He groans as we pump him up and down, once, twice, and that snaps me out of it.
What the hell is happening? This man has bewitched me with his dick.
I jerk out of his grasp. “I can’t believe you.”
“Maybe you should have more faith in me. If I say something, I mean it. And you’re hot when you’re angry.”
I fold my arms across my chest, my still very naked chest. This is definitely the most awkward conversation I’ve ever had, no doubt about that. And, apparently, Matteo likes awkward to the point that it makes him hard. Just great.
After taking several deep breaths, I’m willing to give him one more chance. “Could you please tell me what’s going on? And in more than just one or two-word answers?”
“Your cousin has been secretly seeing Nikolai.”
Time stands still until a million things flood my brain at once.
“No. That’s impossible.” The words rush out of my mouth.
“I have proof.” Matteo’s steadying hand is on my elbow, lightly caressing my skin with his thumb.
Well, shit. My head turns fuzzy at the edges, and I plop onto the edge of the bed. “I can’t believe it. How?”
“I don’t have all the details about them, but I know they’ve been seeing each other for several months at the very least.”
I rub my hand over my forehead. “I can’t believe this. And she never told me.” Then something else occurs to me, and I turn to him in the darkness. “And you let me believe you were really going to marry her?”
Matteo’s quiet as if the question warrants some deep thought. “I honestly didn’t think that far ahead. I’ve been trying to back Nikolai into a corner for so long, I had to take the chance when I found out about him and Ally.”
“What did he do to you that you want him so badly?”
A heavy sigh hangs in the air between us, and just when I think he won’t answer, he says, “He’s hiding someone who killed one of my cousins.”
My heart skips a beat at the news. That was not what I envisioned after the whole business beef conversation we had earlier. I was thinking of something more along the lines of owing money, or something simple like that. But losing a loved one is a totally different ball game, and it can do crazy things to you, I know that firsthand.
“I’m sorry about your cousin.”
“Thanks. I’ll be able to sleep better once the person responsible for his death has paid for it.”
Can I really fault him for that?
He didn’t choose for my cousin to somehow be involved in all of this. He saw an opportunity to get closer to his goal, and he took it.
My mind keeps spinning, trying to fit this new piece into a puzzle that’s shaped completely differently. I think about Ally and the last few weeks and months with her. Should I have noticed something changed? Thereweremoments where she quickly put her phone away before I could get a look at it, and times where she seemed uncomfortable whenever I asked her questions about where she’d been or what her plans were. I thought it was just a mixture of all of my wedding stress and a bad case of life. And now this?
What a little minx.
She has some major explaining to do, that’s for sure. And possibly groveling.
Not that I blame her for hiding it from the rest of the family. Her dad would forbid it, or maybe even worse. Marrying someone who isn’t Italian might as well be considered treason in our circle.
But hiding it from me too? It stings a bit.
On the other hand, Matteo opened up to me, which I really appreciate. Even if I don’t necessarily like the news, I’m glad to be more in the loop.
“What . . . what happens now?” My voice sounds distant, even to my own ears.
“Now, I’m going to fuck you.”
Chapter11