Forbidden Deception (Deception)

10

I t’s not raining today. I step out into the cold air of the city and look up at the dark clouds covering the sky.

“Let’s go.” Rafael breezes past me into his awaiting Rolls Royce Phantom, which is quite literally pitch black.

“What? Who? Me?”

“Yes, Venezia, you,” he calls out over his shoulder as he slides into his car.

I rush after him. I can’t miss a chance to get closer to him.

“I’ll drop you off. I have somewhere to be in that area.” He’s looking out the window while talking to me.

Why does he do this? He doesn’t look at me when he talks to me in his car. Having said that, I have only been in his car a total of two times.

“Is it okay if we stop somewhere on the way?”

He nods.

I try to discreetly look for his phone and spot the outline of it in his trouser pocket.

“I need to grab food for dinner. I really feel like pizza.” I don’t, but I want to delay him dropping me off at home. I’m barely able to do anything during work hours to get him to trust me, and this might get him to finally relax around me.

“Can you take me to that pizza place near my apartment complex? It’s down the road,” I ask the driver, who nods and turns the car.

Once we get there—in complete silence, I might add—I get out to order. When I come back to the car, holding the pizza box, an idea hits me. I go to get in the back of the car, but the tinted window rolls down.

“Get in the front,” Rafael says from the driver’s seat.

Biting my lip, I get inside and settle the box on my lap.

“I have a suggestion, and please don’t say no. You will be breaking my heart.”

Rafael starts the car but doesn’t put it into gear.

With one hand on the steering wheel and the other on the console between us, he turns to me. My thoughts falter for a second.

Focus .

“You know where your new hotel is being built? Can we drive to the ocean there and eat this together in the car? I think it would be much better than eating alone in a cold apartment. Don’t say no.”

I wasn’t supposed to do this. It wasn’t supposed to seem like I was trying to spend more time with him. I should have pretended like my heating was broken or something, but instead, it sounds like I want to be around him more.

“So I have to spend more time with you? God help me…” He sighs, then turns to face the road and puts the car into drive.

“Are you agreeing to it or insulting me?” I huff, crossing my arms.

“Both. Don’t you have a home to get to?” He shakes his head, but my mind has now taken a different road.

Holy shit. Rafael driving is the sexiest thing I have ever seen. He holds the steering wheel with one hand, and changes gears with the other. The focussed expression on his face makes me want to climb into his lap and cup his face.

He looks so fucking hot that hugging him alone won’t be enough.

What?

Where did that thought come from?

He is definitely good-looking, but I can’t take it that far.

What if… I did?

What if I did want it?

Sleeping with a powerful man like Rafael would be a terrible decision. My brother may not disown me, but he will be disappointed that I slept with our target. I can’t do that to him.

But when Rafael parks the car by the ocean and shuts the engine, then takes off his suit jacket and rolls up his sleeves to grab the box from me, my heart seems to be having trouble making sense of everything.

I can’t think of Rafael like that.

I just can’t.

We won’t last.

I’m here for revenge and espionage.

He has toyed with and ruined people’s lives and enjoyed it. While my brother may be worse and me even more so for doing this mission. So there is no future for us.

“Margherita? You couldn’t be more basic.” Rafael shakes his head, then he looks up through his lashes at me and my heart stops.

No.

I can’t do this.

“Yeah? Well, deal with it. Talk about wearing brown every other day. At least I’m not basic like that.” I take a bite of the pizza, and instead of looking out into the ocean, I get lost looking at something entirely different.

Something forbidden.

I went to a girls’ school all my life. I’ve been cut off from the outside world.

And now, for the first time, in my life I am in close proximity to a man, trying to get close to him for a mission, and my heart is weakening faster than I thought.

“My brother says anything I like is not basic and it makes me who I am.” I push his shoulder, and he almost loses his grip of his slice of pizza. He sighs and shakes his head but doesn’t scold me.

“Of course. Your amazing brother loves you. That’s why he lets you get away with being boring.” He narrows his eyes at me, but there’s a twinkle in his eyes.

I bite into my pizza, a smile tugging on my lips.

“As he should.” I shrug.

Taking another pizza slice, I look out into the ocean. The waves are slow and calm, the grey sky reflecting onto the clear waters. It’s like I can feel each time the waves slowly retreat, taking a deep breath, before rushing forward, letting out its breath.

I glance over at Rafael and find his gaze fixed on the sea too. I want to memorize this, keep it as a photograph and never let anyone see this secret side of Rafael. While I know Rafael is a serious man, there are small moments when I catch glimpses of Rafael as a troublemaker; one who loves seeing the card tower fall because his hand has sliced through it a smirk on his face at the disaster he caused.

Rafael is a man of mysteries but not enough that I won’t figure him out.

“I went to a boarding school and love wearing all kinds of clothes. Rain and cloudy weather is my favourite. I like forests. Junk food is my new obsession, and I’ve never fallen in love,” I blurt. Then I wait, biting my lip.

Rafael slowly turns to me, his eyes flashing with an intensity different from the usual calmness.

His jaw clenches, then he swallows the last bite of his pizza and stares right into my soul.

I hold my breath.

“Private school, interior design, rain, and I also don’t like forests. Brown is my favourite colour, and I’ve never fallen in love either.”

Why Rafael just answered me, gave me small pieces of himself without me pushing, I don’t know, but I can’t do anything to wreck any of the progress I’ve made.

“So that means the wife I’ll find for you needs to be your woman? One woman kind of man, are you?” I lift a brow.

“Are you doubting my loyalty? I’ve never cheated, and when I do get married, I won’t ever cheat on my wife.” He grabs another slice of the pizza and takes a careful bite giving me a side eye.

“Can I—” I clear my throat. “Can I ask a personal question?” My voice is quiet in the warm car that smells like pizza, Rafael, and leather.

“My answer won’t stop you.” He juts his chin at me.

“Are you a virgin?”

Rafael drops his head back against his seat, looking up at the ceiling of the car. His Adam’s apple bobs when he swallows. Then he turns to me, locks of hair falling into his eyes. The grey streaks in his hair have never looked this handsome on him.

This man is muscle, pine wood, coffee, and hotness combined.

He has this relaxed charm about him. He doesn’t show off nor put too much effort into his appearance, and yet the way he looks at me makes me feel like I am the only important one in his life. Quite like this moment. He is looking at me like everything else in the world falls dim in comparison to me.

But it’s just how he is.

I shouldn’t think too much into this.

“No, Venezia. I’ve fucked my share of women.” He lets out a small laugh when my mouth drops open, and he shakes his head.

Leaning forward, he nudges my jaw shut.

I don’t know what I was expecting. I guess just because I’m a virgin it doesn’t mean everyone would be in the same boat as me. Rafael is thirty-six, for God’s sake. Of course he isn’t a virgin. Something twists in my stomach when I imagine him fucking someone else. They got to see him naked. They got to see him. Touch him. Have his hands on their skin and—

Stop! What is wrong with me?

“Oh, right.” I sit up, mindlessly taking hold of his wrist and pulling it down to my lap. “Have you ever had a girlfriend?” I don’t even know why I am trying to ask.

“Shut it, Venezia. It’s not your business.” He rolls his eyes, pulls his wrist from my grasp, grabs tissues from somewhere, and cleans his hands.

He throws some on my lap, too.

“Wow, I can’t believe this. Oh, I am so going to tease you about this for the rest of your life. I cannot believe a man like you has never had a girlfriend,” I tease, finally taking hold of this topic instead. “Don’t worry. I will tell your prospects, and they will be over the moon that they will be your first.”

Rafael picks up the empty pizza box from the middle and places it on the backseat, leaning next to me in the process. I catch a strong whiff of his musky pinewood perfume, and my eyes slip closed for a moment as I breathe it in.

“It’s getting late, and it’ll start raining soon,” I announce as we get back on the road.

“What is your middle name?”

“Don’t have one.” Rafael mutters.

“Hugs or kisses?” This gets me a side eye, but I stay silent, waiting for him to answer.

“Hugs.” He rolls his eyes.

“Me, too.” I grin. “Favourite food?”

“Spicy chicken rice.”

“Mine is a spicy burger from my favourite restaurant. Yum.” My mouth waters just thinking about it.

Rafael’s lip lifts the tiniest bit, and it makes me smile.

“Night in or night out?”

“In,” he answers, and it isn’t even surprising to me.

“Me, too. I just love the calmness of staying in, eating and talking, and having a peaceful night. Going out seems too much,” I answer while looking at the city around me. “Did you know—”

“We are here.” He cuts me off and parks in front of my fake apartment building.

“Oh! That was so quick. I enjoyed it, Mr Gustav. Sweet dreams.” I grin at him, opening my door and getting out with my bag. “Throw the trash for me, will you?” I lean down, peeking through the window at him and catch him throwing a glance over his shoulder at the pizza box.

He looks back at me and nods.

“Drive safe, Mr Boss.”

Rafael reels back a fraction at the nickname. I bite my lip holding a laugh in.

I get up and skip up the steps, my heart jumping with me. Once I reach the door, I look back to see Rafael nod through the window at me. He honks once, then speeds off.

A laugh spills out of me remembering his face when I called him Mr Boss. It’s a stupid nickname, but it’s my all-time favourite moment.

When I am on my way home, with Leo driving me, silence falls, and I realise my mistake.

I never got my hands on his phone to install the software.

I slap a hand on my forehead, and Leo’s concerned gaze connects with mine in the mirror.