4. Celso
CHAPTER FOUR
Celso
M as and I walk out of the hotel together. He is muttering about what a shit show this entire thing was.
“Someone doesn’t just disappear.” He says to me, his eyes narrowed.
“Yeah, it’s crazy.” I say, not thinking about the day or what happened because I’m thinking about Neve, lying upstairs asleep on that bed. Not married. Single. Waiting for me.
I’m thinking about the look she gave me tonight, and how she would have been putty in my hands if we had been alone .
“Yeah. Crazy.” Mas mutters, tired and agitated. I can tell he wants to get into this conversation more - but he’s not in the mood after such a long day. I’ll hear about his concerns in the morning again. But he can talk till he’s blue in the face. I’ve covered my tracks.
“Night.” I wave at him as he climbs into his car. “Night.” He sighs, closing the door and starting the engine.
I walk over to where I’m parked and climb into my car. Except I don’t drive off. And once he’s out of sight, his engine growling off into the distance, I climb out of my car and walk back into the hotel.
I can’t get Neve out of my head and tonight is too good an opportunity to miss.
I have no idea how tomorrow is going to pan out, so I want to make the most of the current situation.
Dipping my hand into my pocket I find the penthouse keycard I stole off the entrance table of their room. My lips curve into a menacing grin as I stare at my reflection in the perfectly polished steel walls of the elevator. Straightening the black collar of my crisp shirt I dust my hands over my chest and roll the sleeves up over my forearms. By the time I’m done the elevator has stopped on the top floor.
It wouldn’t even be odd for me to be coming back up here. I can say I forgot to take my phone, or I accidentally took the room key and wanted to return it.
I swipe the card and the door clicks, a little green light shows it is no longer locked.
Pushing it open I quietly pull it closed behind myself.
The room isn’t pitch dark. Lights from the chandelier in the living room are still on, turned really low and giving the place a warm yellow glow.
I set my phone down on the coffee table, next to the keycard and my car keys.
Quietly I make my way to the bedroom.
Dalila has rolled almost off the bed on her side. She is fast asleep with her face practically hanging off the edge, still snoring softly.
Neve has kicked her blankets half off and her wedding dress has shifted up, showing off her long shapely legs. She’s lying on her back with one leg bent upward as though she was dancing in her sleep.
I reach out and run my hand from her ankle, slowly, over her smooth skin, perfectly silky, warm and inviting, up over her thigh. I pause with my fingers resting on her inner thigh.
My cock is throbbing so hard it hurts, pressed against the seams of pants.
I glance across the bed and pull my lips tight.
Fuck.
“If only we were alone, I’d finally show you how special you are to me.” I whisper, letting my fingers drift higher, beneath the wedding dress.
Neve stirs and I freeze for a moment, my heart beating fast, adrenalin pumping wildly inside me. I love it. The thrill of it.
The challenge.
There is no fear, only excitement.
She mumbles something and rolls onto her side with her legs curled up towards her chest .
Her long blonde hair is spilled across the pillow in a mess of half braided curls and twists.
I gently brush my fingers through it, untangling one of the braids.
“If you were mine, I would have taken proper care of you before you fell asleep.” I whisper. “I would have helped you into something more comfortable. Brushed your hair and given you something to eat.”
I sit on the edge of the bed in the curve of her petite body.
For half an hour I run my fingers through her hair, untangling and brushing out the knots. Her hair is now spread out behind her like a silky wave.
Dalila stirs and sighs loudly.
Shit.
She rolls over to face me and for a moment I think her eyes are open. But they aren’t.
I should go.
I’ve been here too long as it is .
Leaning over Neve with my hand resting on the bed above her head, I softly press my mouth over her lips and taste her sweetness.
She moves her head away, frowning in her sleep.
“Good night, my angel.” I whisper, stepping back, reluctant to go - but everything is set in motion now and it won’t be long before it all falls into place.
She is mine.
She will soon realize it wasn’t a choice I was giving her. I was predicting the future when I told her she belongs to me.
On the drive home I have nothing but excitement for what is waiting for me. In a way, I’m glad we weren’t alone tonight. Perhaps our first time should be more planned out. Something special, intimate. Not that I think there is anything more beautiful than fucking her in a wedding dress.
I would prefer it to be the wedding dress she wears for me.
The more I think about her the more my body fills with desire. It’s always like this when I see her. When I’m near her, I lose control of my thoughts .
But I am reassured that this is one of the last times I will have to handle the situation myself, alone, without her touch and without her silky smooth skin.
After a hot shower I climb into bed satisfied, for the moment. I am a patient man, but it was wearing thin regarding Neve. I don’t want to wait anymore.
From here on out I’m going to be more aggressive in my pursuit of her. It’s time.
I fall asleep thinking about our future. And picturing how beautiful she looked with my hand on her skin.
Bright, warm sunshine splashes onto my pillow and pulls me from the dream I was lost in.
My dreams are never pleasant. Always dark and filled with shadowed mysteries that want to tear me apart. I sneer, pressing my hands against my eyes to push the last remnants of those haunting images from my mind. In the real world I do whatever the fuck I want. I take what I want, and I am whoever I want to be. No one can touch me. No one can control me .
But in my dreams I’m always running. Always drowning. Always terrified.
Sighing loudly, I toss the heavy blankets away from my body and swing my legs over the edge of the bed.
Soft, thick carpet beneath my toes reminds me I’m in the real world. Everything is ok.
Ever since I was young sleeping has been an issue for me. The day I found out my mother left, discarding me as though I was some unwanted burden.
My father has always treated me differently. Not bad. Not bad at all. He has favored me, protected me, solved every single one of my problems. He’s supported my choices and never punished me - not like he did to my older brothers.
I know it’s not only because I am the youngest. I think it has more to do with my mother than me.
He had an affair, cheating on his wife, Francesca - the mother of all of my siblings - with my mother, Amelia.
I think the memory of Amelia is what draws him to me. It’s the reason he treats me with unfair preference. I never met her because she disappeared only a few months after I was born and left my father to raise me on his own. Of course, when I say on his own I mean with the help of a team of housekeepers and nursemaids.
But I never met my mother. Her being so willing to walk away from me without ever glancing back - that changed my view of women.
But Neve is different.
And I want her.
And I will make sure that I get her.
The coffee is dark and sweet, and it filters away the last of my nightmares.
Sunday mornings are the most quiet mornings of my week. My phone doesn’t ring, and no one is asking anything of me. It’s also the loneliest mornings of my week.
My penthouse in the city overlooks the vast expanse of buildings, networks of streets filled with ant like people far belong, hurrying from one place to another. I can see people, I can hear the cars and the life around me - but I am alone .
I’ve always felt this sense of departure from my brothers and sister. They live in a different world from me - a world un-abandoned - a world in which they have found love.
It’s all I want at the end of the day. That unconditional love.
From Neve.
My phone rings and I narrow my eyes in annoyance. Who is calling me? What do they want?
For fuck sakes. I am not in the mood to deal with Mas right now.
“I’m downstairs, open up.” He demands as soon as I answer the call.
My jaw clenches. He acts like he owns everyone.
Pressing the keypad near the front door I snap back. “It’s open.”
He hangs up and I return to staring out across the views from my balcony.
I could push Mas over the side and say it was an accident. I chuckle.
Perhaps I’ll save that for another day .
Mas walks into my penthouse like he owns the place, dumping his keys on the entrance table and walking straight into the kitchen to make himself a coffee.
“Morning.” I say sarcastically.
“We need to talk.” He replies coldly, using his I’m the oldest, and that automatically puts me in charge of everything voice.
“ What about?” I ask, leaning one elbow against the kitchen counter and sipping the last of my coffee.
“You know exactly what we need to talk about. Don’t play dumb with me. Where is the guy?” he hisses.
I smirk. “Why in the world would I do anything to that worthless idiot?”
“Because you want his fiancé, and he was in your way. We know how you deal with people who get in your way, Celso - but this guy is the son of a very wealthy and powerful business man. It’s too public. It’s too risky. Whatever you did?—”
“I didn’t do anything man, calm the fuck down.” I roll my eyes dramatically.
Mas stands in my kitchen looking at me as though I’ve done something wrong and he’s about to send me to the naughty corner.
Agitation flares through me.
“Listen. You need to get the fuck over this idea of yours. I didn’t touch the asshole. He stood her up. He doesn’t deserve her. End of story.”
Mas continues to stare at me.
“Dammit, Celso.” He mutters under his breath. It’s clear he doesn’t believe me, but he has nothing to go on. Besides, what the hell is he going to do? Nothing.
There’s nothing he could do even if I had a giant sign on my face saying, “I did it.”
Mas doesn’t have much else to say to me, so when his coffee is finished he leaves, and I’m left on my own again. Thinking about Neve and our future.