Valentina.
“Valentina!!”
He had barely walked in through the front door before he was in my space, his hand brushing against my cheek like the last week hadn’t happened.
Like he hadn’t disappeared after giving me my first orgasm.
I flinched at the contact, my body tensing up instinctively, but Matteo didn’t seem to notice.
His touch, usually commanding and cold, was strangely gentle this time. His thumb lingered on my skin as if he wanted to trace the outline of my face.
“Where have you been?” I asked, my voice betraying none of the swirling confusion that his sudden return stirred in me.
To hide the effect of the words his half brother had confided in me yesterday.
I was getting better at hiding my emotions now.
Matteo smiled, the kind of smile that made anyone who saw it forget he was the Don to the Nevarro mafia group. “Business. Nothing to worry your pretty head about.”
The kind of smile he had never given me before.
His evasiveness was nothing new – he kept what happened to him that led to his bruises to himself – yet today it stung more than ever.
Maybe because Luca’s words had burrowed deep in my mind, planting seeds of suspicion that had grown in Matteo’s absence.
Isabella would never have just left.
My sister’s face flashed in my kind, her bright smile, her rebellious spirit. How she always seemed happy after an outing with Matteo. It seemed impossible she would just want to disappear because she was afraid of marrying Matteo.
But I wasn’t going to press Matteo, not now.
If there was anything I’d learned in the short time we had married, it was that Matteo never revealed anything unless he wanted to.
So, I pushed aside the questions. I needed to pay my part, at least until I figured out what was really going on.
“I was just about to head to bed,” I muttered, taking a step back to calm my racing heart. “It’s late.”
Matteo’s hand dropped to his side, and for a moment, something like disappointment flashed in his eyes, though it disappeared as quickly as it came.
He nodded once, stepping back as if giving me space.
“Before you go…” His voice had softened. “I wanted to inform you about dinner tomorrow. Just the two of us and away from the estate.”
That was…. unexpected.
I blinked, my mind racing to keep up with the abrupt change. Matteo never invited me for dinner.
We had never had any meal together. He stayed away from me whenever he could help it.
“Dinner?” I echoed, unsure if I’d heard him correctly.
“Yes,” He replied, his eyes, usually calculating and sharp, held a gentler expression. “We’re married. We would be married for the unforseable future. It doesn’t make sense that we hardly know anything about each other.”
Those words seemed foreign coming from Matteo’s mouth. Matteo did not think about me. He was all cold pragmatism and power.
What was this?
Did he know about what his brother told me yesterday?
Was that why he was here?
I hesitated. Every bone in my body told me there was more to this than he was letting on.
This was Matteo Nevaro. He didn’t do things without a reason.
Still, I found myself nodding, if only to see what this strange game would bring.
“Okay. Dinner.”
A small smile touched his lips, and it was the most genuine expression I had seen from him in weeks. “I’ll pick you up at seven.”
***
I found myself staring in my closet, unsure of what to wear for this mysterious dinner.
I didn’t want to read too much into it, so I had spent the better half of my day focused on other obligations as the wife to Matteo.
A simple black dress became my choice for the night. Nothing too flashy, but elegant enough for whatever Matteo had planned. As I stood in front of the mirror, smoothing the fabric over my hips, I couldn’t shake the gnawing feeling in my chest.
Luca’s words played on a hoop in my mind, making me second guess the little I knew about Matteo.
“Matteo isn’t the only one who’s been keeping secrets from you.”
Was there any truth to that? Could Matteo really be hiding something about Isabella, or was Luca just trying to manipulate me for his own gain?
I didn’t have time to dwell on it much longer. At exactly seven, Matteo knocked on the door, and when I opened it, I was met with a sight that took my breath away.
Matteo was a handsome man. But tonight, he looked like a prince. Dressed in a tailored suit that fit him perfectly, his hair slightly tousled like he’d ran his fingers through it in a rare moment of impatience.
I knew I was supposed to be on guard, but my threaterous heart fluttered widely.
“Beautiful.” He murmured, his eyes sweeping over me appreciatively.
“Thank you.” I forced a smile on my lips, my heart pounding widely.
The drive had been quiet. Matteo didn’t offer any details about where we were going, and I couldn’t work up the nerves to ask.
The restaurant was as stunning at they came. Better than anything I’d seen before.
Matteo held the door open for me, guiding me through the entrance and into the elevator that took us to the top floor. The restaurant was even more stunning than I had expected, with floor-to-ceiling windows that offered an unobstructed view of the glittering skyline.
“This place…” I began, trailing off as I took it all in.
Matteo smiled softly. “I thought you’d like it.”
Matteo had booked the entire floor of this part of the restaurant. For the first time since I walked into the estate, I felt like I was in a different world – one far away from the suffocating walls of the Nevarro Estate and the complications it held.
But even here, with the city spread out beneath us like a dream, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this was just another layer to Matteo’s game.
“Are you hungry?” Matteo asked once we were seated and the waitress had taken our order.
I raised an eyebrow at him. “We are in a restaurant. I just ordered food. I like to think I am hungry.”
Matteo sighed softly, his eyes everywhere but on me. “I have no idea how to do this.” He admitted. “Restaurant dining had never been my past…. relationships strong suit.”
Isabella had never liked fine dining.
I turned to find him staring at me like I’d sprouted horns and feathers in the middle of the restaurant.
“What?”
“Say…. something.”
“What should I say?” The corners of my lips rose up in a fake smile. “I’m hungry. I haven’t eaten anything all day…” and sometimes I think of what we did in your office.
“Here I thought you ate all the time. Caterina told me you emptied the estate supply of snacks in a week.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. She replaced them the next day.”
Matteo’s laugh evoked a strange sensation in my heart. I wasn’t supposed to laugh with him.
Not now.
“I’m not really a fan of restaurant either. Expensive doesn’t always equal good, especially when it comes to food.”
The waitress had placed our first course of the night in front of us.
“We agree on that.” He took a bite of his steak. “My mom made the best meals before she died.”
He said the last part with hesitation, like he had no idea if that was a piece of information he should share. “Anytime a major holiday came or maybe she wanted to celebrate something as simple as my grades in school or my father’s safe return, she would cook. And man….”
Curiosity got the better of me. “What happened to her?”
“A rival gang killed her when they were looking for my dad. I haven’t found the suckers yet.”
I took a slow sip from the wine in my glass. Caterina never told me what happened to Matteo’s mother, just that she died under unfortunate circumstances.
“I’m sorry for your loss.” The words tasted like ash in my mouth.
He didn’t say anything after that.
Finally, when dessert had been served, I couldn’t take it anymore. I had to know.
“Why are we here, Matteo?” I asked, my voice steady despite the turmoil inside me.
Matteo looked up from his plate, his eyes narrowing slightly as he considered my question. “What do you mean?”
“This.” I gestured to the table, the restaurant, the entire evening. “Why are you suddenly interested in spending time with me? What’s changed?”
He set his fork down, his gaze never leaving mine. For a moment, I thought he was going to give me the same evasive answers he always did, but then he surprised me.
“I’m not blind, Valentina,” he said quietly. “I know things between us haven’t been… ideal. But I want to try. I want this to work.”
I stared at him, stunned. “You… want this to work?”
He nodded. “I do.”
His words hit me like a punch to the gut. This was the last thing I had expected from him, especially after everything Luca had told me. But instead of feeling relief, I felt a surge of suspicion.
“What about Isabella?” I asked, watching his reaction carefully. “You were obsessed with her. You loved her.”
Matteo’s face darkened, his expression hardening. “Isabella is gone, Valentina. She left. And she’s not coming back.”
His tone was final, but there was something off about it. It felt rehearsed, like he was trying to convince himself as much as he was trying to convince me.
I leaned forward, my pulse quickening. “And you’re okay with that?”
His jaw tightened, his eyes flickering with something I couldn’t quite place. “I don’t have a choice.”