CHAPTER 25 Lindsay #2
Matteo sucks in a sharp breath at the end of my speech. The look in his eyes is innocent and filled with so much wonder. I’m full-on crying now.
Pesky pregnancy hormones. They picked the worst time to make an appearance.
I melt into his touch when he reaches for my cheeks, wiping away my tears and staring at me like I’m the most important thing in the world.
“You’re not leaving?” he says softly.
“Never,” I assure him, gripping his hand in mine. “It’s going to be you, me, Leonardo, and our baby. Forever and always.”
“Forever and always,” he repeats. “I could live with that.”
“You’d better.”
“I love you so fucking much, Lindsay Beaumont. I love your eyes, those deep blue eyes that feel like I’m sinking into the ocean.
Your soft, raspy voice,” he punctuates his words, with a kiss against my throat.
“I love your brain and the way you think. How you approach everything with a quiet intelligence that comes with ease. Your bravery and the light you exude. You humility, your elegance and poise.” He kisses my nose, my cheeks, over my eyes.
“And then there’s the not-so-ladylike parts of you as well.
I love that smart-ass mouth of yours. I love the way your lips part while I fuck you.
The way you scream. I love you even in the moments when you drive me crazy. ”
I float so high at his words that nothing could ever drag me down. No matter what goes wrong in my life, I’ll remember this moment and I’ll feel gratitude for it.
With a deep breath, I start to speak. “I fought so hard against us because I thought we were too different. Because you’re Matteo Vitale and I’m Lindsay Beaumont and our worlds simply do not mix.
But the truth is, all we both needed was to take a step forward.
Valentina says I have to accept all of you, and I do.
I don’t plan to ignore any part, not even the dark ones.
“I see the darkness in you, Matteo, and I can admit that it’s exactly what drew me to you in the first place.
But then I saw the other parts that you tried to keep hidden and I realized you’re so much more than that.
You may be the devil’s gatekeeper, Charon, transporting the souls of the deceased through the River Styx, but the truth is I’ll wade through the depths of the underworld by your side, Matteo. Because I love you.”
His lips grow into a wide smile even as his eyebrows rise. He’s so breathtakingly handsome, even in the low lighting of the room. I wonder if there’ll ever be a day when looking at him doesn’t trigger a visceral reaction within me.
“I’m Charon?” he questions teasingly.
“Yes. Big bad scary ferryman in Greek mythology.”
“You’re such a dork, Lindsay.” He chuckles.
“Just shut up and kiss me.”
That he does, leaning forward in the next breath and brushing his lips against mine. I press my mouth to his and slide my tongue inside and he immediately captures it with mine, pulling me close and running his hand up my spine and gripping the nape of my neck to hold me in place.
My fingers curl into his shirt, tugging him closer, deepening the kiss. He exhales against my mouth, low and controlled. But I want more. I want the fire. I want the flame. I want everything from him.
I push at his shirt, impatient, and he lets me, steps back just enough for me to slide it over his head. I trace my hand over the crest that sits above his heart, dark and intricate, something old in its design. On top of the crest, the words are sharp and deliberate, carved into his skin.
My fingers move without permission, brushing lightly over it. I look up at him in question.
“I’ve always wanted to ask,” I say, my fingers resting against the ink. “What does this mean?”
“Chi tocca i miei, brucia,” he says in Italian before translating in the next breath. His gaze locks onto mine. “It means that anyone that touches what’s mine”—his hands tighten slightly at my waist—“burns.”
The words settle between us. How very fitting.
“That’s very sexy, Matteo.”
He grins before kissing me again, pulling me closer and reaching for the zipper of my dress from behind. His fingers are deft as he drags it down. The fabric loosens, slipping from my shoulders and pooling at my feet.
I’m left standing in only my underwear. My breath catches at the look he gives me.
“So fucking beautiful. Like you were made just for me.”
We take off the rest of our clothes and fall onto the bed, wrapped up in each other. When he slides into my wet heat, it feels like perfection. He’s exactly where he was always meant to be, and so am I. I would never choose otherwise.
When he finishes, I lie on top of him, stroking the words imprinted over his heart.
“Matteo, you want this baby, right?” I say into the silence, because he didn’t make that clear earlier and I’m starting to second-guess things.
He tilts my head up so he can look into my eyes, every inch of it confident and sure.
“Of course I want it. My heart hasn’t stopped soaring since you said you were pregnant. We’re going to get married, princess. And you’re going to have my baby and she’s going to be perfect.”
“She?” I ask, laughing.
“Leo would love a little sister,” he replies. “She’d be the most important girl in my life. After you, of course.”
A little girl with Matteo Vitale? Geez. Talk about having to keep the monster at bay.
Although… I’m sure she’d be loved fiercely enough to never fear a thing in this world.
The only sound in the room is the sound of cutlery clinking against fine china and a vacuum of awkwardness. When my father asked me to come over to dinner, I didn’t realize he was going to make me miserable the entire time.
Granted, I may have deigned to inform him that I would be bringing Matteo Vitale. I just figured it was about time he met my boyfriend in an official capacity, other than their business deals, of course.
I narrow my eyes at my father, gesturing with my fork that he’d better start playing. Matteo, for his part, is as quiet as he usually is when it’s not just the two of us. He’s steady, sure and waiting for my dad to make the first move.
He does so with a clearing of his throat.
“So… Matteo,” he starts. “What do you do for work?”
I snort at the question.
“I’m an accountant, sir. And a businessman,” he replies dryly, amusement coating his voice.
“I see. That sounds like a wonderful career. Stable, not dangerous in the slightest.”
My eyes roll. “Enough, Daddy.”
He finally looks at me. “I can’t believe you’re moving in with him permanently.”
“You’re the one that pushed me into his arms in the first place,” I remind him.
He looks stricken at the thought. “I didn’t think things would progress like this between you two. Lindsay, you’re my only daughter. Please reconsider.”
“There’s nothing to reconsider. I’m moving in with Matteo. He’s my boyfriend, and I love him. Plus, you haven’t even heard the good news. You can freak out after. Actually, I have a lot to tell you, but we can start with the good news first.”
His eyebrows rise warily. “What good news?”
“I’m three months pregnant.”
My father chokes on air. Kim, who’s at his side, immediately grabs a glass of water and hands it to him. We wait until he regains his composure.
“Lindsay,” he whispers. “Please, tell me you’re joking.”
“Fortunately, not. And before you get angry, remember what you did. Yes, I fell in love with Matteo. And yes, I’m well aware of who he is and what he’s capable of. But that doesn’t matter to me. All that matters is that I love him and he makes me happy. Don’t be a hypocrite, Daddy.
“You chose this life first. I’m just following in your footsteps.
You know… it took me a while to understand why I was pulled off the Vitale RICO case and handed the Bratva file instead.
I thought it was a promotion. It wasn’t, was it?
It was your office making a problem disappear.
I was just the instrument you used to do it. ”
He looks so gray, I actually start to feel bad for him.
“Anything else you’d like to add before I have my heart attack?” he questions weakly.