6. Luca
6
LUCA
I rush through the cold streets of Montcove, cutting across streets without even looking for any oncoming cars or hazards. I shiver away the cold bite of the frigid nighttime air, only now realizing I left my coat back at the sorority house. Still, I don’t think of going back for it. I can’t get away from that place fast enough.
What the hell was I thinking?
Kissing the son of a rival family, let alone him being my own stepbrother and part of the link that holds our union together. If anyone were to find out about that moment, if Dominic were to say a word about what I did, it would shatter the brittle alliance. Dad would know that his plan falling apart was entirely my fault, and he would never see me fit to take over the business. I would be seen as weak, emotional, and reckless. The Valenti men are strong, logical, and calculated. It is the Rossi brand to act so carelessly?—however, I was the one to kiss him.
What is wrong with me?
As my moment of weakness replays itself in my mind against my own will, I can’t help but think of how he kissed me back. I made a mistake, but he was the one that doubled down on it. He held me closer and forced his tongue into my mouth.
Could it really be all that bad then?
I try my best to reject that idea despite my yearning for it.
Of course it was that bad!
If Dominic Rossi would’ve done the same, if he had gone along with my kiss, then of course it was wrong. He is everything I’m not, so why the hell should I want to be like him? Act like him? I could never.
I take notice of my absent-minded walk, staring around myself and realizing I have no idea where I am. I check the street signs for any hint of familiarity and see the distinct design of the church down the street and the name of the school on the block, but I have no memory of any of it.
I fumble around in my pocket and take out my phone. I squint to be able to see the dim light of the screen through my bleary eyes, thumbing at the phone to dial the number of who I really needed right now.
The phone rings repeatedly, and each time, I become less and less confident that he’ll actually pick up.
Finally, a voice crackles on the other end of the line. “Luca? What are you doing calling me at this hour?”
I pull the phone away from my ear and check the time. It’s well past midnight, and I hadn’t even noticed. “I’m so sorry, Dad. I got stranded out in the middle of nowhere after a party.”
“How did you manage that?”
“It was getting late, and the party took a turn. I just needed to get out of there.” I didn’t want to directly lie to him,—he would catch me out if I tried—so I hope that just bending the truth will work.
“Alright, it was a smart decision to not get involved in anything,” he says. “I’ll send Filo with the car. Do you want him to take you back to your dorm?”
“Uh no, actually…” I switch the phone to my other ear. “I was wondering if it would be alright for me to come home for the night.” I wait for his reply, and it feels like it takes an eternity to come.
“I’ll have your bed made up for you,” he replies. “When you get back, meet me in my study. There’s something we should probably discuss sooner rather than later.”
I want to go home to get away from any more stress, but his words only pile on top of my worries. “Of course. Thank you for this.”
He hesitates before speaking again. “The car will be there shortly.” The phone clicks, and the line ends. He hung up.
The drive is as quiet as the night around it. Filo sits silently in the driver’s seat and keeps his eyes on the road. Unlike my dad, I leave the privacy window between us open. I never liked the idea of it; it feels so strange to know that someone sits on the other side of the metal cabin, purposefully excluded from the conversation. It wasn’t like Filo couldn’t be trusted; he’s been with the family and our business since long before I was born. He always felt like one of my uncles. The only difference is that he’s on my father’s payroll in a more official capacity. Filo is too much of a well-meaning and respectable man to be mixed up with the less-than-reputable dealing of the Valentis, and my father knew it. While he may drive us to and from our business, he always chooses to stay in the car waiting for it to be over.
“You have a good time at least?” Filo asks. “I heard you had to leave early, but I hope it didn’t ruin your night.” His words are sincere; he always is. And that’s the exact reason he stays on the outskirts of the Valenti business.
“Yeah, it was good. Just too much drama that I didn’t want to get into.” I wish there was someone I could actually talk to, but no matter what, this has to stay unknown.
Filo chuckles. “Ah, I see. I think I had to deal with something similar when I was your age.”
“What? I don’t know what you mean,” I stammer. “It was just some college kids getting drunk and fighting.”
“Alright, that’s fair enough. Guess I got it wrong,” he says. “Here I was thinking it was all down to some crush.” His eyes glint and reflect toward me through the car’s rear view mirror.
My eyes dart away from his. “No, nothing like that.” I can’t even look at him, but still, I sense his doubt and suspicion.
Filo says nothing for a moment, “Well, you don’t need to worry. You’re almost home now.” He smiles, his eyes focusing back on the road again.
The car spins around in the driveway in front of the house, and the shadow it casts from the moonlight envelops everything in its path. I look up at the huge Valenti manor through the car window and catch a glance from a dark figure shifting past the upstairs landing. A few dim lights illuminate the house, the entranceway, the upper hall, and my father’s study. He’s set my course through the house already .
The door beside me opens, Filo standing at the ready. “Here you are. Have a good night now.”
“Thank you, Filo. You too.” I give him a smile and a small wave as I walk away from him and toward the front door.
The house matched Montcove’s architecture quite well, both utilizing the gothic style aptly and making them feel just as comforting as each other. Whether that’s a positive or not, I’m still unsure.
I push my way through the large, heavy oak doors, hearing the old creak echo through the entrance and announce my arrival. Shutting them behind me, I take a nostalgic look at the fashionably lit expanse around me as if it’s been more than a week since I saw it last.
Still, even in that brief time, things have changed. One of the outdated family portraits has been taken down and moved off to the side of the room, awaiting its proper removal, and stationed right beside it is one of the photos taken at the wedding of the Valenti-Rossi family yet to go up on the wall.
I move closer to it, gliding my hand over its bespoke, carved wooden frame and kneeling down in front of it to get a better look. The family members on both sides of the picture just barely fit inside of the framing; even at a wedding marking their unification, they can’t bear being close together. A clear divide appears on either side of the married couple, them alone being the only Valenti and Rossi to stand near each other.
I stare at myself, dressed up in a similar suit I’m wearing tonight, my chestnut hair freshly cut and my eyes blissfully unaware of what would happen just days later.
Before I can even realize it, my eyes shift and land squarely on Dominic. His jet black hair is styled up from his face, his perfect green eyes are staring directly back at me, the whole package wrapped in a suit he seems to want to shed as soon as he can. The idea alone makes me feel unfulfilled and wanting for more.
“Luca, there you are,” my dad calls from the top of the staircase behind me. “I thought I told you to come straight to my study?” he asks as if I had forgotten, but we both know I haven’t
“Sorry, I just saw the new photo. Turned out better than I thought,” I say, my eyes still lingering on Dominic’s depiction.
“Ah yes, that just came in today. Didn’t have time to get it up quite yet. Now, to my study?”
“By all means.” I make my way up the grand staircase, watching my father take the lead.
By the time I make it inside the room, he’s already positioned himself in his suede armchair in front of the roaring open fire. “Close the door behind you and take a seat.” He gestures to the matching chair in front of his.
I click the door closed and sit in front of him. “What did you want to talk about?”
Taking a deep breath, his face shifts to be much more serious. “Before we discuss that, I just want to check in with you.”
His words send me into a state of delightful surprise. He usually left our personal matters to my mother, and when she passed, he left us to deal with them ourselves.
“Your time at the party tonight, you seemed troubled by it,” he adds. “I just want to ensure they won’t get in the way of what we’re going to talk about.”
Immediately, I am ripped away from any assumptions of his care. Of course he only thinks of business, but that’s what I need to be doing as well. He wouldn’t be so shaken by something as trivial as a stupid, impulsive kiss, so why should I?
“No. They won’t affect anything.” My words feel more like prayers as I say them.
“Good, so on to the matter at hand,” he announces, leaning forward in his chair. “The Grecos have put forward their terms for the meeting.”
From his tone, I can tell this is serious, and I must treat it as such. “What have they said?”
“They want to meet on neutral territory. There’s a small restaurant downtown that’s favored both of our families before, so that’s where we decided.”
I nod along as he speaks.
“They’ve made it clear that the only thing they want from us is peace, but…here’s just one catch. Their patriarch, Antonio Greco, isn’t representing them. He thinks that be cause of our history, we won’t be able to come to an amicable agreement.”
“I don’t understand.”
“They want fresh blood to handle it. Greco’s sending one of his new lackeys to broker the deal.” He pauses.
“Who do they want us to send?” I ask nervously, though I already know the answer.
“They want you to go without me.” He stands from his chair and begins pacing.
“Really?”
He only nods, keeping his back turned from me and expecting me to speak further.
“Do you agree with them?” I query. If this was asked of me only a week ago, I would have jumped at the chance, but Dominic Rossi has gotten in my head and thrown me off of my game. I don’t know what to think. I don’t know what to say. I wish I could push every last thought of him from my head and focus on what needs to be done for this family, but he’s left me distracted.
Is that his plan? To mess with my head so I screw this up?
“I’m conflicted,” he asserts. “You know I want more from you, and I can see that desire you have—the same one I had when I was your age.”
This is my priority now; it has to be.
“I just don’t know if you’re ready for something like?—”
“I am ready!” I blurt out, stunning him into silence. “I know I’ve seemed off, but I’m all good. I’m great actually.” I look him dead in the eyes., “I promise you I can do this.”
He takes a moment to assess my state as I bury any remaining ounce of uncertainty beneath a pile of pure determination.
“This is important, Luca. This is a big deal for this family, and if something goes wrong, all hell may break loose,” my dad warns. “Are you sure you’ll be able to handle it?”
Without a second of hesitation, I reassure him. “I’m certain.”
Lying amongst the soft sheets of my home bed, I feel a wave of tranquility wash over my body, despite needing to handle the important business of brokering peace between the Valentis and the Grecos, something so similar to what my father has only just managed with the Rossis. If I can accomplish this now, I can definitively prove to him that I am a capable enough leader to take over from him and lead the family going forward.
This is what matters most. All I need to do is focus on this, demonstrate my abilities, and show my father that I’m smart enough, and soon I will be in charge.
I’ll be able to not only distance myself but also the family from Dominic and the Rossis. Everyone wins.
I turn myself over in the bed, staring across the dark room into the black abyss.
Is that winning?
Every part of me seems to want something different. My head is telling me to put my family and our business first, but my heart has spoken for the first time in so long that I don’t want Dominic gone from me.
As my thoughts of him expand and twist together into a complicated cluster of conflict, a different part of me starts to speak up.
My lips curve into a smile, feeling the caress of my own lips against each other as they begin to swell. I bite down on my lower lip in an attempt to calm myself, but it only excited me more.
Beneath the covers of my bed, I feel the twinging muscles of my cock stiffen. Covering it with the palm of my hand, I beg for it to relent, but I only feel it press further.
My mind shifts to earlier this night, the rush I felt from pushing myself to kiss Dominic, the aggressive moves of his lips against my own clashing with the strong grip of his hold on me. The taste of him when his tongue entered my mouth was earthy, smokey and intoxicating. The powerlessness I felt as his body pressed into my own felt incredible.
I could feel his own dick hard in his pants as he pressed into me and I wanted nothing more than to free it and take it in my mouth.
These thoughts only turn me on more, until I’m unable to hold back my desires. My hand runs its way up and down along the length of my hard shaft.
I delve deeper into my fantasies, craving to know what might have happened in that room if I hadn’t run off.
I think about all the possibilities: Dominic throwing me onto the unmade bed, slamming the door closed, and trapping me in there, completely at his mercy. Feeling him tear my clothes from my body, pouncing on top of me, and pinning me to the mattress under his weight. Watching as he takes off his shirt, revealing his toned chest as he presses himself against me. Enduring the pain of him biting down on my neck, feeling each mark appear on my skin like a brand tagging me as his property.
I bury my hand underneath my underwear, vigorously stroking my hardened erection. Unable to hold in my arousal, a whimpering moan lets itself out of my mouth, giving me no choice but to force my other hand to cover my mouth to trap any more sounds.
I struggle to breathe in my imagination as well, feeling the tight grip of Dominic’s large hand around my throat, squeezing firmly to restrict the blood flow, my depleting oxygen leaves me speechless. Still, he can hear me begging for more. Pulling out his own throbbing cock, he buries it deep down my throat, making me choke on its girth. Tightening my lips around it, I swallow every single inch of him, running my tongue down his rigid flesh within my own mouth, feeling the growing force of his thrusts as he shoves his cock further into my throat and replaces any air left in my lungs with it.
I rub my own cock harder and harder, fueling myself with the arousal from my fantasy; somehow knowing it could never happen makes it so much hotter. My burning desire for his body makes me explode, the eruption from my tip painting the insides of my boxers. Feeling the heat of my orgasm against my hand intertwined with the pure ecstasy is intoxicating, forcing my whole body to quiver.
The thrill of my dream fades from my mind as sense is able to return and Dominic escapes from my mind, leaving me alone in this old, empty room.
Regardless of how good he makes me feel when our time together ends, I can only feel his absence even stronger. Whether our kiss at the party or our time in my dream, it has to end, and then one of us leaves. Either way, I am stuck lying here in this bed all by myself.
No matter what, I will end up alone.