Chapter Seven
They didn’t go straight back to his country home. Mateo still had to take care of business, and Ella, during the day, with a couple of guards by her side, went to the city. Even though it was a city she had lived in for a long time, she had never truly taken the time to explore it.
Ella headed out, with a rucksack full of snacks, along with her cell phone, a map, and two guards to keep her company. One of her guards was called Steven, the other was called Jay. They were sweet guys and also married. They didn’t talk to her but had no problem with her talking to them.
She went to a couple of the parks, stopped off at one of the museums that had a lot of history, which was fun to just walk around. She did have to pay for three tickets to get inside, but had no problem doing that.
They also stopped at a small café for lunch.
They didn’t talk; however, she had started to see little cracks in their hard-ass demeanor.
Steve didn’t so much as quiver, but there was a slight lift to one of Jay’s lips, which told her he was entertained.
By five in the afternoon, she was exhausted, but she stopped off at a small artisanal grocery store for some ingredients, then made her way home.
Steve and Jay did not step foot in the apartment, instead held their guard outside the door.
Ella went straight to the kitchen and got to work on some food.
She grabbed the chicken breasts she had marinated last night in some spicy seasoning, and then the grill pan.
She washed the potatoes, gave the skins a good scrub, and placed them in a pot to boil.
Checking her cell phone, she saw there was a text left by Mateo, to let her know when he would be coming home.
Tonight, rather than allow his food to spoil, she intended to serve it when he said he would be home, and he would just have to eat cold if he didn’t make it.
With the potatoes boiled, she put the chicken on the grill, and her mouth watered at the scent.
She made a quick dressing for the potatoes, then got the salad ingredients and started to build up the two plates.
There was plenty of food for them both, but not too much food, which she was pleased about.
Just as she put the finishing touch to her dinner, the door opened and she carried both of their plates to the table as Mateo finally made his appearance. Tonight, there were no cuts, no bruises, and no blood. He looked exactly the same as when he left. Only the suit he wore was not the same.
“Did you change your suit?” she asked.
Mateo stared at her. “You can tell?”
“Yeah, you left this morning in a grey one, and that is a black one,” she said.
“You noticed?”
She rolled her eyes as he came toward her, putting his hands on her ass. He did this to distract her.
“Of course I noticed.” She put her hands on his chest. “You changed your suit?”
“Had to.”
She sighed. “I made dinner.”
“And I want a kiss.”
This made her smile. “Are you used to getting what you want?”
“Yes.”
She laughed. “Fine. Fine.” And then, she leaned forward and put a tiny kiss on his lips. “You owe me.”
“For the kiss?”
“No, to sit your ass down and eat this meal I made, seeing as I ended up destroying spaghetti and meatballs. I mean, what kind of person is so late they have no choice but to overcook pasta and end up with dry meatballs?” she asked, raising her brows.
This made him laugh.
“I did tell you I was sorry.”
“Good, and you can keep saying you’re sorry by enjoying this meal.”
He went to his seat at the head of the table, and she smiled as he picked up his fork and speared a potato. He didn’t bother to cut it in half, just shoved it into his mouth and started to eat. After a second, he frowned and glanced down at his food. “Fuck me, that is good,” he said.
She laughed. “It’s just a warm potato salad with a spicy chicken sandwich and a salad on the side.”
“Two salads on one plate?”
“Do you have a problem with your vegetables, Mateo?”
“No, but there’re two salads on one plate.”
She couldn’t help but laugh. “You already like one salad. Try the other before you judge it.”
He sat down this time, and rather than go straight into the sandwich, he took a bite of the salad, and she watched.
“Okay, you’re a witch.”
She laughed. “I’m a witch?”
“There is no way two salads can taste this good!”
“I’ll consider that a compliment.”
“You should.”
Ella cut into her sandwich and took a bite. She loved spicy food, especially chicken.
“Tell me again why we have Lewis back at home?”
“You didn’t want me to cook for you, so I figured you didn’t trust me.”
“He’s fired and you are hired.”
****
Mateo didn’t want to bring his wife to one of the mafia meetings, however, it was insisted upon. As head of the mafia right now, the few capos that were left wanted to know who he had married.
He’d taken Ella to dress the part, and she looked stunning in the red dress, with her long, blonde hair curled. He’d even gotten a makeup artist to help with the makeup and hair, and she looked like the ultimate package as they arrived at Luca’s home.
On arrival at Luca’s home, Ella had been taken by his wife, Kelly, to mingle with the rest of the married women.
Mateo had left six capos alive, all of which had voiced their support of him becoming heir of the Alfonso Mafia.
All the other capos had arranged marriages prior to his takeover, and none had opted for divorce.
They might have been interested in breaking tradition to have a strong leader, but not when it came to marriages.
He saw the disapproval from some of the women, and if his wife was left feeling anything but welcome, he would go on a rampage.
“Do you want to tell me what this is about?” he asked, turning his attention to Luca.
“Look, we know you’re capable of handling anything thrown your way. You have proven it time and time again. Some people are ... upset that you didn’t give their daughters a consideration. Instead, you opted to marry an outsider—”
“Shut up,” Mateo said.
Luca’s face went a bright shade of red, and clearly, he wasn’t used to being told to be silent. Mateo didn’t give a fuck if he upset the man. What he had to say didn’t matter to him.
“There are traditions—”
“The same kind of traditions that mean I should never be in this seat in the first place. If you remember, my father wanted to put my brother Enrique in that title, and I recall you didn’t like the idea of him running things, did you?”
“Your brother—”
“Half-brother. We only shared the same father and had very different mothers.” He loved interrupting him.
This is why he would never be a good fit to be boss.
He didn’t follow the rules. Yes, he was strong and fought his way to the top and understood the rules, but to put it plainly, he didn’t abide by them.
From the moment he made the decision to have Ella as his wife, he knew it would upset the capos, and the truth was, he didn’t give a fuck what they thought.
They were only interested in the wealth and status he could provide them.
This is what he did, which is why for a long time they did leave him alone, and he wanted them to go back to leaving him the fuck alone.
He didn’t want to constantly be giving them reasons why he did the shit he did.
“Your half-brother did not have what it took to take care of things. He would have handed us over to anyone stronger. You know this, and I know this. We all know this.”
“And instead, I’m the one who keeps our enemies at bay.”
“There is talk—”
“There is always fucking talk,” Mateo said. “It never stops with the gossip and shit you want to talk about. I married Ella. She was my choice. You got a problem with that, say so, and trust me, you can all be on your own. I don’t want or need any of this shit.”
He was not interested in being told what to do.
Luca stared at him and then nodded. “I will talk to the others.”
“Fuck this,” Mateo said, and turned to look at the room. “You all got a problem with me choosing the woman I fucking wanted?” he asked.
Some of the men looked shocked. The women aghast.
He didn’t follow the rules. He made them up.
“You got a problem with the way I do things, then fucking take over and leave me the fuck alone. Stop calling me to deal with whatever shit is bothering you. I didn’t want to marry any of your daughters, you want to know why?
They’re fucking boring. I didn’t want a damn doormat in my life.
I didn’t want to go home to someone so boring that watching paint dry is fucking exciting.
Ella is my wife. She is going to stay my wife.
You got a problem with that, you’re on your own. ”
He held his hand out. “Come on, Ella.”
His wife rushed to his side, sliding her hand into his.
“When you make a decision, let me know.” He turned on his heel and walked out of the house with Ella at his side.
His men were already waiting with the car, and he climbed inside. He was not interested in driving tonight.
Staring out the window, he felt a rage he hadn’t felt since that night. He was aware of Ella looking in his direction, and he didn’t intend to lose his shit in front of her, so he clenched his hands tightly together and counted to ten.
“Are you okay?” Ella asked.
The temptation to yell was strong, but he avoided it. This was not Ella’s fault.
“I hate them,” Mateo said. “They think because I allowed them to live, they have the right to dictate shit that is of no concern to them. It’s fucking infuriating.”
“I think you made it loud and clear that you’re not happy,” Ella said.
He turned to look at her, and there was a smile on her lips. “What are you smiling at?”
“You,” she said. “That was amazing. I mean, I don’t know if that was like the showdown of all showdowns, but it was so much fun. They all gasped, and I had to wonder what they were shocked about.”
Mateo couldn’t help but laugh.
“Honestly, it was like you had gone in there with a stinking rotting fish and just slapped each one of them with it.” She shrugged.
And now he laughed again.
“I take it outbursts like that are just not proper or common?”
“They’re not usually allowed.”
“Allowed?” she asked.
He sighed. “Business is usually conducted behind closed doors. Parties are just to chat and have some semblance of fun, or for them to show off their wives or recent purchases. It’s all fucking fake.” He rubbed at his temples.
“And they don’t approve of me?”
“No, they don’t.”
“Does that bother you?”
“Fuck, no.” He took hold of her hand, locking their fingers together. “It never did in the past and it is not going to now. Did you like the women?”
Ella snorted. “No. They were disapproving of the dress you made me wear. Only whores wear red.”
He couldn’t help but burst out laughing. “You’re perfect.”
She rolled her eyes. “Only because I wear what you want me to wear.”
He reached for her, and she didn’t fight him as he pulled her close and got her to straddle his waist.
“And what is wrong with that?” he asked, running his hands down her back. The dress had a sexy slit up the entire right side and it meant he could move her legs so she straddled him. The partition between themselves and the driver was up, and the windows were blacked out. No one could see them.
Reaching inside the dress, he curled his finger around the tiny fabric of her panties and tore them from her body. There was not much holding that fabric together as it literally tore in his hands without much of a grip. Not that he minded.
Staring into her deep brown eyes, he slid a finger between her slit, going straight toward her pussy.
He had already fucked her this morning, waking her up to his kisses, and then sliding balls-deep inside her.
He marveled at still how tight she was. He added a second finger, to which she sunk her teeth into her lip.
Pulling his finger back, he stroked across her clit, sliding back and forth, hearing her soft, subtle moans.
“Open my belt,” he said.
She reached down between them and he didn’t stop stroking her clit, wanting to build that fire inside her. She released his belt, and the button. He didn’t give her another instruction, and she eased out his cock. He was already long and hard.
Letting go of her pussy, he grabbed his dick at the base and helped her to move over him.
Lining his tip with her core, he pulled her down and she started to sink onto his length.
Inch by glorious inch, until she had most of his cock inside her, and then he cupped her hips and pulled her right down onto his length.
They both cried out. He felt her pussy pulse around his length.
Pushing some of the hair off her face, he sunk his fingers into her hair, gripping the back of her neck and pulling her in close to take possession of her lips. He loved the feel of her this close to him.
With his other hand, he reached between them and started to tease her clit. Taking his time, drawing a small circle across her nub, feeling the change within her as she started to rock against him.
Her cunt fluttered around his length, and he had no choice but to grit his teeth. He was so close to his own orgasm but he held it at bay, wanting Ella to reach her orgasm first.
She cried his name, and he let her ride his cock as she rode that wave to completion. The moment she was done, he grabbed her hips and thrust inside her, pulling her down, as he thrust up, making her take his whole cock as he did so. He didn’t let up once.
He fucked her, harder and harder, going higher, until he reached his peak, and he looked into those intense brown eyes he couldn’t resist, and he fell apart, pulsing his seed deep inside her.