Matthew Maybe Gianna hasn’t realized it yet but marriage would be his cage whether he wanted it or not.
Last night, after our kiss, I had returned to the party to get drunk to the point of stupor when I had run into my bastard father and Rocco Scuderi, who were talking about Gianna and his plans to marry her off to an old shrew known for his hard hand with women. I hadn’t said anything then because I knew Father. If he had thought I wanted Gianna because I wanted her, liked her, or wanted to protect her from a worse fate, he would never have agreed to put me with her.
Now in the morning, after the sheets were presented, I looked for Luca and found him on his way to the master bedroom with Aria by his side. “You two lovebirds will have to postpone your mating session. I need to talk to you , Luca,” I said.
Luca and Aria turned around. Aria’s cheeks turned red and she looked at my brother with a mixture of concern and embarrassment. He glared at me before lowering his gaze to his wife. “Go ahead. Check to see if the maids have packed all your things. I’ll be back soon.” He quickly disappeared into the bedroom.
“The sheets were fake, weren’t they? My big bad brother spared his little virgin bride.
Luca looked at me grimly as he approached me. “Keep your fucking voice down.”
“What happened? You drank too much and couldn’t get it up?”
“Fuck you. Like alcohol ever stopped me,” he said.
“Then what?”
Luca glared at him. “He started crying.”
I giggled. I took the knife holder around his forearm and lifted it, revealing a small wound. Luca pushed his arm away.
“You cut yourself.”
It seemed that Luca was planning to cut me into pieces. Since I still needed his help, I decided to minimize my provocation.
“I knew it. I told Gianna last night that she didn’t have to worry about Aria. You have a soft spot for damsels in distress.”
“I don’t…” He frowned. “Were you alone with Gianna?”
I nodded, then led him away from the bedroom in case Aria was trying to eavesdrop. She was only telling her sister everything. “I kissed her and she tastes even better than she looks.”
“I can’t believe you got more action than me on my fucking wedding night,” Luca murmured.
“Women can’t resist my charms.”
He clamped his hand on my shoulder. “This is no joke, Matteo. The Outfit won’t find it funny if you go around deflowering their girls.
“I didn’t deflower anyone. I kissed her.”
“Yeah, like that was the end.”
“I want to deflower her. But I’m not an idiot.”
‘Really?” this said Luca’s expression.
“I want to marry her.”
Luca stopped short. “Tell me you’re joking.”
“I’m not. That’s why I need your help. Father will not speak to Scuderi on my behalf if he thinks I want Gianna for any reason other than spite or revenge. You know him.”
“Then what do you want me to do?”
“Help me convince him that he hates me and has insulted me and that I want to marry her to make her miserable.”
“Isn’t that the truth? That girl can’t stand you and you want her for that. How does it differ from the story we’re going to tell Dad?” “I don’t want to make her unhappy.”
Luca looked doubtful. “The end result could be the same. That girl will drive you crazy, you realize that, right? I’m not really sure I want her in New York.
“You’ll take care of her. And Aria will be happy to have her sister with her.”
“You really think you’ve thought this through, don’t you ?”
“I have. And Dad will soon choose some bitch who will make me miserable.”
“So you’d rather choose your own bitch who will make you miserable.”
I shook his hand. “Gianna is not a bitch.”
“You want to hit me because of her,” Luca said with a crooked smile.
“I want to hit you for a lot of reasons.”
Luca shook his head. “Come on. Let’s find Dad.” We walked down the hallway and down the stairs toward Dad’s office. He was leaving the room. I forced my face to assume a mask of fury. “I can’t fucking believe his courage.”
“There’s nothing you can do,” Luca told me, then turned to his father. “The Scuderi redhead provoked Matteo.”
The father raised his eyebrows with mild interest. “How so?” He motioned us to move to his office, then closed the door.
I pretended to seethe as Luca made up a ridiculous story that ended with Gianna telling me that her father would never give her to New York and that no one would be able to convince him otherwise.
“She made it sound like I was beneath her, like we were beneath her. I want the bitch to pay. I don’t care what she wants. I want her in my bed.”
Excitement flashed in my father’s eyes. The sadist really believed that shit, because in his sadistic, twisted, power-hungry mind, it made sense. “I suppose I can talk to Scuderi. He’ll be happy to get rid of her. She’s a handful. His smile widened. “You’ll have to teach her some manners, Matteo.” “Don’t worry,” I said. I would teach her a lot of things.
Two days later my father and Scuderi agreed, and Gianna was mine. Now I just had to find the right time to tell her.
*** Gianna Sometimes at night, when I relived our kiss, I wondered if maybe Matteo and I were a bad idea.
But then Aria called me and told me how she had found out that Luca was cheating on her, and that was the wake-up call I desperately needed. Made Men were always killing, always cheating, always ruining everything they touched. I wouldn’t let anyone treat me like that. I wouldn’t even give them a chance to try. No matter how much my body wanted to kiss Matthew again, I swore to myself that I would push him away.
One kiss had already been too much. If I let him get close again, he would never leave me alone.
Of course, when I visited New York a couple of weeks after Aria’s wedding, Matteo was there in Luca’s apartment to have dinner with us. The smile he gave me when Aria led me toward the table made my blood boil. Had he told anyone about our kiss? I hadn’t even told Aria about it, and I had always told her everything. It would be a long dinner.
*** The next day I convinced Aria to take me to the disco to dance, in a desperate attempt to forget Matthew. It was my first taste of freedom, and boy, did it taste good. Not as good as Matteo, I was reminded of an annoying voice, but was soon blown away by the rhythms that filled the Sphere dance floor. It was an exhilarating experience to have strangers controlling me , wanting me. I had never dressed so sexy before, never been allowed to, and I couldn’t help but feel strangely empowered. I was dancing with a tall guy when suddenly he was pushed away from me by none other than that damn Matteo Vitiello.
“What the fuck are you doing?” he growled.
“What the fuck are you doing? None of your business.” My dance partner had regained his balance and approached us but before he could say anything Matteo punched him under the ribs, sending him to his knees, and then two bouncers came and dragged the boy away.
I stood in stunned silence. “Have you lost your fucking mind?”
Matteo brought his face closer to mine and grabbed my arm. “You will never do that again. I won’t let you fool around with other guys.
“I wasn’t joking, I was dancing.” Then his words were really cultured. “With other guys? So you think because we kissed once, you’ll be able to tell me what to do with my life? Newsflash: you don’t own me, Matteo.
He smiled. “Oh, but I do.” His dark eyes roamed over my skimpy dress, lingering on my bare legs. “Every inch of you.”
I freed myself from his grip. “You’re crazy. Get away from me.” He followed Luca without adding anything else, but left one of his stupid bodyguards-babbits-with me. I was so angry that I wanted to run after him and punch him to dust.
Instead I approached Aria who looked lost as she stood motionless in the center of the dance floor. “That asshole,” I muttered.
After a moment, her eyes settled on me. “Who?”
“Matthew. The guy has the nerve to tell me not to dance with other men. What is he? My owner. Fuck him.” Aria looked miles away. “Are you okay?”
She nodded, “Yes. Let’s go to the bar.” Luca’s two little dogs , Romero and Caesar, followed us and Aria lunged at them. “Can you watch us from a distance? You’re driving me crazy.”
Stunned, I watched her as she ran to the bar and ordered drinks for us. Romero and Caesar watched us from afar with hawk-like eyes. Just to feel free and amused. The anger toward Matthew surfaced again but I swallowed it. I wasn’t going to let him ruin the evening.
“You can go dance,” Aria said with a trembling smile, clinging to her drink as if it were her lifeline.
“In a few minutes. You look pale.”
“I’m fine.”
She didn’t look fine, and I didn’t know why she wouldn’t tell me what was bothering her. Although I really had no right to complain. After all, I hadn’t told her about the kiss yet.
“I really need to go to the bathroom,” I said after several minutes of silence.
“I need to sit down for a few more minutes.”
I hesitated, wondering if it was a good idea to leave her , but it was not as if she was alone. After all, Romero never let her out of his sight, thanks to Luca’s possessiveness.
I headed toward the back of the bar where the bathrooms were located, trying not to lose my mind on Caesar who was like an annoying shadow. When I returned to the bar a few minutes later, all hell had broken loose. Aria was staggering and Caesar had to support her while Romero had stuck his knife in the leg of some sleeping bag. “You will follow us. If you try to escape, you will die,” Romero growled.
“Air?” I whispered, my heart pounding in my chest.
He didn’t seem to hear me.
“Get her a drink. But don’t drink,” Caesar told me. I took the glass, too shaken to be bothered by his condescending tone.
We headed toward the back and then down to the basement. Aria’s legs barely supported her. I stayed beside her the whole time. When we entered some kind of office, my eyes landed on Matthew who was lounging in a chair. His gaze lingered on me before observing the rest of the scene. He stood up. “What’s going on?”
“Probably roofs,” Romero said.
Rooftops? I narrowed my eyes as I looked at the asshole who had drugged my sister. I wanted to hurt him, but the look on Matthew’s face made it clear that I would get my wish. His eyes promised me. I knew it was disgusting, but somehow this made me want to kiss him even more.
There was something so wrong with me.
***