Kali arched a brow, skeptical as ever. “For real.”
“Really,” Zach insisted. “Doctor says I’m healing just fine. So all good. Plus,” He raised his voice deliberately, turning toward the kitchen. “I got the most amazing girl taking care of me.”
From the island, Maria glanced back, a wooden spoon in her hand as steam rose from the pot she was stirring. Her smile was small but real. “Then you should listen to this amazing girl and take it slow.”
Zach’s grin softened. “Yes, baby. I will.”
“Love you,” Maria said with a smirk, before turning back to the soup.
“Love you more,” Zach replied, wide smile splitting his tired face.
The rest of us? We might as well have vanished. The city glittered. The candles burned low. And for a rare moment, even with bandages and scars, the world felt whole.
The private elevator chimed low, the sound echoing in the quiet hum of the penthouse. The four of us of the couch exchanged glances, wondering whether anyone knew who it could be.
Then the doors slid open.
And Matteo stepped inside like he owned the building. His presence filled the room before his voice did – broad shoulders wrapped in black, dark eyes sharper than the skyline behind him.
I pretended not to look. Pretended my pulse hadn’t skipped. Pretended I wasn’t hyper-aware of every movement he made – the sound of his shoes against the polished floor, the way he adjusted his jacket before his gaze swept the room.
And then landed on me.
Just for a second. A knowing look. Nothing more.
But my breath hitched anyway, and I hated myself for it.
“What are you doing here, man?” Zach asked, a flicker of surprise in his voice. Not warm surprise either. Their relationship was… Complicated.
Maria stepped away from the open-kitchen. “I called him.”
Matteo stepped further into the penthouse with that unhurried grace of his. “Thought I’d keep you company while the girls hang out. We could play some video games, watch the new DC movie… Or one of those nature documentaries you like. Play cards. Whatever you want, bro.”
The silence stretched, a thin wire pulled taut between them.
I watched Zach’s blank stare – hard, unreadable – shift to Maria’s hopeful smile. Finally, he nodded. “Alright. Yeah, sure.”
Maria’s shoulders relaxed, and the air in the room seemed lighter.
Mine didn’t.
Because every second Matteo stood there, his presence burned against my skin like a secret.
And I had to remind myself –over and over again– that he had to be some kind ofasshole.
Because if even his own brother didn’t want him around, then what the hell waswrongwith me for being excited he was there?
Chapter 7
Sixteen years old
Tijuana, México
THAT FIRST NIGHT, THE DESERT felt endless. The heat of the day had bled away into a sharp cold, the kind that bit into your bones. I had scraped together what dry twigs I could find and lit a small fire, its flames flickering low, barely strong enough to push back the dark.
Rafael sat curled beside me, his knees pulled to his chest, his eyes half-closed with exhaustion. The orange light painted his face in fragile shadows. I stared into the fire until my vision blurred, numbness weighing down every thought. My body still trembled from the smoke and the running and the screaming – yet none of that mattered now. I had only one task left: keep him alive. Keep himsafe.
“Teo…” His voice was weak, almost swallowed by the night. “I want mami.”
