Divine Obsession (GodHood #2)

Chapter 23

Present

I hadn’t spoken to Trevor in a week.

He hadn’t answered any of my calls or replied to my texts.

I wasn’t sure how to feel, since I was feeling everything .

Upset. Mad. He’d definitely pay for that later.

But most of all? Worried. He’d left to take care of a job for the Dynasty. What if something had gone wrong?

The familiar hum of conversation brought me back. The afternoon sun filtered through the wide windows of the SoHo cafe, casting a soft glow over the minimalist interiors and rows of potted plants.

Kali sat across from me, effortlessly chic as always.

I stirred my matcha latte absently. I should’ve been enjoying our catch-up, but my heart was somewhere else; with someone who’d been frustratingly absent from my life for the past week.

“So,” I started after our last conversation topic ended. “Where’s Trevor?”

“ Oh .” Kali sighed like she’d forgotten to tell me. “He left for Tokyo last week.”

I blinked, caught completely off guard. “Tokyo?”

“Yeah. Something to do with Dad’s business in Japan. Some crazy shit went down, so he sent Trevor since he’ll be taking over the Dynasty soon.”

Not cool that he didn’t mention he left the continent , but whatever.

“When’s he coming back?” I asked, keeping my tone as neutral as possible.

“He’s not,” Kali replied with a sad smile.

The Earth stopped spinning. “ What? ”

“I know. He graduated early and left to work for the family branch in Asia. Our uncle who was running it got killed, so Dad sent him to take over. I think it had something to do with the Yakuza.”

“ Wow .”

“Yeah,” She sighed, sipping her matcha. “It’s been crazy. But you know Trevor – he’s good at this stuff. He needs to be. Especially with him taking over the family’s arms-dealing empire soon. He can handle the Yakuza.”

“So… He’s staying in Tokyo?”

“There’s a lot of work to do there. He’ll be gone for a while. Might come back for the holidays, though.”

I nodded slowly, feeling like the ground had been pulled out from under me.

I tried to listen to Kali as the discussion went on, but my mind was stuck on the realization that Trevor was just… Gone .

No warning.

No explanation.

No goodbye.

At first, I waited.

I told myself he was coming back. That he couldn’t contact me because of our family’s rivalry and him taking care of the Yakuza.

I told myself it wasn’t a big deal. That Trevor would reach out when he had the time. He was busy; I knew that. His responsibilities to his family were different from mine; demanding, relentless, dangerous.

But as the days turned to weeks, then months, the silence became harder to ignore.

I replayed every moment we’d shared, clinging to them like they were all I had left. The way his voice dropped when he called me amai , the warmth of his hand on my back as he steered me through a crowded room, the dark intensity in his eyes when he promised no one would keep him from me.

I believed him.

So, I made excuses.

Maybe he didn’t want to risk my safety by contacting me while the Sus were at war with the Yakuza. Maybe he didn’t want to risk my father finding out. Or his, since he was supposed to only be focused on taking over the Dynasty.

But every passing day chipped away at those excuses until there was nothing left but the cold, harsh truth.

Until I realized, that’s all we’d been. A fling.

And he wasn’t coming back. Not to me.

I tried to move on after that.

At first, it was out of spite. I told myself I didn’t care about him anymore. Why would I? He left without a word, like we were nothing.

Like I was nothing .

I told myself he didn’t deserve another second of my time, another thought in my head. So, I forced myself to move forward.

I went out with guys who asked, even when I knew I shouldn’t. Smiling to them despite it feeling like work, letting them talk about themselves endlessly – waiting for that spark that never came back.

Men were shit.

Some lost interest before we even made it to the first date. A few ghosted me after a handful of texts, their enthusiasm fading without explanation. Others didn’t bother canceling – they just left me waiting, checking the time and telling myself they were running late until it was clear they weren’t coming at all.

The ones who did show up weren’t much better.

There was the guy who kept looking over my shoulder like he was already searching for an exit. Another didn’t even make it through the night – excused himself to take a call or go to the restroom or something and just… Never come back.

Every date left me more frustrated, more annoyed, more convinced that the universe was playing some cruel joke on me.

I told myself it didn’t matter. I didn’t even like any of them anyway.

But as it kept happening, over and over , I started to wonder if the problem was me.

Was I boring?

Was I bad company?

Or was it something else that I didn’t even know could factor in as a problem?

No matter how hard I tried to rationalize it, I couldn’t shake the strange, lingering feeling that there was more to this than bad luck.

“It’s because of who you are, Nat,” Kali said sympathetically. “Every guy on the East Coast is scared shitless of dating one of Don Moretti’s daughters.”

We were sitting in a corner booth at one of Francesca’s restaurants. Dim lighting cast a golden glow over the polished wood table. Pasta, iced espressos, and half-eaten pizzas were scattered in front of us.

I felt my cheeks blush. “It’s not like I even want a boyfriend. I just want a one-night stand to get it out of my system.”

“Everyone knows you don’t just fuck the Don’s daughter,” Francesca chimed in. “Unless you want to end up fish bait. Trust me. I know exactly what you’re going through.”

Francesca was a gorgeous woman, yet finding a date in the Cosa Nostra was the same as trying to find a needle in the Sahara. And trying to find a date outside of the mafia? No one was that stupid.

My only excuse was that I was only technically part of the Famiglia. And my dad and Ines were way less strict.

“Luckily, I don’t have those problems.” Kali stuffed a slice of pepperoni pizza in her mouth, speaking with a mouthful. “My parents couldn’t give a shit about me. All they care about is my brother.”

She said it so casually, but the mention of him hit me like a gut punch. My fingers tightened around my glass, but I kept my face carefully neutral.

“Last time I checked, you were still a virgin,” Francesca mused, raising an eyebrow.

“ Yeah . Cause men are gross ,” Kali shot back without missing a beat. “I don’t even know why you guys want to fuck one of them so bad.”

We all burst into laughter, the sound filling the cozy restaurant.

I hated that I was still upset. Still angry. Still hurt.

I wanted to believe I was over him , but no matter how much I tried to convince myself…

Trevor was always there .

Lurking in the back of my mind.

In the silence between their jokes.

In the ache I couldn’t stop.

But none of it mattered.

It would be four years until I saw him again.