Ruthless

Six

The evening breeze gently blows against my face. I raise a hand and tug a few loose strands of hair from my messy bun behind my ear.

The busy streets of Naples were enlightening. Stalls were set up with many people shouting in Italian with buyers constantly haggling.

A large grin was plastered on my face that was hurting my facial structure. It's been a long time since I've been in this historical city and it hasn't changed one bit.

I slowly strode pass each stall quietly admiring their cultures and foods. My tummy rumbled at the sight of my most favourite Italian street food-Cuoppo Napoletano. It was a mix of deep fried seafood that always had me going for seconds.

As the sun set into a yellowish puddle at the end of the road, I caught a familiar scent not too far away. A small smile found its way onto my lips when Adriana came into view.

"Ciao," I greet while waving towards her. She smiled back but hers didn't reach her eyes. (Hello)

She ushers me to a small cafe near our penthouses and orders us both a smootie. The cafe held a homely feeling that made me feel cozy and warm.

"Allora, raccontami di te, Olivia," she smiles while slurping down her drink. ( So tell me about yourself, Olivia)

"I came from America and I ran away from my mate," I simply blurted out, not thinking about the consequences first.

Her eyes widen," Why would you? You're lucky to even have a mate!" She softly scolded and playfully hit me.

My eyebrows furrowed at her words," Have you not found your mate?" Tears started to form in her eyes and I panicked. Comforting people weren't one of my best skills.

"He died protecting me," she sobbed out while clutching onto me tightly. I sat there with her arms hugging around my shoulders while my shirt absorbed her tears.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I whispered to her and gently caressed her hands. She nodded at me and took another sip of her drink.

We stayed in the cafe even after a few hours had passed when the sun had set. The quiet streets were dimly lit with a piece of newspaper caught in the wind.

Adriana had one hand slung loosely around my shoulder as we walked back to our penthouses. For a threat to my now ex-agency, she sure makes a really good friend.

Apparently, her mate was killed when he was protecting Adriana from an attack. They were visiting another pack to form an alliance when it was attacked. Her mate had to fight off six highly skilled wolves but he had done all that he could've to protect her, and her unborn child. A month later, Adriana gave birth to a cute little baby boy and she couldn't have been more proud.

I spent the next few weeks just touring around the country with Adriana showing me different tourist sights. We slowly grew onto each other and I could no longer spend a second without my new bestie. Since the day she knew I ran away from my mate, she hasn't asked anything about it. She knew it was a sensitive topic to me and she respected that.

"Olivia! " Adriana shouted for me. She held her phone to her ear while running out of my kitchen.

"What?" I asked her, scared of what she might say, but instead she grins at me mischievously.

"What is it?" I ask again feeling more nervous of the new vibe she was giving off.

"I want you to meet my mateless brother since you ran away from your mate. Wouldn't that be fun?" She suggests with her eyes that twinkled in amusement.

My eyes widen and my jaw dropped as low as it could go. "Your..your brother?" I stammer. "I..I can't."

"Why not?" Adriana sighs. "You'll be perfect together. Trust me, I see it."

I stood up angrily and clenched my fist on my sides. "Your brother is my mate, Adriana!" I yell, scaring Ares who whimpered behind the couch in the living room.

Adriana made an 'o' and nodded her head in understanding but pointed to her phone," It's still going ya know." She said in a dead panned tone and quickly hung up.

"Great, now he knows where I am," I muttered sarcastically and threw my arms in the air. Ares came running towards me and sat on my lap while I gently stroke its soft fur.

"He should be here in two minutes," she mumbles sheepishly and gives me a wink. My eyes widen and looked around at my penthouse that looked like a mess. I looked at myself and I looked like a mess.

I stood up frantically and barked orders towards the house keepers to quickly tidy up everywhere. I ran up towards my room and changed into a more decent outfit.

"Why do you care what he thinks of you anyway?" Adriana asks while peeping her head through the door.

"He's still my mate. I don't want to scare him away," I sighed and ran my fingers through my curly hair to untangle all the knots.

She pursed her lips for a spilt second before they broke into a huge grin. Grabbing the straightener, Adriana spun my chair around and away from my mirror.

"What are you doing?" I raised an eyebrow towards her while she started to heat up the iron.

"I'm making sure Salvatore never leaves your sight ever again." She smirks and wiggles her eyebrow.