Nero (Made Men #1) (24 page)

Lucca looked up at Chloe. “How come you were never hurt?”

“W-
what?” Chloe looked back at him.

Lucca slammed the book closed
. “Why did they only ever hurt Elle?”

Chloe bit her lip
. “She wouldn’t ever let them touch me. If-if they tried, Elle would do something to make them hit her instead.”

“That’s enough
. You can go.” Nero stood and turned his back to her, walking to the rail of the gazebo to hold him up
. She works so she can go to school and get the shit beat out of her just so Chloe doesn’t get hurt.

While Chloe solemnly stood and left the gazebo,
Nero was on the verge of losing his mind. He’d found out everything he had wanted to know. Sebastian had done the most gruesome things to her over the years.
He’s going to fucking die.
Cassandra and everyone else who had witnessed or done something to her were all going to get what they deserved, as well, but right now, Sebastian was his main priority.
It’s taking everything in me not to fucking go out and get even right now.

When Chloe had
gone through the back door to leave, Nero turned around and saw the same battle in Amo and Vincent’s eyes.

Vincent stood
. “How in the fuck is she still sane or alive? Please tell me we start tonight.”

Nero’s hands wanted retribution
, but his mind hesitated. “Go home. I’ll call you if I decide to do anything.”

Vincent nodded before he disappeared.

Nero watched Amo stand. He clearly wanted to say something as he stared Lucca down until he finally walked away.

“What are you going to do
, brother?”

Nero looked over at Lucca
. He had never been able to figure out what went through his mind. His brother was never much for words, nor did he really care about anything in his life. But tonight, he had seen something different.

Nero sat back down in the chair
. “What do you think?”

Lucca flicked his lighter and stared into the flame
. “I think killing is way too fucking easy.”

Chapter Thirty-
Four

A Lot of Makeup Caking

Elle sat on Nero’s bed wondering what
had happened. Everything seemed fine, the night had been great, and then Nero had told her to go upstairs with Maria.

Elle and Maria had
really had a good time. She’d tried on whatever Maria had told her to and ended up with Maria giving her a couple of things.
Well, the ones that weren’t too girly.

Maria liked flowers and pink too much for Elle’s taste
, but Maria had a few things she had bought when she went through a phase. Elle hadn’t wanted to take them, but Maria had insisted, saying she was going to give them away anyway. After looking at Maria’s huge, walk-in closet that was filled to capacity, Elle hadn’t felt too badly.

Then,
when Nero had come into Maria’s bedroom, his face had been scarier than she had ever seen it. All he said to Elle was, ‘
My room, now.’

Elle could feel his fury radiating from his body
as she had sat on his bed and Nero had gone into his bathroom.

Now
, here Elle was, confused and worried, sitting on his bed, listening to the shower run. After a bit, she decided to use the time to call her boss and tell him why she didn’t make it to work tonight, hoping to sidetrack her mind. When the call ended, she had thought he must have fallen in by how long it was taking him to take a shower, but then she heard the water turn off.

Elle was biting her nails
, waiting for the door to open, and when it finally did, her heart stopped. Nero came out of the bathroom, still dripping wet. She had never seen him in anything other than dress clothes, and now he was wearing a towel low around his hips.

She watched his
perfectly-toned body move toward his dresser.
I mean, perfect.
You could see every muscle under Nero’s skin. They weren’t bulky; his body was lean and cut.
Everything is defined; his arms, his chest, and his abs…
Elle followed a drop of water going down his abdomen, drifting down his dark skin until his towel captured it right above his…

Elle turned her head with a snap
. “Don’t change in here!” She had seen the towel start to drop.

“Turn your head
, then.”

“I am
,” Elle mocked him. She crossed her arms and kept her head turned; however, her gaze slowly drifted to see out of the corner of her eye. When she saw his ass, she quickly snapped them back in place, licking her lips and trying not to think of how glorious his ass had looked.

Elle felt a breeze under the covers, so she turned her head and saw Nero getting under the
sheets, wearing dark boxer briefs. She tried to get up to get off the bed.
Clearly, Nero is ready for bed
.

Nero grabbed her hand
. “Where do you think you’re going?”

“Um
, I thought I could sleep with Maria tonight.”

Nero pulled her down beside him
, pinning her upper body under his. “No, you’re not.”

How does he always do that?
Elle had no idea how Nero always managed to mold her body like putty to the way he saw fit.

Elle tried to push
off his unclothed chest. “Nero, I’m not sleeping with you.”

“Yes
, you are,” Nero’s voice commanded her.

Elle’s body betrayed her again
, giving in to Nero’s demand, even though she had never slept beside a boy before. She figured he had just given her her first orgasm, therefore sleeping beside each other was a step down.
Right?

“Then could you please change?”

“I usually sleep naked; would you prefer that?” Nero mocked her.

Elle quickly responded, “No.”

She tried to ease into Nero and the bed. His anger had lessened, yet she could still tell he was mad, making her unable to relax. Minutes had passed of them lying in the silence before Elle began to really worry.

“Did I do something wrong?” Elle whispered.

Nero took a deep breath and pulled her into him closer. “No, baby, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

Elle released her own breath and was able to sink into him
, finally able to enjoy the warmth and feel of his body beneath her, making her own body melt next to his. Whatever it was that was bothering Nero, he didn’t want to talk about it, and since he didn’t, Elle would let it be.

“I had a nice time tonight, thank you.” She hadn’t even thanked Nero for saving her life.

Nero started moving his fingers up and down her back. “You don’t have to thank me. I’m glad you had a good time.”

“I did
. I like your sister, hugs and all.” Elle really did enjoy Maria’s company. It was refreshing to find a wealthy, gorgeous girl who wasn’t mean to her.

Nero laughed
. “I thought you would.”

Now that Nero was in a better mood
, she thought she could ask a favor. “I especially liked her closet. She gave me some clothes she was throwing out, so her closet is getting pretty bare.”

Nero snickered
. “Yeah, right, it is. What are you getting at?”

Elle really hoped this would work for her new friend
. “Well, I thought Chloe and I could go shopping with Maria.”

“I see
. Did she put you up to this?”

Elle sighed
. “Nero, she’s dying to be around girls, not her brothers. You all don’t have to watch her twenty-four-seven. She’s an adult.” Elle didn’t understand because, from what Maria had told her, she was never left alone. Someone always watched over her, and frankly, that didn’t make any sense.

Nero didn’t say anything until minutes later
. “You all can go under one condition.”

Elle didn’t like the sound of that
. “Okay…?”

“You let me buy you clothes, and not from fucking
Goodwill or anywhere else you get worn clothes. Brand new clothes from wherever the hell my sister buys hers.”

“There’s nothing wrong with buying clothes from
Goodwill.” Elle was always judged by buying clothes from thrift shops, but the fact was, you could get hardly-worn clothes for cheap, and most of the time, stores mimicked old clothes for a ridiculous price when you could buy it right at Goodwill for nothing. She should have known Nero would judge her.
I mean, look at this house.

Elle tried to push off Nero
, but yet again, he held firm.

Nero pushed her back into his body
. “I didn’t mean it like that, baby. I don’t care that you wear worn clothes, but I think you should have some new clothes, also. You deserve clothes that are yours and have only been yours. There’s nothing wrong with buying brand new clothes, either.”

Damn
.
Nero had completely turned that around on her. Not to mention, that was possibly the sweetest thing he had said to her.

Elle kissed his chest
. “Fine.”

Nero kissed the top of her head and
then leaned over to his nightstand to turn the lamp off.

For once
, Elle was at peace, not having to think about how she was going to survive another day at Legacy Prep. She felt safe as she started to drift off to sleep.

“Oh
, and I forgot to mention; you have to spend the same amount as Maria.”

* * *

Three Weeks Later

Elle started gluing on the pieces of paper filled with her words to her poster board. She couldn’t stop smiling
, thinking about the last three weeks with Nero.
Ever since the night she’d slept over at his house, her life had turned a complete one-eighty. Honestly, Elle didn’t even know where to start.

Maria had
become another good friend of hers and Chloe’s. All three had clicked the day they first went shopping, and yes, Nero had made sure she spent the same amount of money as Maria did because he was there. Nero, Amo, and Vincent had taken them, staying in the background and just keeping an eye on them. Elle didn’t understand why there was insistent monitoring of Maria, but every time Elle saw her flip her golden hair behind her shoulder, she began to understand.

Nero spending money on her didn’t end there. The day after they made up
, Nero told the lunch lady to take Elle’s lunch out on his account. Elle had tried to protest, but the lunch lady had taken it before Elle could get a word out. She found that pretty strange that she didn’t even have something to say about it, considering she was the one who had thrown away her tray. The next day, Elle thought she would be smart and not eat at all, but that really didn’t work because Nero set a tray down in front of him and her.

Elle had wished the money spending had stopped there
; however, when she went to the office to pay a part of her tuition she had set up on a payment plan, it was already paid. When she had confronted Nero about it, he had done what he was getting too good at, telling her she deserved everything. Then he kissed her to make her give in. Finally, he told her the last request.

He had told her to cut back her hours since she was able to keep the money
. Again, she’d protested, but Nero had found a way to persuade her, saying they could spend that time together, watching all the movies she wanted. However, Nero didn’t do much watching, and Elle was only able to attempt to.

Lastly, Elle and Chloe hadn’t been picked on the whole time. Everyone who had ever hurt her
hadn’t talked, looked, or even came within five feet of her.

Elle looked up from her poster to see Stacy and Stephanie powdering their no
ses and under their eyes. Lately, Elle had noticed a lot of makeup caking and wearing sunglasses, and that was a hell of a lot to make it unusual. Yet, everyone kept saying a bug was going around. Elle looked at their dark, baggy eyes.
I hope I don’t get it.

Elle managed to glue on the final piece before the bell rang.

Nero waited until everyone left before he maneuvered Elle up to sit on his lap. “What are you doing tonight?”

Elle wrapped her arms around Nero’s neck
. “Something tells me you’ve made plans for me.”

Nero laughed
. “I might have.”

“Well
, are you going to tell me?”

“No
, it’s a surprise.” Nero put his hands in Elle’s hair and brought her face toward his, giving her a firm kiss.

Elle kissed him back
, her tongue flicking out to trace his mouth. Her hunger had risen to new heights. Nero hadn’t made a big move on her since that night three weeks ago when he had given her that orgasm, her first. He still kissed her relentlessly and touched her over her clothes, but he hadn’t tried anything like he had done that night.

At first
, Elle had been grateful, but every day her body burned hotter and craved for Nero to do something, anything. She didn’t understand why he didn’t try something since he had been persistent in the beginning. When things would heat up between them, Nero would stop, making Elle think something was wrong with her.

“Are you two done sticking your tongues down each other
’s throat? Because I would like to get the fuck out of here.”

Elle quickly pulled away and stood up at Vincent’s voice.

Nero sighed as he went to stand. “I’ll remember that.”

“I’m sure you will.” Vincent laughed.

Elle walked out of the classroom, trying not to blush when she saw Chloe and Amo talking to each other under their breath while trying not to laugh. Elle couldn’t believe the two had actually started getting along.
Well, mostly.

She had noticed Chloe
couldn’t even look at the guys the day after she spent the night with Nero, but then again, she didn’t even look at Elle much that day. She figured something must have happened at home that night because, every day after that, Chloe had become more and more comfortable.

Nero grabbed Elle’s hand and they started walking to the student parking lot
. When they finally reached Chloe’s BMW, Nero opened the passenger’s door and Elle got in.

“I’ll call you.” Nero swiftly gave her a kiss before he shut the door.

“Does he know?”

Elle looked over at Chloe’s smiling face
. “Know what?”

“That your birthday is tomorrow,” Chloe answered.

Elle raised her eyebrow. “Did you tell him?”

Chloe laughed
. “No.”

“Then nope.”