Chapter 11 Mateo
MATEO
Iwatch as her eyes widen. Last time she poured water on my white outfit, now I managed to do the same to her, only this time, it’s not water but wine. Her cheeks redden, I can’t decide if out of anger, embarrassment, or both.
“I’m sorry.” I look at her sheepishly, and her smile turns to a teasing one.
“Are you, really?” She chuckles and grabs a nearby kitchen towel.
“Okay, maybe not that much. Maybe it was karma.” She shoots me a death glare, but my smile only widens. She’s even beautiful like this.
“Ivy’s going to kill me.” She starts rubbing the towel on her clothes, but it’s obviously no use.
“Hey. Here. Take this.” I take off my multicolored shirt with tropical elements on it, leaving only my sleeveless top underneath.
I hope she takes it. I looked like an idiot in it anyway. The vivid colors of the palm trees and fruits on the shirt don’t go very well with her outfit, but at least it would cover the stain.
“Are you sure?” she asks. I nod, and she sighs. “Thank you.”
She puts the shirt on, tying the bottom around her hips to make it look more stylish. Now I know why guys say it’s hot when their girls wear their clothes. Only she’s not my girl.
“It looks good on you. Much better than on me.” There’s that smile again. Fuck. I feel like a little boy having a crush on a pretty girl.
“Thank you. I’ll give it back before you go.” A blush starts to form on her cheeks again, and I smile at her. I like how she blushes so easily. It’s cute.
I shake my head. “You can keep it. I probably have three more of that.”
“Is the famous Mateo Acosta giving me memorabilia? Maybe I’ll sell it for good money.”
My face falls. So she does know me. Of course, I can’t have a nice, genuine connection with someone. Not that I need that.
“You do whatever you want with it.”
Her eyebrows furrow, and I leave before she can say something else.
I don’t know why I did that. Maybe that half glass of champagne went to my head. Not that I would decline if any woman threw herself at me right now, but…
Sometimes I can’t help but crave more. To have someone I can take care of, someone to go home to. Cheer me on, and spend time together. But maybe I’m not built for that. Maybe the only thing I’m good at is being a playboy.
I make my way to the VIP room, where I find Aiden, Nathan, Liam, and Kyle.
“Hey, man!” Nathan pulls me into a quick hug, and I feel myself relax a little. “What’s up? Where’s your shirt?”
“I poured champagne on a girl and gave it to her.” All of them exchange mischievous looks, and I just roll my eyes at them. What are we, five?
“You have your next prey, then?” Kyle looks at me with his idiotic grin. I could introduce my fist to his face sometimes. I love it when he acts like we’re friends, because we’re not.
“You think that’s all I am? A fucking hunter?” He doesn’t back up.
“Don’t act like you’re not. You use all those women for one night, and you throw them out like they mean nothing.” He chuckles darkly, and my blood boils. Like he doesn’t do the same.
“One-night stands aren’t supposed to mean anything, Kyle.” I shoot him a glare, warning him to stop, but he doesn’t.
“Okay, guys, it’s time you stop.” Liam tries to break us apart, but Kyle doesn’t take his eyes off me and steps closer.
“You’re right. That’s the only thing you’re good at, aren’t you, Mateo?” I can’t take it anymore. I grab him by his collar, and I hold his shirt so tight, I almost rip it. I push him to the nearby wall, shaking Aiden’s hand off my shoulders.
“Listen here, pendejo. It’s not my fault that women would rather take me to bed than you.
And don’t you dare talk to me like you’re any different than me.
You’re just a piece of shit, daddy’s little boy.
I would suggest you listen to Liam and shut your goddamn mouth.
” His grin is still on, and I wish I could wipe it off his stupid face.
I release his shirt, and his feet land on the floor.
“You’ll hear about this, Mateo.” I roll my eyes so hard, it almost hurts. He acts like Draco from Harry Potter. ‘Oh, my father will hear about this!’ Incompetent idiot, can’t deal with things on his own, just with daddy backing him up.
Finally, he walks away. “Don’t let me near him ever again,” I grumble to the others.
“Wasn’t planning to.” Aiden shoves another glass of champagne into my hands and I chug it right away.
“Well, I’m guessing this calls for another round.” Liam leaves and heads toward the bar. Now it’s only two of my best friends and me.
I clear my throat and ask what weighs my heart. “Do you guys think I could ever stop being a playboy? Have a normal relationship?”
Nathan laughs, and my heart sinks. That’s all I needed to know. “I—I’m sorry, I thought you were joking.”
“Forget it.” I wave my hand and turn to leave, but they stop me.
“Look, everyone deserves to be loved. The problem is that you’re afraid to love, or to be loved. That’s why you can’t have a meaningful connection.” Nathan continues, but I can’t bring myself to look into his eyes. Why did I have to bring this up?
“I think so too. I know it’s hard to open up, but you should try. I think it would be good for you.” Aiden pats my shoulder and face, and my lips turn into a little smile. I chose good guys for my friends.
“Thanks.” I finally look at them, and they nod.
“Okay, drinks for everyone!” Liam returns not so long after, so I pretend to be happy and more relaxed. “Come on, this will help ease up,” I mutter a thanks and swing it down as well.
“You brought whiskey?” I frown when the cold liquid burns my throat.
I hate whiskey for one reason, and that is because it can turn me into a drunk mess in no time. And I drank it too fast this time.
“You didn’t say what you wanted,” Liam answers. Fair enough.
“Easy from now on, Fiera, alright?” Nathan sits me on a nearby chair and I grab a couple meat sticks and some diced cheese. I didn’t know they served normal food at events like this. “Hey, isn’t that the girl you were talking about?”
Rosa? Where?
I look around the crowd, and when I finally spot her, my blood boils again. Of course, Kyle found her. His arms are around Rosa’s waist, trying to stop her from falling down. What the fuck did he do to her?
I have no right to tell Rosa what to do or not to do, we’re not together. Hell, we’re not even friends. But saving a woman from this bitch is not a question.
I jump from my seat and head toward them, ignoring the requests from my friend to stop. I won’t stop when a woman is in potential danger. He gets away with too much stuff. He’s done enough.
“Kyle!” His head whips in my direction, but he doesn’t let her hand go. He just continues to hold on to her, like he has already trapped her.
“What do you want again?” He grumbles and rolls his eyes. Rosa wobbles, and he grabs onto her hips before she can fall. She looks weird. Did she already drink too much? It’s only been like half an hour since I gave her my shirt.
“Let her go.” I look at him the same way as before. “Rosa, are you okay?” She looks at me, and her eyes seem hazy. “Is she drunk?”
“Oh yeah. Didn’t know she’s not good with alcohol.” He grins again. If I see his stupid smile one more time, I’m gonna punch him.
“You weren’t about to take advantage of a drunk woman, were you?” His face falls. Of course he was, disgusting pig.
“She’s with me now. Go away, Mateo.” He grumbles, but I’m nowhere near backing up.
“I doubt that.” Nathan appears behind me, crossing his arms over his chest. Everyone is looking at us by now.
“Let her go. I’m not going to ask you again,” I state, and with a grumble, he shoves her into my arms and storms off. He’s getting more and more embarrassing day by day.
“Nath? Hiii!” Rosa lets out an excited squeal, breaking free from my arms. She stumbles over to Nathan, almost falling if he hadn’t had caught her. “Let’s go dance!”
“You know each other?” I watch her try to pull my friend toward the dance floor. It’s a little funny seeing her so determined.
“Uh… Yeah. We’re really good friends. I just haven’t seen her in a while.
Not until Miami, at least.” I remember him mentioning a couple of times that he’s going to meet his friend, but I thought he was having a date and didn’t want to tell me.
I’m glad. Or not. Okay, I’m in between. Glad he didn’t lie, but disappointed it wasn’t a date.
“Rosa! Stop! We’re not going to dance. You can barely stand on your feet. ”
“But I want tooo!” I chuckle at her desperate efforts and charming pout. God, she could convince me to do anything with that look. Did I really just think that? I take it back. I have stamina.
“Would you please be so kind and help me?” Nathan asks, and I laugh again. It’s already making me forget about that asshole.
“You need help?” I hear Liam and Aiden shout from across the room.
“We got this, thanks!” I shout back and grab Rosa’s other side. We somehow manage to walk her outside and sit her on the stairs. Maybe some fresh air will help. All three of us are in need of that.
“Rosa, how much did you drink?” Nathan asks as Rosa leans her head on his shoulder.
“I…Uh…Not—not much,” she mumbles, but her hazy eyes tell a different story.
“You need to tell me exactly what and how much you drank.” She frowns at my tone, but I only ask to ease my worries. I have a disgusting thought, and I want to make sure it’s not it.
“Just… Two tequilas.” I glare at her, so she continues. “And a gin tonic.” I lift my brows, as if to ask her to go on. “And two glasses of champagne. That’s it.”
“In thirty minutes, you had 5 drinks?” Nathan asks in disbelief. This woman can drink, that’s for sure.
“Well, it was free, why would I decline?” She chuckles. Poor girl, she didn’t even assume he paid for those drinks to take advantage of her.
“You have your keys?” I ask Nathan, and he takes his keys out of his pockets to give them to me.
“Let’s get her home. You can open the door.” He slowly stands her up, one arm over his shoulder, and the other over mine.