15. Summer #2
“In simplest terms? Bloodshed. There’s a target on every Italian’s back. Well, the men at least. Typically, women and children are off-limits, but every now and again, someone goes rogue.” She let out a wry laugh. “Guess you can’t always count on the villains to have honor.”
Jesus. I’d been reeling earlier when I learned that Rico wasn’t just my driver—he was also my bodyguard—but now it suddenly made sense. Matteo had enemies, and he was worried that my attachment to him would put me in harm’s way, so he was trying to protect me.
I shouldn’t be nearly swooning at the idea, but it was proof of how much he cared.
“Oh God.” Gabi groaned, drawing my attention back to her. “Your face is an open book, and I can see you romanticizing this in your head.”
Busted.
She gripped my shoulders, giving them a little shake. “Listen to me, and listen good, Summer. There’s nothing romantic about this world. It’s dark, it’s dangerous, and if I hadn’t been born into it, I wouldn’t be volunteering to jump into these shark-infested waters.”
As much as I could appreciate that she was trying to look out for me by warning me off, I feared it was already too late. I was already in love with those two little girls, and when it came to Matteo . . . well, my feelings for him weren’t very far behind.
I knew it sounded crazy. I barely knew the man. But that didn’t stop my heart from fluttering wildly inside my chest every time he entered the room. And when he looked at me like I was the center of his universe? God, there wasn’t a drug-induced high that could beat it.
“I’ll be fine.” I brushed off my best friend’s concern.
“Bet that’s what Allegra thought too,” she muttered under her breath.
“Who’s Allegra?”
Gabi froze, panic flickering over her features before she covered it with a bright yet forced smile. “No one. Let’s get a drink!”
There was definitely something she was hiding, but her quick change in demeanor slammed the door shut on any chance of me prying the answers out of her tonight.
Holding up two fingers to the bartender, she placed our order. “Two vodka cranberries. Heavy on the vodka.”
The burly man behind the bar nodded. But when he turned around and grabbed a bottle of top-shelf vodka, I called out, “Well is just fine!”
Instead of abandoning the high-end liquor that I wasn’t willing to blow most of my monthly stipend on, he poured a generous amount of it into two glasses.
“Excuse me,” I tried in vain to get his attention.
Gabi’s hand landed on my arm. “Leave it.”
“I can’t,” I hissed. “Do you have any idea how much those drinks are gonna cost?”
A splash of cranberry juice was added to each glass before they were placed on the bar top in front of us.
“On the house,” the bartender grunted before leaving us to serve other patrons.
“On the house . . .” I repeated, staring at the drinks.
Gabi grabbed hers and drained the whole thing before coming up for air. “Ah, that’s the good stuff. A few more of those, and I might be able to forgive him for cockblocking me tonight.”
“Who?”
“Oh, come on, Summer. You might be na?ve, but you’re not stupid.
A man like Matteo can’t be seen to have his woman paying for drinks in his club.
And he sure as shit can’t have her drinking anything less than the best he has to offer.
” She visibly shuddered. “Well vodka.” A gagging noise followed those words.
“I’m not—”
She cut me off by holding up a hand. “You might not be sleeping with him—yet—but he’s claimed you as his, nonetheless.
You forget I’ve spent my entire life watching how these men operate.
They take what they want. And Matteo Bellini wants you.
The minute you set foot inside his home, you were his.
That’s why I tried so hard to talk you out of it. ”
My mouth opened and closed a few times, but nothing came out.
Was that true? Had I sealed my fate the minute I accepted the nanny job? Or was it even before that, when I’d let my pride take over and had stormed up to those front gates and demanded an audience with Matteo to tell him I couldn’t accept his money?
Honestly, the timing didn’t matter anymore. Because now, he’d vocalized his claim. I knew exactly where he stood. And God help me, I wasn’t the least bit upset about it.
Did he do bad things? Yes, he’d admitted as much. But he was a good man at his core. I’d seen the proof of that.
I was beginning to believe that life could be lived in shades of gray, and that’s where Matteo thrived.
Some might paint him as a monster, a killer, but they didn’t know him like I did.
They didn’t witness the soft-spoken words of love to his daughters, the gentle press of his lips to their foreheads as he wished them sweet dreams. They weren’t on the receiving end of his gentle caresses after he let that rough side take over.
The rest of the world could keep their perception of him, believing the reputation he’d crafted to garner a mixture of fear and respect. Because I knew the truth of who he really was. And it felt almost like I was in on this big secret—one Matteo only shared with me because I was special to him.
“Can we put a pin in this and enjoy the night?” Gabi asked as she accepted another drink from the bartender.
“Please,” I breathed out, relieved. It was exhausting defending myself and my actions to my best friend. The one who’d been there for me through thick and thin these past four years since moving to Chicago, and I hated arguing with her.
She took my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, a silent signal that even though she didn’t agree with how I was choosing to live my life right now, she would always have my back.
Together, we navigated our way through the crush of bodies on the dance floor.
Taking a sip of my vodka cranberry, I winced against the burn as the liquor carved a path down my throat, but that discomfort was quickly forgotten when the buzz began to kick in.
Soon, my hips were moving in time with the music, the vibrations from the bass settling between my thighs.
Head tossed back and eyes closed, I couldn’t stop a moan from escaping past my parted lips as I imagined Matteo’s hands on my body. His touch was gentle yet possessive in a way that left no doubt that I was his.
My teeth sank into my lower lip as I fought the urge to slip my hand between my legs to ease the ache.
In a crowd like this, no one would notice or even care that I was getting myself off.
They were all too busy grinding up against each other, their dancing serving as foreplay before they moved to a secondary location to seal the deal.
When I felt the warm press of lips against the side of my neck, my eyes sprang open, and reflex had my elbow swinging back to connect with the ribs of whatever asshole thought they could take liberties and touch me without consent. And not just touch me but kiss me. The fucking nerve!
There was a split second of satisfaction when I heard the grunt sounding from behind me. But it was quickly replaced with remorse on the heels of shock when an all-too-familiar voice rasped, “And here I was thinking you’d be happy to see me, dolcezza .”
My hand came up to cover my gasp as I spun around with wide eyes, coming face-to-face with Matteo. And damn if my knees weren’t in danger of buckling when I drank in how extremely fuckable he looked.
Most days, I saw him dressed in a suit, but this version, modified for a night out, threatened to be my undoing.
The white dress shirt tucked into navy slacks had been left open at the collar, exposing a mouthwatering slice of olive skin that had me itching to lean in and lick it to see if it tasted as good as it looked.
There was the tiniest hint of stubble lining his normally clean-shaven jaw this late at night, and messy strands of dark hair hung over his forehead.
Swallowing thickly, I stammered, “Wh-what are you doing here?”
Matteo dipped his head and began to pepper kisses along my jaw. “I can’t fucking breathe when you’re not near.”
Oh wow. I had to clutch at his shoulders to remain upright.
The vibrations of his chuckle tickled against my neck. “Do you have any idea how much you affect me?”
When I didn’t respond, he pulled our bodies flush. The hard ridge of his dick pressed to my belly had a moan spilling into the heated air.
“I need you, Summer. Please tell me I can have you. Tonight.”
Lifting my eyes, I sucked in a sharp breath when I saw the heat in his.
Heart threatening to beat out my chest, I gave the tiniest dip of my chin, and that was enough for Matteo. Within seconds, he was dragging me off the dance floor. Then he pulled me into a darkened alcove.
Before I could ask where we were, his mouth crashed down on mine.
There was no teasing, tasting, or exploring like you’d expect of a first kiss.
No, the first time Matteo and I locked lips was all about him asserting dominance.
His tongue swept inside, staking his claim, making sure I knew exactly who I belonged to.
My hands tangled in his hair as I attempted to hang on for dear life, in hopes of surviving the lust-induced fire that was hot enough to burn the world to the ground around us.
Heat pooled low in my belly, and I couldn’t stop my hips from seeking out his, rubbing against the erection straining behind his fly.
Matteo pulled back with a hiss, his dark eyes glittering in the dim lighting. “Need to taste you.”
Brain fuzzy, I panted, “You just did.”
He shook his head before dropping to the ground and tossing one of my thighs over his shoulder.
Oh, hell yes.
Staring up at me, he let out a stunned exhale. “I kneel for no man, but you bring me to my knees. That’s the power you wield over me, dolcezza .”
Now that I understood that he was calling me sweetheart in Italian, I freaking swooned.
Reaching down, I brushed the sweaty strands of hair away from his forehead, trailing my fingers down his face to cup his cheek. He turned his face, pressing a tender kiss to the center of my palm.
Slowly, he inched the hemline of my already short skirt up my thighs, dragging his tongue along my skin on his upward trek. Before long, his hot breath breached through the lace of my panties, and without warning, he hooked the material to the side, and his mouth closed over my clit.
“Fuck!” I cried, my head dropping back against the wall with a thud.
Fingers dug into my ass, hauling my pussy tighter against his face. His deep groan against my slick flesh had me squealing. The combination of that and his skilled tongue fucking into me had me embarrassingly close to the edge already.
How was he so good at this? Most men needed a damn road map, and even then, I was begging for their cock just so I didn’t have to withstand any more of their sloppy slobbering down below.
His mouth pulled away suddenly, and I whimpered, hips bucking in search of contact.
“Matteo, please,” I begged, breathless.
“Eyes on me,” he all but growled. “I want you to watch while I make you fall apart.”
Forcing my heavy eyelids open, I dropped my chin enough to view where Matteo was perched between my thighs. I nearly came on the spot, seeing the sheen of my arousal coating his lips and chin. Damn, that was hot.
His gaze never left mine as he lifted two fingers to his mouth and gave them a good suck before teasing them between my legs.
I tensed as they probed at my entrance, but when they pushed inside, curling against that perfect spot, my eyes threatened to roll back into my head, and it took all my effort to keep them locked on Matteo.
“Don’t look away, dolcezza ,” he gritted out the command as his tongue darted out, swiping through my slit.
I couldn’t help myself. I grabbed a fistful of his hair, holding him steady as I chased the pleasure he provided. God, I could get addicted to this.
The quick flicks of his tongue on my throbbing clit, in tandem with the steady thrusts of his fingers, drove me higher and higher until I let out a ragged sob. I was so close. I just needed something . . . more. But I wasn’t sure what.
Like he had exclusive access to some kind of instruction manual, Matteo knew what would throw me over the top. His teeth grazed my clit, giving a gentle tug, while the tip of his tongue never relented, and I shot into the stratosphere.
Trembling from head to toe, I sucked in a sharp breath as ecstasy burst through my bloodstream. All my nerve endings lit up at once with enough electricity to power the entire city of Chicago.
And through it all, Matteo kept his dark stare on me, his mouth working me over until I grew boneless, sagging against the wall and panting heavily.
His hand smoothed over my thigh, easing it from his shoulder so that my foot was back on solid ground. Not that it seemed very solid beneath legs that felt like jelly.
With an anchoring hold on my hips, he stood, pinning me to the wall to keep me upright as his tongue dove past my parted lips, forcing me to taste myself.
I couldn’t do anything but moan into the kiss, completely spent and at his mercy.
Wet fingers gripped my chin when he pulled away. “I’ve sampled the finest delicacies this world has to offer, but nothing compares to the decadence of your sweet cunt.”
We were gonna need to call the staff to grab a mop because I was officially a puddle on the floor.
My skirt was tugged down enough to cover my ass, then Matteo was leading me down a hallway. When we pushed through a back door where a black SUV was waiting, I dug my heels in, trying to halt our forward progress.
Matteo looked back at me with an arched eyebrow. “Problem?”
I waved a weak hand in the direction of the club behind us. “Gabi.”
“Rico’s under instructions to make sure she gets home safe.”
In my post-orgasm haze, I allowed him to lift me into the back seat and buckle me in. Once he climbed in beside me, I found my voice enough to ask, “Where are we going?”
A devilish gleam entered those dark brown eyes. “Home. That was just the appetizer. The main course is still waiting for us.”
My only wish was for the car to drive faster because I was more than ready to let this sexy man eat me alive.