Meet Me in Rojo (Texas Queens MC, #3)

PROLOGUE

A LITTLE MORE THAN A YEAR AGO

BELLA CONNER

“This is an official meeting,” Matteo said before he gave me a quick kiss on the lips and then nudged me toward my desk. Once I was seated, Matteo sat down in one of the empty chairs and said, “I’d like to talk to you about a possibility I’m wondering if I need to start preparing for.”

“What is it?” I asked as I opened my laptop to check my upcoming client list. “I don’t have you listed . . .”

“It probably won’t be for a year or so, but sooner rather than later.”

I looked over the top of my computer screen at Matteo and responded, “That’s clear as mud.”

“It’s just hypothetical for now.”

“A hypothetical event?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. Give me some details, and I’ll let you know what we’re working with.”

“Let’s say that someone, I’m not saying who because he isn’t quite there yet and knows that you aren’t either, but hypothetically, this guy asks you to marry him.

What sort of wedding would you want? A quick trip to Vegas where you could recite your vows while you overlook the lights of The Strip, or maybe a cruise on a yacht to somewhere tropical?

Or would you want this hypothetical wedding to be big and showy like Mom has convinced Tabby to have? ”

My heart started racing the second he mentioned he was considering proposing, but then a calm washed over me because I knew that was precisely what I wanted.

It would make all of my dreams come true to spend the rest of my life sharing laughter, lively disagreements, and blissful truces with Matteo Russo.

“Will my answer change the odds of you actually proposing?”

“Of course not.”

“You’re a shit liar, New York.”

Matteo laughed before he said, “You and my mom seem to have figured out the formula for a truth serum that makes it impossible for me to lie to either of you.”

“Be honest, Matteo. What would happen if I said I want a blowout extravaganza right here in the hotel with hundreds of guests, a million flowers, a dress big enough for its own zip code, and fifteen attendants standing with me?”

Matteo swallowed hard and said, “I’d say that it may be a while before you get an official proposal because I’d have to work my mind around that possibility.”

“But you won’t kick me out of your bed in the meantime, will you?”

Matteo scoffed before he said, “No.”

“Let me assure you that I do not want a blowout wedding in this hotel or any other. Does that make you feel any better?”

“So much better,” Matteo said before he leaned back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling. “I must have an angel up there watching out for me because I don't know if I could take a big New York wedding, especially now that I’ve seen how crazy the planning is making Luca.”

I glanced at the clock in the corner of my computer screen and then stood up to walk around the desk. Matteo lifted his head and watched me with a gleam in his eye that I knew all too well. When I put my hand out for his, he lifted his without a word and let it rest in mine.

He smiled knowingly when I leaned forward and braced myself on the arms of the chair and then hummed when I settled my lips on his for a very long, very hot kiss.

“I’ve got some time before my appointment,” I told him as I dropped to my knees in front of him.

“Hell yes!” Matteo hissed when he saw me staring at him from between his splayed knees.

“I guess I’ll have to take the lead here,” I suggested as I ran my hands up his thighs.

“By all means, please do.”

“Matteo Russo, I love you with all of my heart and soul.”

“I love you, too, Twang.”

“I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and that’s not just hypothetical.”

Matteo smiled before he said, “I want the same thing, but I had to make sure I knew exactly what I was getting into.”

“You’re a smart businessman, and you know how to play the odds,” I complimented.

“Thank you.”

“I am also a smart woman and don’t like waiting for chance to make my plans.”

“I’ve noticed.”

I took Matteo’s hand and smiled at him before I asked, “Matteo, will you do me the honor of being my husband?”

His mouth dropped open in shock, and he frowned as he said, “This is not how it’s supposed to go!”

“Oh! I’m sorry. Let me try again,” I said before I kissed his knuckles. “I love you, Matteo. Will you marry me?”

Matteo dropped my hand as he leaned forward, and I squealed when he lifted me up so that I had no choice but to wrap my legs around his waist and hold on to his neck.

I was afraid that I might otherwise fall backward and make a fool of myself, or at least more of a fool than I already was, considering how in love I was with this man.

“I’m supposed to ask you to marry me underneath the moonlight after I’ve given you about three mind-blowing orgasms,” Matteo murmured near my ear before he nipped at my earlobe.

“That’s not an answer, New York.”

Matteo’s laugh gave me goosebumps, or maybe they were from his tongue as it trailed down my neck. Or possibly his hands that had lifted up my skirt and were coming very close to my panties.

“Yes, Twang, I’ll marry you on one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“That we don’t have a massive socialite event of a wedding that requires me to invite a bunch of people I don’t like before I feed them an overpriced meal and have to mingle and pretend I don’t want to set them on fire.”

“You’re not supposed to remind me of my brother when your hands are that close to doing wicked things to me,” I murmured.

Matteo laughed and then whispered, “I love you, Bella Conner, and I want to make you Bella Russo as soon as possible.”

“I’ll accept your conditional agreement, Matteo,” I whispered back before I said, “And I love you too.”

“Fuck, Bella, I love you so much,” Matteo whispered as he held me tightly against his chest. “You just name the time and place. I’ll be there. There’s a gorgeous cove in Hawaii that . . .”

It took me a few seconds to catch my breath before I could finally speak, and when I did, I leaned back so I could see his reaction.

“I told you that I don’t want a blowout New York wedding, Matteo.”

“I know.”

“But I didn’t say that I don’t want a blowout Rojo wedding with half a dozen bridesmaids, a dress that trails halfway down the aisle, three flower girls, and a ring bearer that is so cute, he makes the ovaries of every woman in the place do a backflip.”

“Fuck,” Matteo muttered.

“I may not be as good as you are at poker, sweetheart, but I can kick your ass in chess. That move is what we like to call checkmate.”

“For you, I’ll take my life in my hands and travel all the way to Texas to make you my wife.”

“You must love me an awful lot.”

“More than words can ever explain.”