Chapter 13
THIRTEEN
VANESSA
Neither of them move. I internally roll my eyes. Uncle Kevin always said to never show weakness.
They still don’t move.
I groan. “I said sit down!”
Both of them snap their attention back to me, shock written clearly across their faces. They hesitate for a beat, then finally do as they’re told, taking seats at the dining table. I sit across from them.
Overhearing their conversation makes me realize how much kissing Mateo was a bad idea.
They’re best friends. Practically brothers.
Which makes Mateo forbidden in a way I hadn’t fully processed until now.
I went out onto the balcony to get space, to avoid making a mistake, and somehow I still managed to do exactly that.
Maybe the people at school weren’t right—but it feels like they are right now.
In high school, rumors spread that I slept with everyone.
I didn’t. In college, I made out with a football player once, and he told people I’d slept with him.
After that, football players and most other student-athletes treated me like a piece of ass they thought they were entitled to.
The teasing was constant. The side comments.
The laughter. Even some of the younger coaches joined in, making jokes like it was nothing.
I still don’t know why it followed me. I’m pretty sure someone from high school planted the seed when I got to college.
After my freshman year, I avoided everyone like the plague.
That’s why I quit the cross-country team.
I did get injured, but I could have come back.
Instead, I learned the athletes’ schedules and planned around them.
I picked classes that didn’t overlap with practices.
I never went to games. I only watched them on TV.
They took the joy out of something I loved.
Uncle Kevin and Aunt Lucy pressed me about why I didn’t want to go back to the team. I lied and told them the ACL injury was too severe to return. I think they both knew I wasn’t being honest, but they didn’t push it.
After that, I made sure I was never in situations where I could be vulnerable and have another lie spread about me. That’s why, when Gino started yelling at Mateo, I had to step in. I couldn’t let my brother accuse us of something that didn’t happen.
I stare at the two of them, waiting to see if either will speak. Neither does.
So I do.
“Gino, it’s nearly midnight. What the hell are you doing here?”
“Like I said, neither of you were answering your phones, so I drove here,” he huffs out.
“You could have called Kevin to come by.”
“Well, I decided to handle it myself since you’re my responsibility,” he snaps, pointing at me.
“First of all, I am an adult,” I shoot back. “And second, you have Mateo staying with me, not you. So clearly you were more than happy to hand that responsibility off to someone else.”
“That’s not what I was doing,” he says firmly.
“But then when you do show up, you’re quiet,” I say. “It’s almost like you were asking for a fight.” Where the hell is this confidence coming from?
“I wasn’t,” he replies. “I just didn’t know what was going on. Someone could’ve been in here to hurt you.”
“So your response is to get into a fight the second you hear someone?”
“He put me in a chokehold first,” he says, pointing at Mateo.
“I don’t care what he did,” I snap back. “I was asking you.”
He exhales. “It was instinct, I guess.”
“Did Dad teach you that?”
“Yeah.” At least he taught you something—unlike me.
“Now you.” I look to Mateo.
His nose is already starting to swell, and I know he’s going to bruise. It’s going to stand out against his perfectly tan face.
No. Stop it. Remember—forbidden.
“Why did you fight him? You could have turned on a light.” I say, narrowing my eyes at him.
He snickers, and I raise an eyebrow.
“Have you ever heard of the element of surprise?” he says. “That’s what you’re supposed to do when you catch someone sneaking around.”
Gino rolls his eyes. “I wasn’t sneaking around.”
I shoot him a look that tells him to shut it. He does.
“It doesn’t matter. You two better clean up anything that you broke,” I say to both of them.
I stand and head into the kitchen, grabbing a beer from the fridge—because I really need one right now.
“Vanessa, I got up here way too easily,” Gino says from the kitchen doorway. “The guy downstairs didn’t even look up when I walked in.”
I glance at Mateo. He gives me those soft eyes again.
“Okay, and…” I say.
“I think you should stay at Mateo’s place instead of here. He has top security at his place.”
I look between the two of them. Great. As if being closer to him isn’t already complicated enough.
Fixing Gino with a stern look, I say, “His place is too far from the hospital for me to walk.”
“He can drive you,” Gino replies easily.
Mateo nods.
I sigh. “Fine. But under one condition.”
“What’s that?”
“No more breaking into people’s apartments.”
Gino snickers. “I actually have a key to Mateo’s place, so I won’t need to ask anyone for one. And technically, I didn’t break in here.”
I roll my eyes at him.
“Pack a bag,” he adds. “Then let’s head out of here.”
I turn and head straight for my bedroom, slamming the door behind me. Through the walls, I can hear the muffled sound of Gino and Mateo talking.
Still fuming, I pull a duffel bag from my closet and start throwing things in. I grab pajamas, jeans, a few T-shirts, sneakers, scrubs, socks, and a sweatshirt. I don’t bother folding anything.
As I zip the bag shut, a thought creeps in. How long am I going to be staying with him?
I keep packing, grabbing my laptop and AirPods before hauling my work backpack over and shoving the laptop inside a little harder than necessary. I decide to change into black leggings, a light purple sweater, and brown boots.
When I step out of my bedroom, I set the duffel bag on the chair and drop my backpack on the floor. Mateo and Gino both stop talking and stare at me. Whatever conversation they were having, it was intense. Judging by the looks on their faces, it was definitely about me.
I head into the bathroom and grab a small makeup bag, tossing in mascara, an eyebrow pencil, my toothbrush, deodorant, a hairbrush, face wash, and moisturizer.
When I look up, Gino is standing in the doorway.
“I’m going to head out,” he says.
I nod.
“Vanessa.” I look up at him as he steps into the bathroom, lowering his voice so Mateo won’t hear. “I’m sorry I basically broke into your place.” He exhales. “I need you to trust me, but I need you to trust Mateo more. Listen to him. Let him take care of you.”
I nod, giving him a small smile.
He pulls me into a tight, unmistakably brotherly hug. It hits me then, hard and unexpected—I have a brother. One who’s going to protect me.
He releases me and heads for the door. Just before he leaves, he turns back.
“Both of you,” he says. “Watch your backs. Be careful.”
As soon as Gino closes the door, Mateo steps into the bathroom and starts grabbing his things. I think about asking what he and Gino talked about while I was in my room, but I decide against it.
He catches my eye in the mirror and gives me a soft smile as he packs his things. He turns to me, cups my face, and gently tilts it up so I’m looking at him.
“I will protect you, Vanessa,” he says quietly. “Even if it’s the last thing I do.”
He presses a kiss to my forehead and steps away, leaving the bathroom.
What?
What do I need protection from?
I follow him out, tucking the makeup bag into my duffel. He looks at me and asks, “Are you ready to go?”
“I guess so.”
I take one last look around the apartment, making sure all the lights are off, then lock the door behind us. We walk down the hall to the elevators, ride them to the ground floor, and step out into the night. The car is parked just down the block, waiting.
The entire drive passes in silence. Every so often, I can feel him glance over at me, but I keep my eyes fixed straight ahead.
He pulls into the parking garage, parks, and we both get out of the car. Once we’re inside his apartment, he finally breaks the tension.
“Let me show you to the guest room.”
I follow him down the hall to a room right next to his own. “Here it is,” he says. “The bathroom’s right across the hall.”
“Thanks,” I mumble.
He hesitates, then turns back to me. “Hey… are you okay?”
“You would tell me if something was wrong, right?” I ask. “Gino wouldn’t have just shown up at my apartment for no reason. And it’s pretty clear he has some kind of plan he’s not letting me in on.”
He hesitates.
“Nothing’s wrong,” he says finally. “I promise.”
“Okay… um, thanks again.”
“I am going to head to bed,” he adds. “Feel free to watch TV in the living room if you want.”
He turns and walks away into his room, closing the door behind him.
I step into the room and set my duffel bag and backpack on the floor. The space looks like it belongs in a magazine. Everything is perfectly coordinated, the bed neatly made with crisp cream bedding that looks like it’s never been slept in.
I kick off my boots and shrug out of my jacket. Grabbing my laptop, I sit on the edge of the bed and pull up a show, only to realize I don’t have the Wi-Fi password.
It’s been less than ten minutes. He shouldn’t be asleep yet.
I walk across the hall and lightly knock on his door. No answer.
Well. Guess I’m watching it on my phone.
I turn to walk away just as the door opens behind me. His deep voice stops me mid-step.
“Vanessa—everything okay?”
“Uh, yeah,” I say quickly. “I was just going to ask you for something, but it’s fine. You don’t need to worry about it right now.”
“I’m awake now. What’s up?”
I turn to face him. He’s in gray sweatpants, tugging a green T-shirt into place, and for a split second I catch an unfairly good view of the deep V at his waist before I force my eyes back up to his face.
“I was just wondering if you have Wi-Fi,” I say. “Or the password, so I can use my laptop.”
“Yeah,” he replies easily. “The password is Columbia18 Capital C.”
“Thanks.”
“No problem. Goodnight, Vanessa.”
“Night,” I mumble, rushing back to my room. I hear a soft chuckle before his door shuts.
Once inside, I drop onto the bed and open my laptop, connecting to the Wi-Fi. I pull up an episode of my favorite crime show and start scrolling through Instagram. I don’t have many friends or followers; I mostly use it to lose myself in other people’s lives and adventures.
I’m so focused on food pictures and mindless scrolling that I don’t hear the door open.
I don’t realize anyone’s in my room until Mateo is standing over me.
Oh shit.