"What? My dad?" I ask in shock, narrowing my eyes at nothing in particular.

"Yes. Whatever you do, do not talk to him. Ever." Uncle Benny says with such authority, I can feel the intimidation through the phone.

"What? Why?" My brow furrows involuntarily.

So, my father, a man that I've never talked to in my entire life, is trying to contact me...but I shouldn't talk to him..?

"He's a very dangerous man, Brim." Comes Uncle Benny's voice, causing me to send a puzzled Marcello a nervous glance.

"I think I can handle a dangerous man, especially if it's my dad." I reply, looking down at my feet.

"You don't understand, sweetheart. He's part of a very dangerous organization...have you ever heard of the mafia?" Uncle Benny asks cautiously, and I start choking on my own saliva.

"Are you okay?" Marcello asks, seeming concerned as he pats my back.

I silently nod my head to him and focus back to the conversation with my uncle.

"What? Pfft, no, why would I know who they are? What even is a mafia?" I laugh nervously, earning a confused glance from Marcello.

"The mafia, Italian to be specific, is run by someone you never want to meet. He's a very dangerous man, and your father works for him. You don't want to get tied up in that kind of stuff, Brim." Uncle Benny says, deadly serious.

"Uh. About that. Um...well..." I start off, "What if the person running the Italian mafia isn't so bad, I mean, maybe he doesn't go around killing everyone he sees? He's probably just a big softie, ya know? Everyone has their weakness, right?"

Marcello raises a brow, causing me to blush and face the opposite direction of him. He takes a step closer to me, putting his chin on my shoulder and leaning closer so he can hear the conversation.

"Are you defending one of the most dangerous men in the world?! You don't know him, Brimmy! He's ruthless!" My uncle exclaims, and I can hear the frustration in his voice.

"I have to go, Uncle Benny, I'm in the middle of cooking." I answer with a defeated sigh.

"Okay, sweetheart, just be ca...wait, how are you cooking? Are you still staying at that hotel?" Uncle Benny asks, but I just heave another sigh.

"Bye, Uncle Benny." I call before ending the call, and shrugging Marcello off of me so I can face him.

"So I'm considered one of the most dangerous men?" Marcello cocks an eyebrow, stepping closer to me.

I step back, hoping to create distance, only to be a failed attempt as he corners me against the table.

"Not really. Well, to me at least." I splutter, and gulp nervously as he cocks his head to the side, looking more like a predator with every growing second.

"And what exactly am I to you?" He gives me the look that never fails to give me butterflies in the tummy.

"Well, you're not as bad as they make you out to be." I reply quickly, looking down at my feet in embarassment.

"I'm not?" He asks, sounding genuinely curious this time.

"No, not really. I mean, you haven't killed me yet, have you?" I joke, lightly punching his shoulder.

He intently watches my playful action, so I jerk my hand away from him.

"Don't go giving me any ideas." He gives me a wicked grin and steps back, finally freeing me.

"Whatever, you wouldn't do that...would you?" I begin confidently, but waver a bit in uncertainty.

"Of course not. I would never do that." His playful demeanor melts into one of seriousness.

"But why? I would've killed myself by now if I were you, not gonna lie. So... why haven't you killed me exactly?" My joke causes his lips to twitch momentarily, but he remains serious.

"This is what I was actually going to tell you on your birthday." He starts, clearing his throat nervously. "Brimmy, I-"

"Are you guys almost done with the food, I'm hungry." In comes Callow, cutting off the rest of Marcello's sentence.

I ignore the pest that seems to always pop up at the wrong times, "What, Marcello? You what?"

I see his eyes harden, leaving no trace of the vulnerability from before as he glances up at Callow.

"Nothing." He says, which wouldn't have been so bad if he hadn't said it with such hostility.

He seems really angry, and I'm once again reminded of his mood swings as he storms off, leaving me alone with Callow.

I look after him, not able to hide the hurt I feel at how he reacted.

I have to remind myself that he's been through a lot, too much for a normal person. This is just one of the side effects.

With a sigh, I narrow my eyes at Callow, "It's all yours, I'm not hungry anymore."

I make the quick decision to run after Marcello, and manage to trace his trail of destruction to his office.

I gently knock on the door, "Marcello?"

A certain set of dark broody eyes shoot up to meet my own, and I can't help but to shiver at the intensity of them.

"What do you want?" He bites, sounding annoyed.

"Are you okay?" I ask, trying to swallow my hurt at the way he snapped at me.

"I'm fine. Get out." He glares at me, and I take a second to wonder why he's acting like this.

I didn't do anything wrong, did I?

Instead of listening to his command, I take a brave step forward.

"I told you to get out!" He roars, looking even more upset than before.

"No." I reply stubbornly, lifting my chin defiantly.

I try to stand my ground as he slowly stands up and stalks toward me, looking more than ready to kill someone...