CHAPTER 4

Sebastian's worry only grew as the week went by. He knew that the moment a De Luca had an interest in something or someone, they would stop at nothing to get it. The problem wasn't Giovanni's interest in Caterina, the problem was the identity of Caterina. It is a secret not even she knows and his sole purpose in her life is to protect her from that secret and from the dangers that come with it. Although, he knew he was going to have a lot of problems protecting her when she started working as a stripper at that goddamn Casino. 

There was only one thing left for him to do now.

Taking in a deep breath, he knocks on the black double door of an office.

"Come in," a voice calls from the other side. He walks in and bows in respect.

"Have your seat, Sebastian. What brings you here?"

"It's Caterina, boss."

"What trouble is she causing this time?"

"She has caught the eyes of Giovanni De Luca."

"What?!"

"He stalked her to her house. She's no longer safe there."

"Has he approached her yet?"

"Yes, he has."

"Fuck."

"What would you have me do?"

"She has to leave that job of hers. Get her to work with Elena Rossi. She shouldn't know who she is just yet."

"Okay, boss."

Sebastian exits the building with a heavy mind. He has no idea how he would convince Caterina to quit her job. Not that she likes it, she just hates being told what to do even if it's for her protection. He would have to make it work one way or another, so he decides to get it done and over with.

He picks up his phone as he dials Caterina.

"Hey, Seb."

"Catty, where are you?"

"Umm...on my way to work. Any problem?"

"Nope, I was thinking we should go out for breakfast."

"Ohh."

"When do you get off?"

"Five in the evening,"

"Good, I'll pick you up by 7."

"Okay,"

He ends the call and drives off to work. Protecting Caterina Russo isn't the only thing he is paid for.

Caterina walks onto the stage with disgust from her interaction with her boss. He had approached her once again, only this time he didn't know when to stop. If it wasn't for the mysterious guy who stalked her the other day, he would have had his way with her. 

      Flashback 

A knock comes from the door of the changing room, startling her. She was dressed in her uniform and struggling to put on her heels.

"Who's it?" She calls out but there's no response. She remembers locking the door from the inside and drawing the blinds, so she knew no one could come in if she didn't open the door.

The knock comes again and she begins to wonder if it is one of her co-workers.

"Who is it?" There's silence again, so she shrugs it off and ties the lace of her heels. 

The sound of keys rattling from the other side of the door catches her attention. The door comes open, making her go into defense mode.

"Caterina," Her boss says as he walks into the room.

"Mr. Conti, I didn't know you had access to this room." She eyes him wearily as she takes calculated steps backward.

"I have access to every room in this casino,"

"What do you want?" She notices his eyes on her body. 

"Well, how about I show you?" He suddenly leaps forward and grabs her by the shoulders. 

"Stop!" Reflex kicks in and she knees him in the groin. 

"You bitch!" He raises his hand to hit her when he suddenly gets ripped off her.

She looks up to see her knight in shining armor and finds her stalker.

"Get out of here," He tells her calmly. She bolts out of the room without looking back. The sound of Mr. Conti screaming eases her as she leaves.

     End Of Flashback

Caterina leaves the stage as soon as the clock hits 5:00 pm. She could see her knight in shining armor sitting a few rows back and she wanted to thank him. Against her better judgment, she decides to go up to him without changing into something less... revealing. 

"It's nothing he hasn't seen, right?"

As she approaches him, she notices the bruises on his knocks and guilt fills her. She hates it when someone gets hurt on her account. He looks up when she gets closer and smiles at her, making her insides melt.

"Are you okay?" She asks as she halts her steps a few feet from him.

"I should be asking you that." He closes the distance between them standing right in front of her as he eyes the bruises forming on her shoulders.

"It's nothing," She notices his eyes strained on her shoulders.

"Let's put some ice on that," He turns her around and leads her out of the club.

"I'm fine, you should get your knuckles treated. I just wanted to thank you." She stops in front of her changing room and pulls the door open. Unease fills her stomach as she remembers what went down in the room a few hours ago.

"I'll stand guard," He says from behind her, seemingly noticing her hesitation to enter the room. 

Feeling relief of some sort, she walks into the room and does her business. When she comes out, he leads them out of the building towards the parking lot.

"Do you need a ride?" 

"No, thanks. I came with my car."

"I'm Stephano, by the way." 

"Caterina," 

"Nice meeting you again, Caterina."

"Thanks for saving my ass back there, Stephano." There's a long pause between them. 

"I should get going," Caterina finally breaks the silence as she remembers her plans with Sebastian.

"Alright." Giovanni nods for her to take her leave and watches as she walks towards her car. As

soon as she pulls out of the parking lot, he heads back into the building to finish what he started. 

Beating up Mr. Conti.