Owned By Massimo

Chapter 20-I'm Innocent

Isabella's POV

I jumped at the loud sound of the door slamming open. My eyes flew wide, heart exploding in my chest as I realized I had fallen asleep right there on the floor behind the couch in Massimo’s office. My body was stiff and cold, the big shirt twisted around me. Panic hit me like a wave.

Massimo stood in the doorway, his face like stone…cold, dangerous, and unreadable. The early morning light from the hallway cast long shadows across his powerful frame. He looked even more intimidating than usual, like a man who had already decided someone was going to bleed today.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, his voice low and deadly. It sent chills racing down my spine.

“Massimo, thank God you’re finally home,” I breathed, relief flooding through me. I pushed myself up quickly, my legs shaky from the cold floor and hours of fear.

“I’ve been worried sick.” I rushed toward him, needing to feel his presence, needing him to listen.

But before I could even touch him, his hand shot out and wrapped tightly around my wrist, stopping me cold. His grip was firm, almost painful, like iron. He didn’t pull me closer. He held me in place.

“I asked you a question,” he growled. “What are you doing in my office?”

His eyes bored into mine, dark and suspicious. My stomach twisted. This wasn’t the man who had kissed me on the balcony. This was the Don. The one who crushed threats without mercy.

“Massimo, please listen to me,” I said desperately. “Two of your men are trying to betray you. I heard them talking last night. They’re planning to sell information about a shipment to the Romanos.”

I whispered the words fast, hoping he would hear the truth in them. But his cold eyes just stared back at me, no flicker of belief. My heart sank.

“Believe me,” I begged, stepping closer even though his grip held me back. “I tried all night to reach you. I waited for you to come back, but you didn’t show up. I came to your office trying to find a way to contact you…anything. But the laptop was locked. I couldn’t get in.”

My eyes filled with sincerity. I poured everything into my gaze, willing him to see I was telling the truth. I had risked so much for him already.

“You want me to believe that my own men would try to betray me?” he said slowly. “Are you trying to insult me, Isabella?”

Isabella. This was the first time he had said my name. It sent a strange flutter through my chest even in the middle of all this fear. But his tone was ice.

“I swear,” I whispered. “I would never do anything to hurt you.”

“You seem to forget who I am,” he laughed darkly. “You think anyone would dare betray me?”

“Unfortunately,” I said quietly, “they already are.”

Massimo scoffed. He released my wrist but didn’t step back. His presence filled the entire room, suffocating.

“Tell me something, Isabella. Did you get caught snooping and didn’t know how to get out, so you decided to blame it on my men? You think saying a few lines would save you?”

“Believe me,” I pleaded again, my voice rising with panic. “How would I know about the Romanos? How would I know about the shipment? I just got here. I’m not part of any of this.”

The more I tried to explain, the more I realized how bad it looked. All fingers pointed straight at me. I was the new girl. The stranger who showed up out of nowhere. The one he already suspected.

“I knew all along that you didn’t just come into my life by accident,” he said, his voice dropping even lower. “This was all your plan. Come in here, steal information, get close to me. Right?”

I shook my head hard, frustration boiling inside me. “No. If you don’t believe me, check the cameras. Please.”

Massimo scoffed again. “You think I haven’t?”

My heart fell straight to the floor. The certainty in his voice crushed me. He already believed I was the traitor. He pulled out his phone from his pocket and turned the screen toward me. There I was…tiptoeing through the hallways in his shirt, looking exactly like a thief in the night. I looked guilty as hell.

But wait…if he checked the cameras, he should have seen those guys right? Could it be that they tampered with the cameras?

“Massimo, I can explain,” I said quickly, my voice trembling. “It’s not what it looks like. I was only trying to find a way to reach you. I was scared they would suspect me.”

He put the phone back in his pocket, his cold eyes locked on mine. The silence stretched between us, thick and heavy. Tension filled every inch of the room. I could feel his anger, his suspicion, and underneath it all, something darker…something that still pulled me toward him even now.

“Are you going to say who sent you now,” he said coldly, stepping closer until I had to tilt my head back to look at him, “or do I have to force it out of you?”

I shook my head stubbornly. “I’m innocent. Believe me!”

He didn’t respond. Just stared at me with those icy eyes that made my knees weak. The air between us crackled with danger and something else…that same electric heat that always existed whenever we were close.

“Since you won’t talk…” he said, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.

He reached out and grabbed my chin, tilting my face up forcefully. His touch burned. My breath caught.

“I know how to get the truth out of you.”