Chapter 20 #2
I want to argue with him, but I can’t because he’s right. I’ve been so used to living my life feeling stressed out and full of anxiety that I don’t think I realized that I never truly relaxed until him. For someone who kills people for a living, he sure brings out my peaceful side.
“I feel better,” I tell him as I roll my eyes. “But did you really have to talk to Enzo? It’s obvious what we were doing in here now.”
Gio looks down at me with an amused smirk. “Cara, I didn’t need to say anything to him. He could hear you clear as day through the door. They may be solid wood, but they aren’t soundproof.”
I tense under him. “What?”
“You’re loud, baby.”
Oh my god.
My face feels like it’s on fire. “I can’t go downstairs now. Everyone is going to know what we did!”
“Calm down. Enzo isn’t going to say anything at dinner.”
My eyes widen as my brows raise. “At dinner? As in he’s going to bring it up at a later date?”
That’s it.
This is how I die.
Here lies Bronwyn. Dead from intense embarrassment.
“He might.” Gio shrugs. “But I’ll just rough him up if does. He knows what’s coming. Come on,” he says as he pushes off me. “Let’s get down to dinner. We don’t want to make them suspicious.”
Nothing was verbally said at dinner, but things were said at dinner.
Poor Camilla powered through like nothing was wrong.
I’m not so na?ve as to think she didn’t know what happened.
Maybe I would have been able to stop thinking about it if Delaney and Wren hadn’t cast me knowing looks throughout the rest of the night.
Delaney at least waited until Camilla wasn’t looking to ruffle up her hair and mouth “nice sex hair” at me before giving me a thumbs up.
I was wrong earlier. This is the moment I’m going to die of embarrassment. I cast glances at Gio throughout the night, and he seems unbothered by everything going on. It makes me want to take the fork out of his hand that he’s using to shovel food into his mouth and stab him with it.
Maybe then he will feel embarrassed.
I wiped away the mascara that was smeared down my cheeks before we came downstairs, but there wasn’t much I could do about my hair without any tools. I tried my best to run my fingers through it, but even that only does so much. My cheeks were still flushed, and my lips were swollen.
It was so fucking obvious.
But here I am powering through.
I just need to make it through this dessert course, and we should be done. If I don’t see his family for at least a month, maybe I’ll be able to forget this happened.
“So, Bronwyn, Matteo told me you live above the pizzeria. I always loved that unit. It’s full of charm,” Camilla gushes.
Charming, meaning that it’s small.
I fidget in my seat as I’m put on the spot. I know she’s being nice, and it’s something they own, but I live in a shoebox compared to all of them. It’s hard not to feel inadequate.
“I do.” I nod as I stick my spoon into the tiramisu. Matteo’s assessing gaze hasn’t wavered all night, even with Wren nudging him in the side with her elbow and telling him to knock it off. It’s like he’s waiting for me to say or do something wrong. “It’s the perfect size for one person.”
I mean, what else am I supposed to say? I wish I had an actual closet and a bed that wasn’t in the middle of my living space.
Gio’s hand moves to my thigh, rubbing up and down lightly before giving it a reassuring squeeze. It’s scary how in tune he is with me.
“Well.” Camilla smiles as she sets her spoon, her eyes dancing between Gio and me. “Hopefully not by yourself for long.”
I start coughing, making the cocoa powder get stuck in my throat and making me feel like I’m choking.
Gio gently pats my back, helping me through. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” I wheeze out. I grab my glass of water and take a large gulp. “Went down the wrong hole.”
“These men move fast, bitch,” Delaney tells me as she points her spoon at me in emphasis. “Wren met Matteo, and a day later he had her moved into his palace and wifed her up. I thought shit like that only happened in movies.”
“I wish you wouldn’t use such language at the dinner table, Delaney,” Camilla sighs in disappointment at the same time Wren glares. “It wasn’t a day.”
“Close enough,” Delaney fires back.
Wren rolls her eyes before directing her attention to me. “You don’t need to move as fast as we did. I just had some…problems that Matteo helped me out with. It accelerated things.”
Alessio snorts sarcastically. “That’s one way to put it.”
“I think it’s best if you take your time,” Matteo says evenly. “There’s no need to rush anything or force it.”
I stiffen in my seat. Gio feels it because the hand that was rubbing my back freezes. It feels like there’s an underlying threat in his tone because I’m not the one forcing anything here.
“No one is forcing anything here. Whatever speed we decide to go out at is none of your business,” Gio says, his tone hard as he stares at Matteo. Tension fills the room, and I have no idea what to do to stop it.
I’m not even sure I fully understand what’s going on, but I do know that I was right about coming here being a mistake. Gio told me Matteo is looking out for him like any older brother should, but I’m so sick of my dad’s reputation following me around.
I’m not him.
I would never in a million years put someone through what he’s put me through, let alone even think about doing it. Why is that so hard for people to understand?
“Of course.” Camilla smiles at us, completely oblivious to the tension in the room.
We finish the dessert in silence as the rest of the family makes small talk among themselves. Gio’s hand doesn’t leave my back.
“Thank you for dinner,” I tell Camilla as she walks us to the door. “Everything was so good.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it. It was nice to finally meet you, and I expect to see you next week.” Camilla moves in to give me a hug. I hug her back, forcing my body to loosen up and not tense from the maternal affection I’m not used to. Even her perfume smells motherly.
“Thanks for dinner, Ma.” Gio moves in to give his mom a hug and a kiss on the cheek as I step away.
It isn’t until we’re outside and I hear the front door shut behind us that I feel the tension seep out of my body. Gio’s version of relaxation was short-lived.
Neither one of us says a word as we walk to the car.
It’s not the time or the place. I hate that this didn’t go the way Gio wanted it to.
He seemed so sure and excited. I can’t tell if he’s angry with me or Matteo.
I could have put more effort in, but I don’t think it would have changed the fact that Matteo still sees my father’s issues when it comes to me.
“Gio.”
I slowly turn around as Gio moves to stand, so he’s slightly in front of me, placing me between him and the car.
“I think you’ve said enough tonight,” Gio tells Matteo, his tone no less hard than it was when he was speaking to him at the table.
Matteo sighs as he rocks back on his heels, his hands in his front pockets.
“I know you think I’m coming off as an asshole, but I just want to make sure everything calms down before you jump headfirst into something.
Learn from me. I don’t want you to feel what I felt when I found out Wren was taken.
All I ask is that you let things settle down before making it known you two are an item. ”
I study the side of Gio’s face. His jaw is tense, but it looks like he’s lost in thought as he takes in everything Matteo said.
Who would care that we’re an item?
“We’ll talk about it tomorrow.”
Matteo nods. “Goodnight, Bronwyn.”
“Goodnight,” I say weakly.
I watch as Matteo spins on his heel and heads back into the house. Gio reaches behind me and opens the car door. I slide inside. The cool leather feels calm against my skin. The interior smells like Gio’s cologne, swirling around me like a safety blanket.
Gio rounds the car and slides into the driver’s seat. The tension that was lingering outside is now inside with us, and it’s almost suffocating. He backs out of the drive, but instead of going the way we came from, he turns the other way.
“Where are we going?” I ask, breaking the tense silence.
Gio’s hand flexes on the wheel. “My house.”
Oh.
This seems like a big step.
“Do you need to grab something?”
“No,” Gio answers. “I want you to spend the night.”
“I wish you had told me before we left. I didn’t pack an overnight bag.”