30. Isabella
30
ISABELLA
D inner turned out to be a really nice time with Massimo, even after Nicco interrupted it. I hate that he was able to make me fold so easily to him in the bathroom and that it consumed my thoughts for the remainder of my date, but it’s also made me realize something. I need to speak to Nicco.
After taking a much-needed bath, I put on my favorite pink silk pajamas, brush my teeth, then slide into bed. Picking up my phone from my nightstand, I go to my blocked callers list and unblock the numbers Nicco’s tried texting me from. My thumb hovers over his last number; the one I blocked years ago.
My heart picks up pace while I contemplate what I’m doing. Am I ready to talk to him? Am I ready to reopen that chapter of my past that I thought I had closed, put a lock on, and thrown away the key to?
I internally laugh at myself because who am I kidding? That chapter was never closed. The man just ate me out in a public restaurant, for crying out loud.
While I continue to stare at my phone screen, butterflies erupt in my stomach. Not the good butterflies that make you giddy with excitement. No, these are the butterflies that flutter around in the deepest depths of your stomach, spurring up anxiety you have no interest in acknowledging.
As much as I want to put my phone down, roll over, and go to sleep, I have to text Nicco. Taking a deep breath, I unblock the last number and click on it so I can send him a message.
Me: I unblocked your number.
My phone buzzes immediately with a response from Nicco, as if he’s been waiting by his phone all night for me.
Nicco: Good. Now I can stop buying burner phones.
That pulls a small laugh out of me.
Me: How many did you go through? Five, was it?
Nicco: Six, and I would go through a hundred if it meant you were seeing my messages.
I let out a sigh because his words do something to me… and it scares me.
Me: I’m not sure I’m ready for this tonight, Nicco. Can we postpone this conversation until another time?
My hands shake while I clutch my phone, watching the three dots light up on the screen, indicating he’s typing a response. If I can put this off, I will, but I’m not sure it’ll help anything. We need to talk, but it’s worth a shot to postpone it so I can collect my chaotic emotions.
The three dots disappear, but a message doesn’t come through. Did I convince him to postpone it that easily? I thought he would make that more difficult, but I won’t argue.
I lean over the edge of my bed to put my phone on the charging pad when pulsing buzzes vibrate through it. Looking at the screen, I see it’s Nicco FaceTiming me, and I nearly drop my phone.
“Shit,” I mumble before hitting the ignore button. I bring up our text thread.
Me: I’m really tired, Nicco. I’m going to bed. I’ll call you tomorrow.
My phone buzzes once more with Nicco’s name displayed on the screen. I almost ignore it, but at the last second, I click accept, and my heart nearly drops at the sight of him, with memories of our last FaceTime call coming back to me. He’s lying in his bed, shirtless, like he was with that girl.
It was all a lie.
Those words come rushing back, making me feel like a pathetic loser, hoping everything about that girl was a lie, but even I know I’m not that lucky. I know what I saw. She was lying on top of him, kissing him, and they looked happy .
Not knowing if I can do this, I go to hang up on him when he says, “Isabella.” His voice low and gravelly, yet soft. “Please don’t hang up on me.”
I look at him again, and he’s rearranged himself. Now he’s lying with his head on his pillow and one arm tucked behind his head while lazily peering at me through the screen. His disheveled hair is perfectly mopped on his head with a strand falling forward.
Holy hell, he looks amazing.
Silence fills the screen, causing me to drop my gaze and play with an invisible piece of lint on my comforter.
A small chuckle finally comes through from him. “Playing with invisible lint? Do I make you that nervous, Isabella?”
I snap my gaze back to my phone screen and scoff, annoyed that he can still read me so damn easily. “Of course not. I’m just waiting for you to do the talking since I don’t have much to say to you.”
A smirk tugs up on his full lips. Lips I can still feel on mine from a few hours ago. “How was your date ?” he asks.
I roll to my side and slide my hand under the side of my head and snuggle into my pillow, giving him a knowing grin even though what I’m about to say is a lie. “It was great. Massimo drove me home and even gave me a good-night kiss. And I must say, it was one of the best kisses I’ve ever had.”
The biggest grin plays out on my face but is immediately flattened when I take in Nicco’s cocky smirk. And if that wasn’t bad enough, he adds in a low chuckle that nearly drives me to hang up on him.
“You and I both know that’s not true,” he says, piercing me with that searing gaze of his that has my heart skipping a beat. He cocks a brow, and that’s when it hits me.
“Let me guess,” I say, annoyance lacing my tone. “You waited at the restaurant to see what would happen?”
“Correct.”
“Where were you? I didn’t see you anywhere.” The words escape my lips before I’m able to stop them, and now he knows I was looking for him.
His smile grows, showcasing his pearly whites. “So you were looking for me. Couldn’t get me off your mind after my mouth was all over your pussy?”
His cocky response has me rolling my eyes even though a blush stains my cheeks. “Oh please, Nicco.”
We both laugh softly, an air of lightness shimmering between the two of us.
“I missed this,” he says, reminding me of the conversation we desperately need to have and souring my mood. How could I go from hating this man with every fiber of my being to falling back into our fun old ways so easily?
Nicco must see the change in my expression as he mirrors my own, casting a frown on his face. It shifts the air in the room despite us being in separate houses.
Letting out a long breath, Nicco says, “There’s a lot we need to talk about.” He waits for me to speak, but when I remain silent, he continues. “I wanted to have this conversation in person—I owe that to you—but I know with the complications between our families, this would be the safest bet.”
“Well, if your dad didn’t feel the need to threaten my entire family, Teo wouldn’t have to take these ridiculous precautions.”
“I know. You’re right. But if it helps at all, my dad doesn’t have any plans to kill you guys. Not right now at least. He’s more concerned about getting access to your ports, and I’ve convinced him that keeping your family alive would be in his best interest to do that.”
My brows furrow. “Why?”
Nicco lets out another audible breath as he bores into me with his dark-brown eyes. “Do you honestly think I would want to bring harm to you and your family?”
“Well, you and your dad kind of have a history of that,” I say, and Nicco winces but continues to hold eye contact with me.
“I didn’t know he was going to… go after your parents.” His voice is soft, and his eyes glaze over with a saddened look.
I shake my head. “It doesn’t matter. You wanted to talk about the breakup, so talk,” I say, hoping we can get straight to the point so I can get closure and figure out what the hell is going on with my emotions.
He waits a few moments before speaking again. “That night you FaceTimed me and saw me in bed with that girl…” He pauses. “I knew you wouldn’t let me go without a damn good reason, and that reason was to make you think I was already with another woman. To make you think I really didn’t love you.”
Those words affect me the same way they did three years ago, sending a sharp pain to my chest. It’s as if I’ve been thrown back in time and he’s breaking my heart all over again.