“I just finished shopping. Why?”
Matteo pauses a beat, as if hesitating. The action is so unlike him that it makes me question everything he’s said.
He’s hiding something. I don’t know what, but I do know that it can’t be anything good. The last time they hid something from me, I was…
The thought causes a shiver to run along my spine. Shaking it off, I try to focus on Matteo.
“Just don’t do anything stupid. I’ll be coming over when you go to babysit Bee,” he finally says.
How cute. My brother wants to hang out, but doesn’t know how to ask.
I bite back the urge to laugh and say, “You could’ve just told me you wanted to hang out.”
“I don’t want to hang out. There’s something I want to discuss with you,” he says gruffly.
I snort. “Right, okay.”
I don’t believe him one bit, but I also don’t call him out on it because the second I do, he’ll retreat into his own head. He’s always been so different from me and my other two brothers. They’re all cold and ruthless but it’s as if Matteo is detached from his feelings completely.
“I’ll see you at Eli and Val’s.” He mutters a goodbye before the line cuts off.
My brothers think I don’t know they plan on sending me off to Italy with the only man I’ve ever wanted, but hated: Nicolo Esposito.
“Is something wrong, Miss Mara?” one of the guards asks.
I turn to look at him, shaking my head. “No.”
Still, I tighten my grip on my handbag and pick up my pace, hoping to be done quickly. I have the guards place most of my bags in the trunk, but the rest stay in the front beside me.
You use materialistic things to feel something. How pathetic.
Materialistic or not, I love spending money.
To cover up that rotten heart inside.
When the car stops in front of the townhouse, I only grab four bags: the Sephora ones. Last time I let these savages whowork for my brother handle my makeup, they managed to break three blushes, a bronzer, a highlighter, and a foundation bottle.
As I make my way up the stairs, I hear the low murmurs of a couple of guards.
“Doesn’t feel right…but the boss hasn’t said anything.”
I pause, unsure what they’re talking about. Was there another attack? Could that be what Matteo wants to tell me tonight?
Brushing it off, I continue on my way, closing my door behind me. I slump against it, knees drawn close to my chest.
The paranoia that someone is watching me has been at the back of my mind since that night. It’s burned into my soul, buried in my bones, and seared into my mind. Today was just one of those days where I can’t walk around without thinking someone is following me. It usually ends with me in bed by two in the afternoon, panicking and hyperventilating under the covers.
But I can’t do that right now, because I need to head over to Valentina and Emiliano’s place in an hour. Instead of showering and throwing on better-fitting clothes, I stay rooted in my spot, paralyzed by the fear that if I move, everything will fall apart.
It takes me longer than I’d like to admit. My palms hurt; the skin is red and moon-shaped crescents are indented into my palm. I shoot a message to Valentina.
Me:
Hey Val, I’m going to be half an hour late.
Took a long shower lol.
I shouldn’t lie, but being honest feels like it’s a worse option.
