40. Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty
Mateo
I lean against the wall, arms crossed, wishing Rom wouldn’t draw out these things so much. But I won’t stifle his fun, not yet, anyway.
Rom’s fist connects with the captain’s nose. Blood spurts in all directions from the blow, but I’m good. It’s not a small wound. Rom knows to make it bloody.
“Where are the crates, captain?” he spits out his title as if it was poison.
“I… I don’t know,” he groans, his head slumping forward.
“Really? You’re trying to tell me that ten crates simply disappeared while you were at sea?”
“There must have been a mistake on the manifest, a miscount somewhere. I swear I had nothing to do with it.”
“Hmm. So you’re suggesting we employ imbeciles who can’t count? Is that it?”
“No. I just…” The captain’s answer gets swallowed up by the loud groan when Rom delivers another blow.
Their ‘conversation’ fades into the background when my phone vibrates in my pocket. I pull it out to see a message from my tailor that Mari’s dress has been purchased and is currently being delivered to Carloso. Good.
She’ll look stunning. I can’t wait to see her in it.
I can’t wait to see her .
Our kiss replays in my mind for the umpteenth time since I left her at the gym.
What is it about her that has me so hooked?
I’ve been with plenty of women, but none has ever gotten under my skin like Mari has.
God, I really am like a teenager with his first crush.
Come to think of it, this might be my first crush. I can’t remember ever longing for a woman like I do for Mari.
Lust? I’ve experienced that plenty of times.
But this yearning? This constant thinking of her? It’s new.
And last night?
When we got attacked, I felt fear for the first time in a long time. For her.
I would have died for Mari.
Because a world without her in it is unimaginable.
Fuck.
I shoot up straighter, startling Rom, who throws me a curious glance. I motion for him to continue as I pace the back of the room.
My stomach knots itself and I’m suddenly buzzing all over.
I’ve never thought of a woman that way.
Ever.
But…
Does that mean…?
No, it can’t.
Both papà and Tiero knew straight away.
I’ve known Mari for years.
She can’t be…
Wait, what did papà exactly say?
I rack my brain for the memories of my father. His eyes lit up without fail whenever he spoke of mamma .
“As soon as I looked into her eyes, I knew.”
It was the same for Tiero when he met Ella.
She pulled him out of harm’s way when Molinaro’s men tried to run him down. They fell, she landed on him, and their eyes met. Boom, that was it for him. He said it was as if the universe shifted and everything was different from then on.
That morning after Antonio’s first attack…
For fuck’s sake!
I’ve completely misunderstood what’s between us, mistaking it for an unusual kind of attraction.
I convinced myself it’s because of her inexperience and being completely different from the women I usually see. And while that has to be a factor, how could I overlook the most obvious?
Dammit!
It’s as if every cell in my body ignites at once.
My breath catches, my chest expanding as though I’ve been starved of air until this very moment. A weight I wasn’t even aware I was carrying lifts, leaving me impossibly light, almost dizzy. My pulse thrums in my ears, a rhythm that’s too fast, too wild, yet perfectly in tune with the truth crashing over me.
And as it does, warmth spreads from the center of my heart, flooding outward, until my fingers tingle and the edges of my vision blur like the world can’t quite keep up with the clarity in my mind.
My mouth curves into a smile, and I press a hand to my sternum, as if trying to hold this rush inside me.
Rom keeps throwing worried glances my way as I keep pacing the room, but I ignore him.
I should have known when her voice seemed to soothe a lost part inside me, and when a mere smile of hers manages to light up my entire day.
But it took being shot at for all the puzzle pieces to align.
I rub my face and shake my head.
Seriously! Fuck me!
What do I do now?
The energy inside me is ready to explode. My hands twitch at my sides. I need to move, to act, to do something.
I dart toward the door, but Rom steps into my path.
“Are you okay?” he asks, his voice full of concern. I must look unhinged, swinging from brooding to grinning like a maniac.
“Never better,” I assure him with a smile. “Carry on. I need to talk to my brother.”
Without waiting for a reply, I stride past him, already pulling my phone from my pocket. My fingers move swiftly, dialing Tiero’s number as I jog toward the nearest exit. The cool air greets me just as he picks up on the fourth ring.
“I’ve been such a fool I could kick myself. Tiero, she’s been right under my nose for years.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Tiero, I have found her.”