CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Gianna

I stared out of the window of my hotel room. It was dinner time but I wasn’t hungry. I hadn’t left the room since I’d checked in this morning. Did freedom always feel this lonely?

My phone beeped with a message. It was from Aria.

Matteo broke down again. He’s unconscious.

I called her immediately, my heart hammering in my chest. She picked up after the first ring. “Where is he?” I asked.

“At our place. He’s in the guest bedroom. The doc says he needs to stay in bed. He overexerted himself too soon after the crash.”

“I’m coming over.”

“You are?” Aria asked in a hopeful voice.

“Yes. Tell Luca he should get used to my presence again.”

I could practically hear Aria smiling. “I knew it.” She paused. “I’ll send Sandro over.”

“No, I’m taking a cab. I’ll be there soon.”

When I arrived in the apartment, Luca barred my way. “What is she doing here?”

“I want to see Matteo,” I said. And I didn’t care if I had to knock out Luca to do it.

Luca glared. “Get the fuck away.”

“Luca, please,” Aria whispered.

I tried to walk past Luca but he didn’t let me. “Let me see my husband.”

“Matteo can’t use the emotional stress right now. You leaving and then returning won’t help with his recovery,” Luca growled. I had a feeling his words would have been much worse if Aria weren’t standing beside him. “If you stay now, you’ll stay for good. I’m done with your games.”

“I’m not leaving again.”

Luca sent me a doubtful look but he stepped back. I didn’t hesitate. I rushed toward the guest bedroom and stormed inside. Matteo was asleep. I lay down beside him, determined to keep watch over him until he opened his eyes.

Matteo

A soft hand held onto mine. I opened my eyes, blinking a few times to clear my vision. I felt like a total wimp for having passed out. Fuck. I’d been shot and stabbed and even burnt before, and a stupid hit to the head brought me down to my knees. It was a disgrace. I turned my head. Gianna was curled up beside me, her hand clutching mine. Her clothes were wrinkly and her hair a complete mess as if she’d been at my side for a while.

Her face was mostly covered by her unruly hair. I felt the irresistible urge to see her expression. Slowly, carefully I sat up and brushed a few strands away with my free hand. Gianna looked like a fucking angel in sleep. Too beautiful to be real. Her thick lashes rested on her pale skin. I trailed a fingertip over her high cheekbone, enjoying the softness of her skin. Her eyes fluttered beneath her lids and then they peeled open. She blinked sleepily until her gaze finally focused on me.

I waited for her to let go of my hand and jump off the bed like it had caught fire. At the very least I expected some ridiculous excuse for why she was here, holding my hand. I doubted Luca had dragged her back. He knew I didn’t want him to.

She didn’t do any of those things however. Instead she sat up slowly, blinking away sleep and rubbing her eyes with the hand that wasn’t holding mine. She searched the room for something. “What time is it?”

I had no fucking clue. I wasn’t even sure what day it was. “You are asking me?”

She laughed once, then her expression tightened. “You scared me.”

“I did? I suppose I’m a scary guy.”

Gianna didn’t smile. She was looking at me with an expression I’d never seen on her face, vulnerable and open. “I should have never agreed to Luca’s offer. I was being stubborn. I didn’t want to admit my feelings to myself. But when Aria called to tell me you’d broken down again, I was terrified that I’d lose you.” She paused, her fingers on my hand tightening. I didn’t say anything, wasn’t sure what to say. My general solution in emotional situations was humor but it felt wrong to make a joke and I didn’t want to stop Gianna from saying whatever else she had to say.

She stared off toward the window, guilt marring her beautiful face. “All I could think about when I wasn’t at your side after you’d broken down was ‘what if you die and all I’ve ever done was treat you badly and push you away’. I’ve been acting like a major bitch. I’m sorry.”

I touched her cheek and moved closer. “You don’t need to apologize for anything, Gianna. I actually enjoyed most of our arguments. They added entertainment to my days.” I grinned and this time I got a smile in return.

“You should be pissed, Matteo. You know what Luca offered me in exchange for saving your life and that I agreed. Why aren’t you sending me away? I would deserve it.”

I shrugged. I didn’t like the idea that Gianna had eagerly accepted Luca’s offer, but she was here now. It had taken a while but eventually I’d realized that Gianna had to come to me on her own. Gianna would never let anyone force her to admit her feelings. I touched the back of her head and pulled her toward me. She didn’t resist and when her mouth touched mine, she wrapped her arms around my neck and deepened our kiss. My hand found its way under her shirt, feeling the soft skin of her stomach and moving higher.

Gianna stopped my hand’s exploration. “You need to rest. You passed out yesterday. I won’t let you overexert yourself again.”

I chuckled. “Come on. If you ride me, I won’t have to exert myself at all. You’ll do all the work.”

“Yeah, right,” she said. “No way am I going to risk your recovery. Luca would be so pissed if I did something stupid. He hates me anyway. I don’t want to give him another reason to keep me away from you.”

“Luca wouldn’t stop you from seeing me.”

She raised her eyebrows. “He tried to stop me from coming here yesterday.”

“Why the fuck did he do that?” Annoyance shot through me. Luca always had to play the Capo and order people around.

“I suppose he was worried about you,” Gianna admitted grudgingly. There was no love lost between my brother and her, so I was surprised by her admittance. “He didn’t want me to play with you. He thought it was better if there was a clean cut between us and I left your life for good.”

“So what made him change his mind?” I asked.

“Aria, I suppose.”

“Of course,” I said, though I’d hoped for another reason. I leaned back against the headboard, ignoring the slight twinge in my head at the movement. I crossed my arms over my chest, trying to look fucking relaxed when I was anything but. “I’m fine now. I won’t die. You could leave now without feeling guilty.”

Gianna looked at me for a long time without saying anything. “I don’t want to leave.”

“You agreed to Luca’s offer, you said it yourself.”

“I did, because Luca took me by surprise with it. You were dying right in front of me. We’d barely survived a crash and the crazy Russians, and suddenly I was offered something I’d thought I wanted. I didn’t even really think before I said yes.”

I nodded, but didn’t say anything. I was tired of making the first move, of always pursuing Gianna. This time I wanted to hear something from her.