Matteo
I send the last message with a loud tap and lean back in the chair, stretching my arms above my head. “Alright, I’m done for the evening.”
“Are you?” Georgiy absentmindedly hums through the speakers, focused on his own tasks.
“Yeah.” I sit up straight, glancing at the clock, and Dolce immediately perks up and walks over for a pet. “I have to pick up Romeo too.”
“Ah, sure.” Even though I can’t see him, I imagine Georgiy nodding a few times, tearing his gaze away from the screens. “Well, a big day, huh? Good luck there, man. Let me know later how everything went.”
I huff, unable to control a small smile tugging at the corner of my lips, and get up. “As if you won’t hear everything from your own sources.”
Georgiy lets out a short laugh. “Fair enough. But it’s not as fun. I want to know the details!”
“To tell Natalia?” I shake my head, but the excitement growing in my chest is too strong to wipe the smile off my face. No matter how much he complains about her sometimes, I know they’re each other’s best friends nevertheless.
“I’m not an old woman to gossip behind your back.” But Georgiy is laughing too, and I chuckle, happy to share my joy with a good friend.
“I don’t mind sharing with her,” I say, leaning over the desk and checking the latest updates before reaching for my phone. “I have to go, though. See you later.”
“Later!”
With that, I finally walk to the door, checking my pockets and feeling light on my feet. God, it’s such a beautiful day. Everything is gonna work out, right? Dolce runs after me, wagging his tail, and I stop by the front door to scratch behind his ear and chuckle when he gives me a happy smile. That’s a good boy!
The gentle melody of wind chimes greets me on the front porch, and I feel something in my heart respond with a sweetly tight sensation. Liss hung them by the door a few weeks ago, telling me about the spiritual protection and good mood that the wind chimes bring, and while I don’t believe in this stuff too much, I kind of like them. Their melody reminds me of Liss and how much has changed since she moved into our house and into our life.
It’s been four months since the whole situation with Giovanni happened and Liss and I became an official couple-and these four months have been nothing but blissful. Every day, I wake up next to Liss, holding her in my arms and bathing in the warmth of her presence, and it fills my days with love, meaning, and desire to care for her.
It’s incredible how different our dynamic is compared to my life with Sienna-and yet, it works even better. Sienna was only a few months younger than me, calm and independent, and when we were together it
always felt as if we were best friends rather than lovers. With Liss, I feel her inner strength and confidence-but she doesn’t shy away from relying on me either. She allows me to take care of her and guide her at times, and I can’t explain why, but it makes me feel so loved and happy.
Since the first days of our relationship, I knew she was perfect for me, and the feeling hasn’t changed at all; in fact, it has only become
stronger.
Half an hour later, I arrive at the parking lot of a big gym in the heart of the Messina territories. It’s the main training facility for our recruits where they go through all kinds of combat and firearm training. We want to make sure that the members of the clan know what they’re doing when they go into a battle. We’ve lost too many lives to inexperience and rush.
I walk to the entrance of the gym, waving a hand at Hector who’s finally free from the responsibilities of being Max’s nanny and is now taking up his usual position as a leader of offensive forces. He must be waiting for some of the recruits to join his patrol for the evening, but I don’t linger to have small talk. I have my own trainee to pick up.
“Next time you counterattack, remember to use your legs. Don’t be afraid to move around-your figure is more suitable for evading and
striking from behind.” Paolo keeps talking, walking down the stairs to the entrance, and Liss nods with a concentrated frown on her face.
She takes every lesson from her trainer very seriously, so only when I move forward to meet them does she finally notice me-and her face lights up with a smile. “Matteo!”
“Hey, baby.” I can’t help but smile too, leaning forward to press a quick kiss on her cheek before turning to Paolo. He chuckles, watching us, but I catch a small smile in the corner of his lips. “You look satisfied, huh?”
“Well, I am.” Paolo shrugs, allowing his smile to grow into a proud grin, and gives Liss a quick glance. “Your bella has been making some very good progress. She’s at the top of the class, so to speak.”
“I’ve always said she’s the best,” I say with a smile, feeling proud and fond of my girl, and my gaze automatically darts to Liss. She meets my eyes with a shy smile in the corner of her lips, and she stands straighter, preening under my praise.
“She only needs to work on-”
Paolo cuts himself off and, all of a sudden, moves toward Liss and throws out his arm in an attempt to attack her. I tense up despite myself, ready to move into his line of attack-but it looks like Liss is doing a good job of protecting herself.
In a series of rapid movements, she lowers her upper body just enough to avoid his strike, moves to the side, and aims her ankle at his knee as she does so. Paolo instinctively jumps away and out of her reach, stabilizing himself in the new position, but Liss uses the moment to sneak behind his back and put her fingers to the back of his neck. If she had a gun in her hand, Paolo would’ve been dead.
“See?” Paolo bursts out laughing from the sheer rush of adrenaline and steps closer to me, patting my shoulder as he turns back to Liss. “Good job! Use your height and light feet-they are your biggest advantage.”
Liss nods a few times, probably hearing this sentence for the tenth time today, and comes back to my side. She looks so cool and pretty in her sleeveless shirt and tight sweatpants, with her brown hair tied in a ponytail and her cheeks pink from the exercise. Her eyes are bright as she looks up at me, her smile is beautiful, and I press a quick kiss to her temple before turning to Paolo.
“Thanks, man.” I hold out my hand for a handshake, ready to take off. “You’re the best teacher I could’ve hoped for.”
“Well, you taught me first.” Paolo gives me a cheeky grin, shaking my hand, and nods at the entrance. “Go ahead, have fun. I’ll see you two later.”
“Sure. Don’t be late.” I look at Liss, mindlessly reaching for her hand, and smirk when she looks at me in surprise.
“Later?”
“Ah, you know. We have things to celebrate.”
“Do we?” Liss asks as soon as we leave the building, tilting her head with a curious frown. “I thought we were going to pick up Romeo and go back home.”
“The first part is correct,” I say with a chuckle, unlocking the car and taking the driver’s seat. “We are going to pick up Romeo. But the rest of the evening is a surprise for both of you.”
“Oh, a surprise?” Liss hums, but I can see her smiling through it.
She narrows her eyes, glancing at me with a jokingly suspicious look, before turning back to the windshield. “I hope it’s something good.”
I chuckle, swallowing down the suddenly nervous feeling in my chest, and turn on the ignition. “I hope so too.”
We spend the rest of the car ride talking to each other without a rush and simply sharing with each other about our days. Apparently, during the break in their training, Paolo asked Liss about Giovanni again, and I
wonder out loud if they are onto something.
Jacinta, the only daughter of Gerardo Escarra, is our best source of knowledge about the Mexican family-but even she doesn’t know who Giovanni is. When we asked her about him right after the whole confrontation, Jacinta recognized him by Liss’s description, saying that she had seen the man in their house a few times. But as Gerardo always kept her away from the family business, she had no idea who he was or what part he had in her father’s plans.