The Sexy Enemy: A Fake Relationship Romance (Italian Nights Series Book 3)

30. Natalia

My phone is blowing up on my way home from the restaurant.

“Your brothers, are they worried about you?” Alessandro asks.

“They are overprotective,” I tell him, shoving my phone back into my bag as we arrive home, too annoyed with them to answer it.

“You hungry? I can whip us up something. Maybe not lobster or steak, but it will fill you up enough to make it to the gym,” he teases.

I playfully slap his hard arm. “He was an asshole. I don’t know why our families are fighting over him, ew.”

“Unfortunately, that asshole has good hotels in great locations that would be great in either of our portfolios,” he explains.

“Still, he’s going to make a lot of money out of the deal, and I hate that someone like him will win,” I tell him.

“Welcome to the real world, princess,” he says as we step inside.

“I’m not a na?ve person,” I say angrily as I storm inside.

“I wasn’t saying you were,” Alessandro says, following after me.

“Yes, you were,” I argue back. “You like to think because I have a title that you and I are different. We’re not,” I snip at him and storm further into the house, leaving him behind.

“That’s not at all what I’m saying. Don’t lump me in with someone like Elek,” he argues back.

Whirling around, I stop and poke my fingers into his hard chest. “You’re a Conti.”

“You love to make me out to be the villain, Natalia. But don’t forget your brothers were there tonight, too. They could have done something, but they didn’t, it was me. Me, a fucking Conti, that saved you from having to deal with that asshole.”

He’s right.

And I’m also hangry, so that isn’t helping my mood. But now I’ve started this stupid fight, I’m going to have to either agree with him—which is going to cause me immense agony—or I’m going to have to distract him.

“Don’t talk about my family,” I say, poking him again.

“We’re back to poking again?” He groans as I poke him again. “Stop fucking poking.”

“Poke, poke, poke,” I say, repeating the exact words I said to him in Vegas.

The next thing I know, he is grabbing me and pushing me up against the wall, his large hands digging into my hips as he holds me in place. It’s hot. “Stop fucking pushing me, woman.”

I swallow as I stare into his slate-green eyes that are swirling with heat, or it could be venom, toward me. “Poke.” I grin, pressing my manicured finger into his chest. He sucks in a deep breath, grabs my hand, and presses it high against the wall. A thrill rushes over me.

“I warned you,” he growls at me.

“Poke.” I grin as I push another finger into his chest.

“What the hell are you doing?” he snarls as he grabs my other hand and pushes it into the wall behind me. I can feel his strength as his fingers wrap around my wrist. “Are you trying to make me lose control?” he asks.

I raise a brow at him. Maybe I am.

He stills.

Then he grins and leans forward. “If you want me to fuck you, all you have to do is ask? You don’t have to push me to the edge, princess,” he practically purrs to me.

He’s right. I’ve picked this fight with him when really it should be with my brothers.

“Hey,” he asks, dropping my hands and grabbing my chin as I try to turn away from him. I can’t look at his stupidly handsome face. “What happened? We were having fun, where did you go?”

“It’s been a long night. I need to make something to eat,” I tell him.

“That’s what I was trying to do before you started poking me and picking a fight,” he argues.

“I’m sorry,” I say with a sigh.

He gasps and places a hand on his chest in shock. “A Fiorenzo, says sorry to a Conti.”

“One time only,” I warn him.

“Fine, I’ll take it. Go have a shower and when you get down, I’ll have dinner ready for you.” He smirks.

“Thanks.” I give him a hug.

“Now I know you get hangry, I’ll make sure to never let it happen again,” he tells me.

“Good,” I say as I head upstairs.

When I come back down from my shower, a bowl of gnocchi is on the countertop, but Alessandro is nowhere to be seen, then I hear voices coming from his office. I tip-toe to where the door is open slightly and eavesdrop.

“You’re fucking up this deal because of some Fiorenzo whore,” the angry voice yells at Alessandro through his phone speaker. I’m shocked to hear someone talk about me like that. I try to hold in my emotions as his venomous words hit me.

“I warned you not to talk about Natalia like that.”

You’re a fucking disgrace to this family,” his father spits at him.

“Tell me something I don’t already know,” he argues back.

“If you lose this deal, I will make sure that everything you have in this world will be burned to the ground. Do you understand me?”

“Yes,” Alessandro says, sounding so defeated as his father hangs up on him.

Wow.

I knew his father was a tyrant, but I had no idea the real abuse Alessandro has been dealing with, and this isn’t a one-off incident, this seems to be their daily interaction. I’ve never wanted to hurt someone so much in my life as Giuseppe Conti. There’s a crash in his office, and I rush in to see what’s happening and watch in heartbreak as Alessandro starts to destroy his office. Swiping his hand across the desk, he sends papers and his laptop crashing to the floor as well as his phone, and a couple of glasses which shatter.

“Stop,” I yell out at him, my voice breaking through his anger, pulling him from whatever visions he is having in his mind. His normally perfect hair is disheveled, his face is pale with exhaustion, his hands are shaking with unbridled anger, and my heart breaks for him in that moment, and the only thing I can think to do is run toward him and hug him. So, I do. It takes a couple of moments for him to hug me back, but he eventually does. As if he can no longer stand under the weight of his father’s disappointment, he stumbles backward into his chair and takes me with him as I fall into his lap.

“Did you hear that?” he asks, and I nod. “I’m sorry,” he mumbles into my neck.

“This wasn’t your fault,” I reassure him.

“You know I don’t think like him,” he says, looking up at me. Lost in the moment, I know I am falling for Alessandro Conti. That this stubborn, annoying, handsome, kind, gentle, sexy, and wild man has wormed his way into my heart.

“You’re a good man, Alessandro,” I say, cupping his face, he needs to hear this. “I’m not going anywhere anymore. I don’t give a shit about the deal. I want you.”

Those slate-green eyes widen. “Even if I’m a poor man?”

I give him a smirk. “Do you forget who I am?” I say, raising a brow at him, which seems to be enough to break the tension wrapped around him.

“My father would hate that, me having to rely on a Fiorenzo to survive.”

“Fuck your father,” I say angrily.

“It sounds so hot when you get angry like that, you make my dick hard.” He grins.

“I ain’t no sugga mumma, you’d have to work for me,” I tease, wrapping my arms around his neck.

“Yeah, doing what?” he asks, wiggling his brows.

“You’d be on your knees a lot,” I say.

“I’ve got good knees,” he replies.

“And hopefully a good tongue, too.” I wink.

“Have you forgotten my tongue already?” he asks.

I place my finger on my chin to think about it. “Hhmmm.” The next thing I know, he is picking me up and depositing me onto his desk.

“Feet on the chair,” he commands, tapping the arms of the chair, and I do as I’m told. He runs his hands up my bare thighs as I’m wearing my pajama T-shirt, and he realizes I’m not wearing any underwear. “Thank fuck.” He grins as he falls to his knees and then launches himself between my thighs, making me scream out with pleasure.

“I’m sohappy to see you, my sweetheart,” my mother says, greeting me in the car. She refused to get out and set foot onto “Conti land” as she called it. “Oh my …” She gasps, grabbing my hand and staring at my rings.

“It’s not too big?” I ask her.

“Diamonds are never too big, Natalia,” my mother tells me; she’s right there. “Did he give this to you?”

I shake my head. “Kind of, I chose it, and he paid for it.”

She raises a curious brow at me. “Shame he will want it back when this is all you know …” she says, waving her hand in the air, “… over.”

“No, it’s mine. Compensation he called it. That’s why I got something that wasn’t a traditional engagement ring,” I explain to her.

“Seems like a trap. What kind of man gives a woman he’s blackmailing a ring like that? It’s a shame your first engagement ring is from a man like him.” She huffs.

“Alessandro isn’t like that,” I tell her. She turns and glares at me as if I’ve lost my mind. After last night, I’m not going to put up with my family or his family talking about either one of us like they do. I don’t care that they are enemies, it doesn’t mean we have to be. “Did you know Elek Papps is a misogynistic jerk and likes to slap his female staff’s asses while they are pouring him champagne?” My mother gasps as she clasps her hand to her chest. “He also insulted me, and Gio and Luca sat there and let him.”

She clutches her chest again. “That doesn’t sound like Elek. Every time I’ve met him, he’s been lovely. He may have been influenced by Alessandro, we know what Conti men are like.” She sneers.

“Alessandro isn’t like his father,” I hiss, which surprises her. “Last night he jeopardized his meeting with Elek because he didn’t like how he was treating me. He didn’t want me to have to sit there and put up with it, and yet my brothers had no problems with it.”

My mother stills before looking over at me with her brows pulled together.

“Don’t look at me like that,” I tell her.

“Your brothers should have stood up for you, I’m disappointed that they didn’t.”

“They were too busy hating on Alessandro, and were more worried about getting one over him than protecting me,” I explain to her.

“They will be hearing from me, I assure you.” She nods, and I can see underneath her calm exterior she is seething. My brothers’ ears are going to be bleeding when she’s done with them. “I’m surprised that it was he who stood up for you,” she says, refusing to use Alessandro’s name.

“Look, I get it, he’s a Conti and I’m surprised that there is another side to him, a good side that I didn’t know was there,” I tell her. She eyes me suspiciously. “What?” I ask her, feeling her eyes boring into me.

“He’s treating you well over there? We haven’t heard from you other than a couple of messages here and there,” she asks. There’s the guilt about not calling her enough, I knew it would happen sooner or later, it always does.

“He is.” But I don’t elaborate more, she doesn’t really care. She doesn’t need to know that every night we sleep in the same bed and end it with him nestled between my thighs or that he now wakes up with me and we both do yoga by the pool and then have breakfast together before he goes to work. I even pack him his lunches. Then he is home for dinner, where we sit and eat in front of the TV, arguing about what we should watch.

“I’m guessing with this change of tune you haven’t stumbled upon anything in the house that might be useful for your father?” she asks.

I shake my head. “I haven’t looked,” I tell her.

She gives me a side eye at that comment. “He’s a smart man. I bet he’s moved everything into his office,” she mumbles.

“I’m not going there,” I tell her.

“No, that would be too obvious. What you did last night was a good plan. Distracting him enough that he gave up on his meeting with Elek and your brothers were able to sway him toward selling to us. Your plan is working.”

I frown at her. “Did you not hear me when I said Elek Papp was an asshole?”

“Language, Natalia. I heard, but rich men can be assholes and sometimes you have to grin and bear it to win.”

“To win? I have to watch a man that is old enough to be the waitress’s father or even grandfather paw at her all night so that we can make more money?” I argue.

“That’s not what I said. What has gotten into you?” she questions me.

“Nothing. What has gotten into you, that you and my brothers would want to do business with that man?” I question her.

“I don’t get involved in that side of the business, but if you feel that strongly about it then why don’t you speak to your father at Sunday lunch and raise your concerns with him?” she snips at me.

“Maybe I should.”

“Why don’t you bring Alessandro, too,” she says.

“You want me to bring a Conti to a Fiorenzo family lunch?” I question her.

“He’s family now, maybe we need to start treating him like it,” she says, staring out of the car window.

My mouth has fallen open, aghast at her. “You’re not serious, are you?” I ask her.

She turns and looks at me. “Why not? You are living with this man. There is a ring on your finger. The public thinks the two of you are in love.”

“I don’t know if that’s going to be a good idea. What about Gio and Luca?” I ask her.

“I can control my boys,” she states firmly. “And if I can’t, Lilly and Paige most certainly will.”

“I don’t know if he will say yes.”

“Then that’s fine, too. The invitation is there,” she says as the car stops at our destination. We step out and right into the paparazzi, pulling my attention away from the bombshell my mother just dropped on me.