched her eyes roam over my body, I was happy to let her ogle me since I had plans of being with her forever. My heart raced as she took in my lower body and made her way upwards, stopping only to smile when she saw the smile on my face. Her cheeks tinted pink when she realized I caught her checking me out.

"I'm Bella, Marie's sister. Marie isn't here right now, do you want to leave a message or something?"

"Actually, I know Marie isn't here I only knocked out of habit. She's actually staying with a friend of ours and needed a few things so I offered to come get them. I thought you weren't due in until a few days from now?"

She looked back towards the kitchen while biting her lip.

"Am I keeping you from something Bella?"

I knew I was, but how could I tell

her

that and not sound like a creeper? I couldn't, so instead I opted for that slightly embarrassed look that crossed her face sweetly as she bit hard into her bottom lip. My hand idly went to cup her face as my right thumb brushed over her lips smoothly.

"You're going to bite a hole love, why don't you just tell me what's on your mind instead?"

Her mouth fell open slightly and a deeper blush crept up her neck and cheeks, I couldn't resist what I did next and her response was one I'll honestly never forget. I leaned down the foot and a half difference and kissed her beautiful pouty lips, sweeping my tongue along that perfect bottom lip slightly surprised when her tongue meets mine. I feel her hands grab my shirt roughly and pull me into the condo, only to hear the door slam when her pointy heeled boot kicked it, leaving us alone and glued to each other.