Chapter 42
Chapter Forty-Two
Matteo
Iwake up to the sound of soft purring and a fluffy weight on my chest. Winter blinks down at me as I open my eyes, the feline watching me far too closely. Before I can clear my fuzzy gaze by rubbing my eyelids with the back of my hands, the cat steps forward and licks my face.
Wincing at the sandpaper texture of her tongue, I exhale as she tips her head forward, hitting my chin with it to try and pet herself against my face. Lifting a hand up to pet her, I hear Anya giggle and realize that she hasn’t gotten out of bed yet.
Either it’s way earlier than I would normally wake up, or my girl decided to sleep in with me.
Turning my head to the side, I find her wide awake and alert, looking completely rested.
She’s laying on her side, facing me as she props her head up with her hand.
Her face is glowing and I know she must have gotten up a while ago to wash it.
“Did you put her on me, or did she jump up here all on her own?” I ask, my morning voice rumbling in a deep tenor. “Also, how long have you been watching me sleep?”
“I put her on the bed to pet her, but she climbed up on you all on her own,” Anya reports happily. “It seems like I’m not the only one who likes seeing you without a shirt.”
My lips spread into a smirk at her compliment. “Does that mean I can take it off more often? I used to almost never have a shirt on, you know. I only started wearing them more out of respect for you. I would always have to toss one on before answering your video calls.”
Her eyes seem to sparkle and she nods. “You can be shirtless however often you want. Though, I don’t know how my dad will feel about it.”
“We’ll find out eventually,” I point out, shrugging. “Now don’t think I didn’t notice you ignoring my other question. How long have you been watching me sleep, meraviglia?”
“Only a little while.” Anya flushes but she seems more playful than embarrassed. “I didn’t want to wake you, you looked so peaceful. Did you sleep well? I didn’t kick you or anything last night, did I?”
I chuckle at her worried question. “No, baby, you didn’t kick me. I slept great.” Thanks to my quick thinking last night, I didn’t have to go to bed with blue balls, and falling asleep was effortless for me.
It was ridiculously quick and easy to get myself off in her bathroom before getting ready for bed. I still had the taste of her cum on my lips and the image of her lying beneath me in my head to make jerking off feel better than it ever has.
“How about you, hmm? Are you feeling okay this morning?”
“Yeah,” she whispers, moving closer. “I still feel like I’m floating.”
I’m about to ask if she wants me to flip her over and make her float even higher when two sharp knocks rap against her door. Winter jumps off the bed to go investigate the sound, using my stomach as a spring board to launch herself forward.
I groan, burying the back of my head into my pillow. “Well, there goes our blissful morning, meraviglia. What are the chances that it’s your aunt or someone far more agreeable than your father?”
Anya draws her eyebrows in, her button nose scrunching up. “I don’t know.” Louder, she calls out, “Who is it?”
“Nico,” my brother grunts. “Open up. I’ve got news.”
“Go away,” I complain, loud enough for him to hear.
Anya tsks at me and jumps out of bed. She’s fully dressed for the day and apparently doesn’t mind being interrupted.
Sighing, I throw the bedding off my body and sit up, rubbing a hand down my face.
Since it’s just my brother, I don’t need to worry about putting on a shirt. Sweatpants are dressed enough.
When the door swings open, I hear Anya suck in a breath. “Oh, oh hi.”
Confused at the surprise in her voice, I turn my head to see why she would react to Nico in such a way. She’s forced my brother to become her friend and always greets him happily. He announced himself, I don’t know why she would be shocked to see him.
But I quickly realize that my brother isn’t alone. He doesn’t have news to share, he has a bomb to drop. My stomach feels like it’s jumping all the way up to my throat as I process who Anya has just opened the door for.
“Dad.” I stand up, swallowing at the sight of him. His familiar face seems so out of place here, but this isn’t some weird crossover dream where my two worlds collide. He’s real and he’s here. “Nico, a little warning would have been appreciated.”
“I said I have news,” my brother drawls, looking bored. “Dad’s here—there’s your news.”
“Hi, Mr. Moretti,” Anya says softly, gesturing for him to come inside.
“Dante, please,” he reminds her. “How are you, Anya?” Dad steps over the threshold, while Nico remains outside of it.
“I’m good,” she replies, looking back at me. “We weren’t expecting you. We could have come downstairs…”
“No need,” Dad assures her, lifting up a hand. “Would you mind if I spoke to my son alone for a few minutes?”
I almost want to plead with her not to leave me, but I can’t exactly use my girlfriend as a shield between me and my father.
“Sure.” She looks back at me, eyes widening a fraction before stepping toward her door. “I’ll take Nico downstairs to see what there is for breakfast. Um, nice seeing you again, Mr. Mor—Dante.”
Voice softening, he agrees. “You too, Anya.”
The door closes behind them and I blink at how abruptly my morning has shifted. Less than a minute ago I was in bed with the gorgeous love of my life, and now I’m face to face with my father.
My father and my Capo. The man that I haven’t spoken to about leaving The Outfit, or about anything truly pressing for weeks. He showed up out of the blue, and I know it can’t just be because he’s missed me.
Either Nico ratted me out, or he’s heard information from somewhere. I just don’t know how much yet.
“Are you why Nico stayed for so long, then?” I ask, trying to lessen the tension around us. “Did he know you were coming?”
“Partially,” Dad replies casually, almost shrugging. “I told him I would be coming here a couple of days ago so that he’d be ready to fly back with me. He needed a break from being at home, but he has responsibilities to return to.”
“Needed a break?” I echo, eyebrows rising up.
“Colton has been around a lot.”
“Ah.” I understand. Nico is avoiding the man who’s in love with him, as per usual. “I don’t know what his hang up is on that front, honestly. If I was gay, and a hot cowboy with money and mafia ties wanted to be with me, I don’t think I’d be turning him down.”
Dad gives me a funny look, hearing my description. “A hot cowboy?”
“What?” I shrug. “I’m straight, but I’m not blind. Colton is a good-looking dude. And he’s a good man.”
“I think Nico’s avoidance of Colton has more to do with Nico than it does Colton,” my father explains, sounding sure of his assessment.
“You’re probably right.”
He grunts and nods before looking around the room. “Have you been staying here? The room’s a little…purple for you to have moved in already.”
My head shakes. “I only slept over for the first time last night. I’ve been going back and forth from our place every day.
But even if I moved in, I probably wouldn’t change anything.
This is her favorite place. She has everything just how she likes it.
What do I care about how my bedroom is decorated? I can sleep anywhere.”
“Mm,” he hums, dipping his head in acknowledgment. He returns his gaze to mine, and I feel an undeniable sensation of knowing pass between us.
“Dad, we have to talk.”
“You’re not coming home, are you?”
His response is so swift that it almost knocks the air out of me. I have to dig my fingernails into my palms to keep my chin from wobbling. I’m fighting for the ability to remain composed, and it isn’t coming easily.
“No,” I confirm, voice steady. “I’m not. I can’t. I can’t…leave her.”
“Anya,” Dad fills in, vocalizing her name as if he even has to verify who I’m speaking about. He doesn’t, he just wants me to say it. Wants me to tell him why I’ve made this choice.
This no-going-back decision, and my father needs me to own it.
“I love her.” He already knows this. How could he not?
“I’m going to earn my place among the Morozov Bratva, and then I’m going to marry her.
I have to ask her, of course, but I know she’ll say yes.
Anton has already agreed to fit me in with his familial ranks, given our unique circumstances.
In a year or so, he’ll make me a kapitan, like his brothers and nephews. ”
He explained as much after he had me tattooed. The still-healing ink on my shoulder is referred to as the kapitan crest, after all.
I can’t read my father’s expression, and the silence stretches on for so long between us that it makes my skin start to itch.
“Say something,” I plead, voice rasping. “Please.”
Dad steps closer, dropping his hands on my shoulders to steady me. “I’m proud of you, Matteo.”
“I know, I’m sorry, I—” Frozen, I hear the echo of his words and shake my head. “Wait, what?”
“I’m proud of you, son.”
“You are?” I ask, mystified. I tell my father that I’m effectively fleeing our family legacy and he says he’s…proud?
“You’re a good man,” he says, words flowing so easily out of him that they must be true. “Anya makes you happy, of course you should do the same for her. She wouldn’t be happy to leave her home. And besides, now Jade will have you here when she and Dmitri come back.”
“Fuck,” I exhale, nerves beginning to subside. “I thought you were going to be pissed.”
“Oh, I’m a little pissed,” he tells me, forcing a harsh smile. “My son competed in Bratva fights while he was still an Outfit man. The fact that Dmitri and Anton allowed that without speaking to me makes me feel violent. But I also understand why you felt like you couldn’t tell me.”
“God, I have no idea where you find this stuff out from.” I shake my head. “Did Nico tell you or Anton?”
“I won’t reveal my source, but be glad I found out before flying here and not from seeing that ink on your chest.”
My heart drops into my stomach and I grimace, looking down at my healing chest. It’s not even partially hidden with clear wrapping any more, it’s just fully out and exposed, and I forgot about it completely.
“Fuck,” I groan, internally swearing much louder.
Dad doesn’t get angry, but he doesn’t drop the topic either. “You could have come to me.”
“I could have, but I didn’t want you to know if I failed.
” I look down at my feet, worried that he’s more aggravated than he’s letting on.
It would be just like him to bottle up his feelings rather than yelling to get them out.
“If I told you my plan and I ended up losing a fight, I would have disappointed someone other than myself.”
“You wouldn’t have disappointed me, Matteo.”
I would have, whether he thinks so or not.
“Maybe not,” I play along. “But I would have felt it either way. I’ve never been the most impressive of your sons—”
“Matteo—”
“No, let me finish,” I implore him, looking back up to meet his eye.
“Everyone has always had a thing. Ever since we were little, all my brothers have been called to something. Leadership for Apollo, cleverness for Leon, intelligence and strategy for Cassio, strength for Elio, acting for Emilio—the man has millions of people convinced that our family is just a group of philanthropic businessmen, for fuck’s sake. ”
I scratch the back of my neck and sigh. “I could go on and on. Armani—Fashion. Nico—Killing. Remo—Computers. I’m the only one who’s never had a proper place or calling.
I’m good at a fair bit of shit, yeah. I’m not useless, I’m not trying to say that I felt that way.
But I’ve always just kind of been floating around, never truly fitting in. ”
“Son…”
“Apollo, Leon, Cassio, and Elio have always been as thick as thieves. Armani has had Colton. Remo has had Nico, and Emilio makes friends everywhere he goes. When Jade finally showed up, I got the close sibling bond I’d been waiting for.
And then Empire happened. She fell in love, and her husband came with a built-in best friend for her too. ”
I hated Ivan for taking Jade away from me at first. He didn’t really steal her, but I felt the loss of her all the same. Of course, I couldn’t be mad at my sister for finding another friend, especially when he treated her so well and made her feel safe, but it was still a hard pill to swallow.
“With Anya? I’m not searching for where I fit in best anymore.
Falling in love came as naturally as our friendship did, and I know that our connection is only going to keep growing stronger.
” My throat feels tight, and I try to swallow the lump of tension down.
“I’m going to miss home, but my place is here now. I just know it.”
Dad pulls me in for a rare hug, slapping me firmly on the back. “I’m glad you’ve found somewhere, and someone who feels right for you.”
“And it’s not like I’ll never see you again.” I don’t know if I’m trying to make him feel better, or me feel better. “I’ll have to come visit when Jade has the baby, and eventually Anya will want to meet everyone too. It’ll probably be a while…but it’ll happen.”
Dad claps me on the back once more and pulls away. “I believe it.”
“So, we’re good?”
“We’re good.” He dips his head in a nod. “I’m going to have words with Anton about stealing my son for his own ranks, but we’re good.”
“Try not to be too upset with him,” I request hopefully. “Anya and I have been trying to make you two friends for way too long for you to burn that bridge now.”
He huffs, almost laughing. “You two are something else, son.”
We’re the best, I think proudly.