Page 115 of Tempting My Mafia Monster

The five of us headed to the pool house with our plates and drinks in hand. It felt ridiculous, and the soldiers were giving us odd looks, but I was more distracted by the butterflies in my stomach.

Would he even open the door? How the hell was this going to go? Bombarding him with my crazy family was not the best idea, but… I had to see him. If only to know whether he was okay.

Lili nodded towards the door, insisting that Gio knock. He rolled his eyes, lifted his knuckles, and tapped twice before stepping back. After what felt like an eternity, the door swung open, and Maddox stood there in only a pair of grey shorts. Barefoot and topless, all his muscles and ink were on full display. His hair looked slightly damp, a strand falling forward into his eye, fresh from a shower. I licked my lips as my gaze raked over him, feeling that heat in my lower belly and a pulse between my thighs.

Lili nudged me, whispering, “Stop drooling.”

Maddox took us all in, standing in a semi-circle by the pool, our dinner in our hands like beggars on a street corner. His eyebrows tightened, and he looked so baffled that it made me want to laugh.

“So, what I lack in empathy, my family makes up for. They think you’re lonely and really should eat dinner with us,” Gio explained.

“Subtle,” Liv hissed at his side, and he smirked at her.

“I’m grand,” Maddox said, still looking unsure about the situation. “I’d rather eat alone.”

“See?” Gio said, pointing his glass of whiskey at him. “Let’s leave him to do that and go back to the house.”

“By the time we walk back again, all our food will be cold,” Lili argued, glancing at her brother with disgust as he shoved chicken into his mouth with his fingers. “It will be ruined. Now that we are here, we might as well eat together.”

She gave Maddox her sweetest smile. He stared. His gaze drifted to me, and I gave him a slight shrug.

“I guess,” he finally relented, stepping aside. Lili didn’t hesitate, pushing herself through the door before he could change his mind. I held back while the others walked in first.

As I passed Maddox, my family had already disappeared into the dining room and settled at the six-seater marble table. I paused and turned to him, my mouth opening and closing as I tried to form a proper sentence.

“I-I’m sorry about them. And I’m sorry for whatever this becomes. But I just wanted…” I swallowed as he stared down at his feet. “Are you avoiding me?”

He lifted his head. Those dark, smouldering eyes were filled with a storm of guilt as he said, “It’s for the best.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but he shut the door and walked into the dining room.

I knew it. We’d kissed, and he’d freaked out. But why? He seemed so into it. For a moment in that gym, it felt like I had him back again. The way he touched and kissed me, with such desperation and aching need, transported me back to the bunker with him. It was just us in our bubble. Until it wasn’t.

When I joined my family at the table, I found that Lili had been super sneaky and had somehow seated Maddox and me opposite each other. I sat down, staring at him as he did everything he could to avoid my gaze.

The first few minutes were painful. We ate in silence. All our eyes kept shifting between each other, except Maddox, who focused entirely on his food.

It was Raff who broke the awkwardness by being a menace. “So… how come he’s allowed to sit at the dinner table shirtless, while I’m not?”

Gio coughed, clearing his throat until Maddox looked at him. Gio raised an eyebrow. “I’d appreciate it if you wore a shirt to dinner. My wife, sister and daughter are present.”

Maddox chewed his food, peering around the table beneath his dark lashes with a zero-fucks-given attitude. God, he was an intimidating asshole when he wanted to be.

“It’s too hot,” he said at last. “I’ve just had a shower. I’d rather not start sweating again.”

Raff began unbuttoning his shirt, and Liv sighed while Gio frowned.

“Raff, what are you doing? Keep your shirt on.”

“What? I’m hot too.” He shrugged with that cheeky smile. “And I need to show off my abs.”

“I only see two; where are the other four?” Gio chuckled, stabbing his fork into Raff’s pronounced six-pack. When the hell did he get that?

“The difference is, no one wants to see yours,” Lili teased.

“Oh, but you’re happy to ogle him, aren’t you, Sorella?” Raff pointed accusingly at Maddox. Lili blushed and gave Raff a kick under the table. Gio whacked him on the back of the head. I tried to hide the stupid spark of jealousy that flared in my gut. Maddox’s abs belonged to me. Every part of him was mine.

“By the way, big guy, amazing ink,” Raff continued. “I can’t wait to get covered up just like you. How long did it take to get your whole body done?”