“Guilty,” he murmured, his smirk tugging wider. He searched my face then, softer now, his voice dipping lower so only I could hear. “You looked a little… Lost,princesa. Tell me I’m wrong.”
I met his gaze, sharp and unyielding, even as something in my chest twisted. “You are wrong.”
Matteo tilted his head, studying me like I was a puzzle he fully intended to solve. The corner of his mouth lifted, slow, deliberate. “If you say so,Donna.”
I crossed my arms, trying to hold onto my composure. “I thought you were in Miami.”
“I was.” He shrugged, casual, though there was something calculated in the way his eyes stayed locked on mine. “But some things are worth flying back for.”
My heart stuttered. “The party?”
His face was somber, a dangerous gleam in his whiskey eyes. “Something like that.”
Heat crept up the back of my neck. I looked away, pretending to study the skyline, but I could feel his gaze on me, hot, steady, almost physical.
“You know…” He said softly, stepping just a little closer, his voice warm velvet in the dim of the party. “For someone who claims not to care, you blush every time I speak.”
I snapped my eyes back to him, glare sharp, though my pulse betrayed me. “I do not.”
His brows lifted, mock-innocent. “No?” He leaned down slightly, close enough that his breath brushed my cheek, frowning in that charming way of his. “Then what’s that color in your face,Donna? Must be the champagne. But… You hate champagne.”
I swallowed hard, refusing to give him the satisfaction of a reaction. I breathed out, “You’re crazy.”
“You’ve already said that. And yet…” He stepped closer, I stepped back, and before I knew it, my back was pressed against the glass. The silence hang, the hum of the party filling the space between us, the heat of his body radiating toward mine. “Every time you run, Francesca… You end up right here.With me.”
I opened my mouth – ready to argue, ready to deny – but the words didn’t come. Not with him standing that close. Not with the air between us burning.
Matteo smirked, like he’d won without needing to hear me say it. Then, with infuriating calm, he stepped back, leaving the space suddenly too cool, too empty.
His gaze dropped to my body. “Cold?”
“Hm?” I looked down too, only to realize my skin had goosebumps all over my arms. I felt the panic explode in my chest. “I’m okay.”
“You sure? I could give you my jacket–”
Without another word, I walked away, past him and headed to my friends who were dancing. Kali was in front of Natalia, both laughing as she danced back into her, while Maria flipped her hair with a laugh, her hips moving to the beat of the music.
Maria raised a brow at me through her smile as I joined their circle and the two of us began dancing together. “Matteo not leaving you alone, again, huh?”
I rolled my eyes, pretending like I couldn’t care less. In reality, I cared – but only a little bit. “We barely know each other.”
She smiled, like she knew something I didn’t. “Alright.”
And with that, she took my hands and we fell into the atmosphere, my hips moving to the booming music.
But when I glanced back over my shoulder, my hair a half-transparent armor, Matteo’s eyes were already searching deep into my own.
After I pretended not to feel Matteo’s eyes on me the entire night and continued having fun with my friends, the inevitable happened.
Half an hour before midnight, he found me again –alone, again– at the open bar. Minutes flew by with our usual banter and insult-filled flirting, and I almost let myself genuinely enjoy his company. That was, of course, until I came back to my senses – thanks to some girl I didn’t even know.
Some sister or cousin or friend of one of the Cartel’s soldiers walked up right to Matteo – in the middle of our conversation, by the way – and placedher hand on his shoulder. And what did he do? He looked away from me and turned his attention to her.
The spell he’d had me under all night broke right then and there, and while he wassooo busytalking with his new girlfriend, I got the hell out of there.
While all of my friends were wrapped around their special someone, I stood in the center of the party, enjoying the music and people watching. I wasn’t shy by any means – my reputation as life of the party and reckless decisions still followed me around – but for some reason, tonight felt different. This new year I was stepping into… Felt different.
It wasn’t long before the Devil found me again. I stiffened at the sound of his voice, smooth and deep as smoke curling into my ear.
