8. Summer
Summer
“Are you out of your mind?” Gabi yelled, her voice echoing off the walls of my tiny bedroom. “You can’t live there!”
My eyes slid shut as I mentally prepared to have this argument with my best friend.
She’d been out when I got home last night, so when she woke and found me packing my belongings, she demanded answers. And, as expected, she was none too pleased to find out I was moving in with Mr. Hot Daddy CEO.
God, I still couldn’t believe I’d said that out loud in his presence.
Sighing, I went back to shoving clothes into my suitcase. “It’s not like I have much of a choice.”
Hands gripped my shoulders and spun me around. Gabi gave me a little shake once we were face-to-face. “Don’t do this.”
“I have to pay him back.”
“Fuck your pride! Can’t you see that this is a terrible idea? These people are dangerous, Summer.”
“They’re your family,” I countered.
Her head dropped back on a groan. “I know. But I won’t be able to sleep at night knowing I’m the reason you’ve found yourself caught in Matteo’s web.”
“His girls need a nanny.”
When Gabi’s eyes met mine, they softened. “They’ve been through a lot, and they’d be lucky to have you in their lives. Except for the fact that you’re not a nanny.”
“It’s basically higher-level babysitting. Sure, I haven’t done much of that since before college, but the internet is full of resources on how to provide enriching experiences for kids. I’ll figure it out.”
She scoffed. “Does the internet also have a guide on how to survive living in a mafia don’s house?”
I shrugged. “He said he works a lot, so I can’t imagine we’ll have too much interaction.”
Before my best friend could argue further, the intercom buzzed.
“That’ll be Enzo.”
Gabi’s eyes bulged. “ Enzo is personally escorting you?”
My head cocked to the side. “Yeah. Is that a problem?”
She rubbed both hands over her face. “This is so much worse than I thought.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Ignoring me, she stomped over to the front door, pushing the button on the wall unit. “She’s not going anywhere with you, so get lost.”
“Gabi!” I shouted.
Hearty laughter came through the speaker. “Good morning, Gabriella. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you I can get into this building with or without your help.”
“ Vaffanculo ,” she spat back.
I could hear the amusement in Enzo’s voice. “If you’ve got the toys, I’ve got the time.”
“Ugh!” Gabi stomped her foot as she let out a frustrated scream.
“What did you say to him?” I asked. Clearly, I needed to download a translator app on my phone if the people around me were going to randomly switch into Italian.
Rolling her eyes, she huffed, “I told him to go fuck himself.”
Enzo spoke again. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way, ladies.”
Stepping past my roommate, I hit the button that would buzz him into the building.
Gabi placed both hands on her hips. “You’re seriously going to do this?”
“Yeah.” I nodded. “But on the bright side, you can finally get out of this shithole without me dragging you down.”
She pouted. “I’m gonna miss living with you.”
Tears burned behind my eyes, and I blinked furiously to keep them from falling. “Me too.”
A knock sounded on the other side of the door. Turning the knob, I pulled it open to reveal Enzo with a tattooed arm braced against the frame. His lips twisted into a smirk when he locked eyes with Gabi over my head.
His gaze dropped to mine. “All packed?”
I stepped back to grant him entry. “Almost.”
“Got anything I can take down to the car while you finish?”
I walked over to where a few milk crates full of random personal belongings were stacked outside my bedroom. “These are ready to go. Shouldn’t take me much longer to finish up.”
“Take your time.” He lifted the crates with ease and disappeared through the apartment’s open doorway.
Gabi followed me into my bedroom, where I resumed folding the rest of my clothes and stuffed them into my suitcase.
Her fingers trailed over the edge of my dresser. “What do you want me to do with your furniture?”
I’d pieced together my bedroom set between various flea markets and estate sales. It didn’t match, but it was functional. That’s all that mattered.
“Donate it or sell it. Whatever is easiest for you.”
I was going to be gone for sixteen months, and it didn’t feel right asking her to hold onto any of it for me when she moved into a better place.
Besides, with the thousand-dollar-a-month stipend listed out in the employment contract Matteo sent via email last night, I planned to save most of it, which meant I would be able to buy new furniture later.
Zipping my suitcase, I placed it on the ground and rolled it into the living room. Enzo had returned and took it from my hand.
“This everything?” He looked around the space.
“Yep.” I dropped onto a kitchen chair and focused on tying my shoes to avoid watching Gabi glaring at her cousin.
“Don’t think I won’t be checking in on her,” she declared.
Enzo didn’t skip a beat. “I’ll have your name added to the list of approved visitors at the estate.”
I lifted my head. “See? You can come visit any time you want, Gabs.”
She threw her arms out wide. “How can you not see this for what it is? ‘Approved list of visitors?’ That’s how they talk in prisons, Summer!”
“I’m not a prisoner. I’ll be there under my own free will.”
I purposely left out the part where coercion was heavily involved in my acceptance of the nanny position. Matteo had done a bang-up job of pulling on my heartstrings when talking about how much his little girls needed me.
“That’s what they want you to think,” she grumbled.
Gabi was known for being dramatic, and I wrote off her mini tantrum as her simply being an overprotective friend. She could never understand that the idea of living and working inside the Bellini mansion seemed more like a vacation from my real life than a job.
Truth be told, I was actually looking forward to planning outings, making arts and crafts projects, performing puppet shows, and playing dolls with Bianca.
I wasn’t sure what to do with Serafina yet, but I’d do my research on developmentally appropriate activities for an eight-month-old—or I suppose a five-month-old, since she was delayed due to being premature.
I grasped Gabi’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “I’ll be fine.”
She pursed her lips. “Proof of life text at the end of every day?”
“If that’ll make you feel better, sure.”
She sighed. “Guess I don’t really have much of a choice but to let you go.”
“Ready?” Enzo called from the doorway.
Peeking over my shoulder, I gave him a nod. “Yeah, just one more second.”
I threw my arms around Gabi, hugging her so tight she let out a strained, “Can’t breathe.”
Laughter bubbled up from my chest as I pulled back. “Promise you’ll visit?”
“Like you could keep me away.”
“See you soon, then?”
“Definitely,” she promised.
Spinning around, I turned to face Enzo. “We can go now.”
He extended an arm. “After you.”
I took one more look around the shitty apartment that had only been my home for the past six months. There wasn’t a single part of me that would miss it, but I feared that getting a taste of luxury under Matteo’s roof meant I might never want to leave.
The gates at the end of the driveway opened automatically for Enzo to drive through, and he brought the SUV to a stop before the stone steps leading to the front door of the mansion.
“Let me get your door, then I’ll grab your bags.” He hopped out and jogged around the hood.
Not only did he open my door, he also offered me a hand down from the high seat.
Not gonna lie, I was mildly impressed by the manners of the mafia man, and I began to wonder if Gabi had oversold the “danger” when talking about her family. Surely, criminals and killers weren’t this kind to women they barely knew.
“Thank you,” I murmured once my feet touched the ground.
Enzo popped the trunk, grabbing my suitcase, before leading me up the steps and pushing inside like he owned the place.
“Home sweet home,” he declared.
“Do you live here too?” I asked, eager to learn more about the dynamic between these cousins who seemed extremely close.
“Nah.” He shook his head. “I crash here sometimes, but I’ve got my own house a couple of streets over.”
If it was in this neighborhood, then it was awfully big for one man alone, and my curiosity got the better of me. “Do you have a wife?”
A choking noise sounded, and Enzo thumped a fist against his chest. His reply came out croaked. “God no.”
The tiniest hint of a smile teased onto my lips. “Ah, so you’re an eternal bachelor. Got it.”
“It’s not that all this isn’t great.” One of his shoulders lifted. “It’s just not for me, you know?”
“I get it,” I assured him. Honestly, after watching my mom burn through men growing up—her clingy behavior driving them away sometimes before I even had a chance to learn their last names—the idea of a nuclear family featuring two parents who loved each other and a couple of kids they cherished felt like an unattainable dream.
Not everyone was destined to achieve a happily-ever-after, even if they were desperate for it, so maybe Enzo was onto something by deciding he was fulfilled enough being single.
An excited cry echoed off the high ceiling of the foyer. “She’s here! Papa, Summer’s here!”
I tracked the sound of that little voice, my eyes landing on Bianca at the top of the curved staircase, bouncing on her toes.
Matteo appeared beside her, dressed in what I could tell even from this distance was a perfectly tailored designer suit, holding Serafina in his arms. His intense gaze met mine as he offered his hand to Bianca. “I can see that.”
I swallowed thickly. Why did that deep voice settle right between my thighs?
Get it together, Summer, before you end up working off your debt on your back.
I mean . . . would that really be the worst thing?
Yes! You didn’t make it out of the trailer park only so you could end up selling your body to a rich man who’s sure to chew you up and spit you out.