17

Victoria's POV

"Do you feel any better?" Jake asked. I ended up crying a little when we got here, out of frustration and tiredness. I had been doing nothing the entire day, but I still had a sleep schedule and I needed to sleep.

I nodded my head on his lap. I loved when Jake stroked my hair, it was different from Ross' touch. I mean, he didn't usually do it, but when he did, his fingers would sometimes get tangled on my hair? And Jake's touch was softer. After all, he was the softest one of the Caruso's, wasn't he?

"Why don't we take a nap, hm?"

"I don't feel little, Jake" I said, unconsciously yawning. I heard him chuckle and kept stroking my hair.

"Sorry, my bad"

"Can I ask what happened downstairs?"

Jake sighed. He clearly didn't want to talk about these stuff with me, just like his brothers. Part of me hated that, but on the other hand, I didn't really want to know what kind of work these mafia did.

He stared off into space for some seconds, probably deciding what to say. I just snuggled further to his lap.

"Look, Vicky. We don't really talk work stuff with you because it's... it's hard, and trust me you wouldn't like it. What happened downstairs... well" Jake looked at me, "Ross isn't usually like this. Whenever he has to deal with something big, he gets upset and really angry. Still, he shouldn't have told you that, bab- Vicky"

I processed his words for a little while. I wasn't mad at Ross for speaking to me like that, but I was confused and shocked. To say this mafia thing would be so stressful is an understatement, but I wasn't expecting him to act the way he did.

His eyes were filled with anger and he seemed tired, too. I wanted that to go away, but I couldn't if he wouldn't let me. I let out a sigh, suddenly having a headache. I didn't know I was holding in too many emotions until now.

"I guess it's okay" I said, "I'm not mad at him. He just... scared me. I think the best would be not to bother him for today"

"You wouldn't bother him. Or any of us, to be honest" Jake rubbed my back a little, making me hum at it. "He's just stressed, but it's funny. Last time someone tried to talk to him in that state, the guy ended up with a broken ar- doesn't matter. The point is, you don't need to worry about this too much. I'm sure Ross will make it up for you, and he knows that it was wrong"

"Thanks, Jake. For everything"

He chuckled and continued stroking my hair, covering me more with the blanket. We stayed on silence for a couple seconds, when he finally spoke.

"Well, now you should take a nap. Isn't it past your naptime?"

"Mhm. Can you sleep with me, please?" I asked, hoping he'd say yes. I admit it, I was feeling littler than before.

"Of course, baby. Come here"

Jake pulled me to his arms as we both laid on the bed. I loved his perfume, it was something that relaxed me the most about him. Just like that, I instantly dozed off.

...

I woke up shortly after Jake and I's conversation. It was about... 4 pm. My slight headache had disappeared, and Jake was still by my side. I felt bad for making him stay, because even if he was too busy, he still napped with me.

I couldn't help it, though. I really needed him, I was so upset at everyone and everything. Jake was like an older brother, and I loved that, so... it was nice to be with him.

I slightly sat up, moving his arms and hoping he wouldn't wake up. Jake seemed so tired so I just let him be. I slowly headed to the door, cringing at the noise it made and looked back to check if he was still sleeping. He scrunched up his nose but didn't wake up, so I quickly left the room.

I tiredly rubbed my eyes as I heard noises from downstairs, apparently Ross and some people talking about stuff I couldn't really hear. I slowly padded to the stairs, peeking from behind the wall.

I saw a blonde girl discussing with Ross. Behind her were Mario and Ray,  two of the security guards from here. They seemed uncomfortable at the scene. Anyway, the woman looked so pretty and was wearing a nice and luxurious dress, along with white heels.

"No, you listen to me, Ross! You can't break up with me and ignore me just like that!" She yelled. Ross looked so tired and probably wanted to kick her out.

"Cheryl, I don't wanna hear you. I did what I did, and we broke up like a month ago. Get out of here"

"OH! So you're dumping me as if I am nothing?"

I blinked a couple times. This drama was getting my attention, even though I shouldn't be listening to their conversation. Well, at this point, I thought everyone in the mansion could her them yell. I was starting to get a headache again.

Cheryl, as Ross called her, suddenly looked at me and I panicked. I didn't mean to be seen, and what's worse, I didn't want Ross to be angry at me again.

The woman let out a sarcastic chuckle and pointed at me, as he looked at my direction.

"So you got another whore? Is that why you left me?"

"Cheryl. Watch your fucking mouth" Ross growled.

She didn't pay any attention to his words and ran to me, not giving me any time to do anything. I suddenly felt a tight grip on my hair as she forcefully brought me closer to the room. I squealed in pain until she let go of me.

I didn't respond, I was too shocked to even say anything. Was she Ross' ex? Speaking about him, I couldn't see him in the eyes. It was uncomfortable to be honest.

"GET HER OUT OF HERE, RAY. If I lay a hand on her, I'll kill her" He looked at Cheryl,  "I'm doing this as a gift because it's you. Next time I see your face, I swear I won't be as nice"

"Sure, do whatever you want, Ross!"

I was getting annoyed at her, she was so noisy.

"I'm not the one at fault here. He doesn't want you anymore, deal with it" I said.

Okay, I instantly regretted it. I was way too tired to deal with this woman, who was making me feel more stressed than I alredy was. Her eyes showed pure anger and jealousy. Everyone else stared at my sudden words, not expecting me to say something like that. Well, even I was surprised, but she had pulled my hair and made Ross upset.

She suddenly raised up her hand, about to hit me. But just in time, Jake appeared behind me.

He grabbed Cheryl's arm and pushed her, making her almost fall. Her expression was the same as mine, surprised. We didn't even hear him coming.

"Touch her and I will fucking kill you"

Cheryl flinched and stepped back in fear. She reacted differently to when she was discussing with Ross, this time she was truly frightened. I didn't understand, Jake was a softie.

Ross let out a sigh of relief, as the guards approached us. Before they could get her, I raised my hand and slapped her across the face. She stared at me for a while, dumbfounded, until eventually Ray and Mario took her outside.

I innocently looked at Jake, as I thought he would say something about what I had done. Instead, he smiled and ruffled my hair.

"Someone's grumpy" I huffed.

"She hurt me and was yelling at us"

We heard Ross clear his throat as he approached us, making me look down out of embarrassment. Again, I started fidgeting with my fingers until I felt a strong hand on my shoulder.

"I'm sorry"

Hi <3

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I hope I can keep updating this often, as I need to study a lot for university lmao