Exterminated.
He didn’t want to hurt me. He didn’t want to hurt my family. He was a pest controller, and we, in his mind, were animals that needed to be exterminated.
I was the pest.
And by default, our daughter, my precious Lily, was also one.
My mouth opened. “You don’t believe that, Matteo. Just like you don’t really believe I would…” I managed to stop myself. “If you just understood the truth, then you would see.”
“See what?” His voice lowered into a menacing whisper.
I snapped my mouth shut. I turned my head away. I had almost said too much, and that would be disastrous. It didn’t matter what he did to me or even my brother. Matteo could never ever know about Lily. Matteo was too unhinged, and he thought about nothing but power and revenge. Not telling him the truth was the only way I could guarantee Lily’s safety.
She would get to live out her life free from all of this. She would grow up safe and happy with Nat.
I sent up a silent prayer of thanks that I’d had the paperwork drawn up to give Nat guardianship of her.
“Tell me what I am not seeing, Sophia.” Warm, dry fingers caught me around the chin and yanked my face back to meet his.
“Nothing. It’s nothing.”
His eyes narrowed into slits. “You could tell me the truth, Sophia, and save yourself a lot of unnecessary pain.”
My heart lurched. “So you are going to kill me?” Defiantly, I lifted my eyes to his. If he was, I would face that death with bravery.
“Oh, Sophia.” His thumb dragged down my bottom lip. “I’m not going to kill you. At least not yet. But you will feel pain because somewhere in your black heart you love me, don’t you?”
I blinked in surprise. “If you know that, then why are you doing this to me?”
The corners of his mouth lifted in a smile that was more like a grimace. “Because it’s fun?” he said in a voice that sounded just like his old self. “Because I want to see the pain on your face when you see mewreck your world, and I am going to demolish all of it. Brick by brick and deal by deal. I just need to marry…”
I stiffened, my shock clear and visible on my face. Had he just said marry? Instantly, my thoughts went to the girl in the diner.
Young and beautiful.
Was that the girl he planned to marry? It had been months ago, but he hadn’t mentioned her again, and like a fool, I had thought—
What had I thought? That he would come around? That his love for me was enough to bring him back to me?
Matteo didn’t love. He used, and when there was no more use, then he destroyed.
“Yes, I’m going to marry.” The finger on my lip moved, pushing a curl of hair behind my ear. It lingered on my cheek, softly caressing.
“Does that bother you?” he asked in a whisper.
I didn’t answer. He knew it did, that’s why he was saying it.
“Does it bother you that I am engaged to another? She’s sweet, you know.” He brought his fingers to my ear. “Sweet and innocent. You used to be innocent as well, Sophia. But then you gave it up too quickly. And that’s why you will always be nothing but a mistress, and she will be my wife, my queen, and I’ll worship her. Does that make you feel sad?”
“Yes,” I whispered. “But sad for her.”
He reared back. His eyes were angry and dark. “What?”
“I feel sad for her because you will never love her,” I snapped back. “I don’t think you are even capable of love, Matteo. You will never know…” I shuddered to a stop. “You will never know the true meaning of love, and neither will she. So yeah, I’m sad. But not for myself. I’m sad for her. And I’m sad for you because neither of you will ever know what real love is. And that’s a pathetic way to live.”
He pushed me off his lap. “Get out.”
Smirking, I straightened, wiping my hands down my jeans. “With pleasure, Matteo. I’ll leave and never come back.”
