MATEO

by K. L. Savage

  “Thank you,” I tell him, flicking a cobweb off my shoulder when I walk through it. “It’s disgusting.”

  He grins. “Prison isn’t clean, Mateo. A man like you wouldn’t make it here.”

  “I’d run this prison. I’d own it. And you damn well know it.”

  “You’re too damn pretty, Mateo. You wouldn’t last a day before Big Joe in cell block B wanted a piece of your ass.”

  “Well, if you know me so well, then maybe you’d know I wouldn’t mind that,” I throw back at him, watching him open and close his mouth when he has no idea what to say.

  “Anyway, I’m a taken man now. My ass isn’t up for grabs.” I remove a handkerchief from my pocket and dust off the seat. I sit down and begin to clean off everything else in front of me. The black phone, the countertop, then the glass.

  He’s frozen on the spot, unmoving and staring at me with an open mouth.

  “Oh, come now. Flies will get into your mouth. It’s not like you’ve never seen two men have sex. You’re a Warden, for fuck’s sake.”

  “I don’t have a problem with it, just didn’t know,” he admits.

  “Wouldn’t care if you did. Now, can we get back to the matter at hand? I need to pick up my lady at school.”

  “School?”

  “College,” I clarify. “Jesus, Nick.”

  “Sorry, okay. Give me a minute and I’ll have the guard bring in Thompson.”

  “Thank you. If you want to talk about me, come by the club tonight.” I hand him the membership card. It’s black with Club Lussuria written across it in ink that only reacts to black light. “It’s plain, but it won’t always be. Under the right light, it will glow purple.”

  He stuffs the card in his pocket and closes the door. I curl my lip as I look around the room. Dio mio, he is right. I would die in a place like this simply because I hate filth.

  The door opens again a few minutes later and Nicholas closes it behind him, leans against the wall, and crosses his arms. “She’ll be here in a minute.”

  “I appreciate this,” I say earnestly. “I only want to protect Nora, and I’ll be honest, if this woman went free, I’d kill her just so she didn’t threaten her.”

  “I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that.”

  My attention is cut short when the door on the other side opens. The conversation between me and Nicholas comes to a halt. I straighten and scoot my seat up. The chains jingle with every step she takes. She has shackles around her feet and wrists, a way to keep her contained. She has on an orange jumpsuit with an inmate number stamped over the right breast. She’s small and petite like Nora, but whereas Nora walks with her head held high, this woman drags her feet and hunches her back.

  When she sits down, and the shackles rub together again. She finally lifts her head, her long silver brown hair parting so I can see her face. The air is sucked out of the room. I feel like I’m in a time warp. Danielle is a beautiful woman, and even while being in prison, she has aged very well. She has the same blue eyes as Nora, same delicate features that make her face, and I assume the hair color is the same as well, only hers has gray in it from age.

  She reaches for the phone and I do the same, placing it against my ear as we stare at one another.

  “I don’t know you.” Her voice sounds like shredded nails stuck in the back of her throat from not talking over the years.

  “You don’t,” I reply. “But we have something in common, Ms. Thompson.”

  She’s confused. Her thin eyebrows lift, and she sucks her cheeks in as she ponders what I said. She taps her nails against the counter and cocks her head, looking like something wild and dangerous as she stares at me. She has no warmth behind her eyes. No light. Her hair is long, tangled, and in need of a good brushing.

  When it hits her to why I could be here, her eyes widen, and she taps her nails quicker. “Nora?” she asks.

  “Si,” I agree.

  “You two are dating?”

  “Si.”

  “How is she?” she dares to ask me. She picks at her nails, the skin around them peeled and bleeding.

  I can’t read her. She doesn’t seem happy to talk about Nora, but she doesn’t seem sad. She’s indifferent.

  “She’s wonderful,” I answer honestly. “She’s a double major and in her last year of school. She graduates in December. She’s making something out of herself, which I would think you would be proud of, but I don’t think you care.”

  “She has everything I never did. Good for her.”

  “Is that why you wanted to kill her? You were jealous?”

  “Yes. I still am. I hated her father. I hated how we grew up. No one knows this, but we had an arranged marriage. My life was about my husband. Over time, I convinced myself I’d grow to love him, but I only hated him more. Then I found out I was pregnant, and I hated her too. I tried to love them. I did. I tried.”

  “Until you couldn’t anymore.”

  “Until I couldn’t anymore,” she repeats, pushing her hair out of her face and tucking it behind her ears. It’s awkward because she has to lift both hands, since they are bound together. “I wonder how she’s doing from time to time. I care in my own way, but I don’t care enough.”

  I slam my fist on the table and point my finger at her. “I’m going to make sure you never see her again. Ever. I’m going to make sure you rot here and the day of your execution, you better believe I’m going to be front and center. You missed out on a beautiful, smart, kind, funny, and generous soul. That has nothing to do with you. She did that. She became the woman you’ve always wanted to be, and I hope like hell that pisses you the fuck off. I came to tell you, there will be no way in hell you’re getting out of this. She isn’t going to testify for you. You’re going to die here. And let me say this, I will always protect her in the ways you failed. She has someone now. She has me. She’ll always have me, and the last thing I will ever do to her is hurt her the way you did.”

  She scrapes her nails down the counter and the side of her top lip twitches, but she doesn’t say anything.

  “She’ll be happy and in love. I’ll give her everything she ever wanted. She’ll be free of you and I’ll protect her from you until you take your last breath. She’ll finally be free of you.”

  “Good,” Danielle replies, keeping herself levelheaded. “Good. I’m glad she has someone in her life she can count on. I might not have the capability to love my daughter the way she needs to be, but in my own way, I wish I never went after her with that gun, but I was never meant to be a mother.”

  She’s too calm about this. Too collected.

  And it makes me even angrier.

  “Take good care of her,” she says and proceeds to hang up the phone, the click loud in my ear to tell me the conversation is over. “Guard?” she shouts.

  The jingle of the chains shake like haunted Christmas bells as the guard grips her bicep to help her up.

  If Nora were here, that sound would haunt her for the rest of her life.

  That’s why I’m here. I’ll always be the man to conquer the demons in her darkness, searching for a way to always keep the light of her soul on.

  To say the ride back to the Lussuria was awkward was an understatement. Mateo’s uncle does not like to talk, and if he does, he doesn’t talk to me. When we pull into the front of Lussuria, the driver gets out of the car and walks around the front of the car. He opens the back door and Giovanni is the one sitting closest to it, but he spreads his arm out and tells me to go first.

  I dip my head, so I don’t hit it on the roof as I step out. The night air wraps around me, making me wish that I had a jacket. The Strip is busy, and people are barreling into Lussuria. I stare up at the impressive tall building and really look at the resort for the first time. How have I not noticed how gorgeous it is? Mateo wasn’t lying when he said he made changes.

  “Do you like my nephew for him or for his money?” his Uncle asks as he steps out of the car.

  “Excuse me?”
<
br />   “Mateo has been through too much to be screwed over, so I’m not going to beat around the bush. Do you like him for him?”

  “Yes. I don’t care that he has money. I don’t have money, so I’ve learned that having a lot of it doesn’t buy happiness.”

  He nods. “Okay. Good. I would have hated to have had to kill you.”

  I’m left swallowing as he walks away, heading straight into the casino. I have a feeling he would have killed me too. Without a damn doubt.

  “Come. You only have fifty minutes to get ready now.”

  He scares me.

  His mysterious dark Italian accent has me jumping into a step and hustling behind him into the resort. It’s so breathtaking inside. All dark colors and bright lights. The mood reeks of sex and money. It gives me the urge to open my purse, get cash, buy drinks, and gamble.

  I follow Giovanni to the elevators and in silence we ride it together until it hits the top floor. He still doesn’t speak to me as we walk down the hall to the door that leads to yet another hallway. He scans his palm on the black box attached to the wall and the door springs open.

  I have a feeling he doesn’t like me very much.

  When we get to Mateo’s penthouse, Giovanni scans his hand again and when the lock clicks, he pushes the door open for me. “You have forty-five minutes.”

  I go to tell him thank you, but he closes the door before I can. “Cranky,” I mumble and remember what Mateo and Giovanni said about there being a gift on the bed. I clap my hands together and do a little dance, twisting my hips with happiness. I never get gifts. Ever.

  As I make my way to the bedroom, I go over all the events that happened today. Giovanni stayed by my side, which got weird looks, and Benji wasn’t around for me to say anything about me being in a relationship, but I do plan on fixing it. All in all, the day was smooth. I aced my test, I know I did, and now I get to go on an amazing date with an amazing man that seems to want me more with every second that passes.

  I can hardly believe it.

  I bite my bottom lip when I see a beautiful snow-white box sitting on the bed with a wide black bow on top of it. My backpack slips off my shoulder and hits the floor with a thud. I tiptoe toward the box, wondering If something will pop out of it to scare me or something.

  Standing at the edge of the bed, I pluck the ribbon and tug it until it unravels. My hand shakes as I lift the lid. There, laying on neatly folded black tissue paper, is a card with a handwritten note.

  Stellina,

  I can’t wait to show you the wonders of my world. You’re going to look just as divine in this dress as you do out of it.

  See you soon,

  Mateo

  I hold the note to my chest and close my eyes, embracing the moment of this drowning emotion I’m feeling. It’s like I can float or do anything in this world. My heart is full. He’s turned out to be more than I ever imagined. I’m more complete than I have been in my entire life, and I know that has nothing to do with me and everything to do with him.

  If I wanted to define it, I would say what I feel for him is love: an intense feeling of deep affection and fondness.

  It warms me from head to toe, and it’s absolutely ridiculous, because I convinced myself for years that love didn’t exist. That it was a lie. Something forced between two people.

  That isn’t the case at all.

  I’d never say the words so fast, but I think… I think I might love him. I need time to figure it out and make sure it isn’t the cliché version of a woman who falls in love with and becomes clingy with the first man she has sex with.

  Knowing the clock is ticking, I can’t get into my head too much or I’ll be thinking all night instead of getting dressed. When he comes to get me, I’ll look homely in my plaid shirt. I wonder if he finds it embarrassing to me seen with me because of my clothes…

  “No, don’t think like that. Don’t get in your head,” I say, then peel back the tissue paper. Immediately, tears fill my eyes when I see a velvet box. It’s a large square, something a necklace could fit in, and the box itself is sapphire blue velvet. He loves to color coordinate. The blue matches the lights inside the Lussuria.

  Opening the box, I scream and toss it on the bed. “Oh my god. Holy cow, oh man,” I mumble to myself, then peer over to see the shining ruby and diamond necklace sitting with sophistication. “I can’t wear that. What if it falls off my neck?” I lay a hand to my throat, suddenly afraid to even touch the exquisite piece of jewelry. I grab the necklace and lift it out of its home, holding it up to the light. A large ruby hangs in the middle, and the rest of the necklace is all diamonds. I lay it gently on the bed and dig into the box again. I pull out a gorgeous pair of stilettos and admire the red bottoms.

  Christian Louboutin.

  “What if I scuff the bottoms? I can’t wear these either. What is he thinking? This is stuff that stays in the closest. Forever. Without being touched. I’m going to have to talk to him,” I say to myself, pulling out the dress next.

  I’m mesmerized as the satin material slips through my hand. I hurry to the mirror and hold it against my body, blushing when I see how form fitting it is going to be. It’s a gorgeous black satin maxi bodycon dress with thin straps and a plunging neckline. Since my boobs are so small, even then, there won’t be much cleavage.

  I can’t wait to try it on.

  I kick off my shoes, tug off my pants, and get naked in a record amount of time so I can feel the material against my body. Since it’s satin and there is no room for give, it hugs me in all the right places and falls to the tops of my feet. I’m in awe when I stare at myself. I gather my hair and drape it over one shoulder to get a better look.

  I look… beautiful.

  And what’s even better is that I feel it too.

  I twist and turn, admiring myself in the mirror and adjusting my hair, grabbing a few strands to frame my face so it looks effortless and sexy. When I take a step, that’s when I notice the slit that runs all the way up my leg to my hip.

  My. Hip.

  That’s more leg than a damn giraffe!

  I stare at my legs, watching the contrast of my pale skin and the black material. It’s… sexy. How did he know I’d like this? How did he know my size?

  Mateo seems to know better than anyone else, better than I know myself.

  I take slow, tentative steps toward my backpack, so I don’t ruin the dress and unzip the front pocket to grab my makeup bag. I only have mascara, blush, and lip gloss. I hope that is enough for whatever he has planned.

  I add a bit more blush than normal and dab it onto my cheeks, then blend it out with my one and only makeup brush. I put two coats of mascara on, then the tinted pink gloss, and slip on the high heels. Only one part of the outfit remains, and I don’t know if I have the courage to put it on.

  He got it for me. I have to.

  I carry the necklace like a bomb, slow and steady, as I take three steps in front of the mirror. I lift it over my neck, the weight heavier than I ever though a necklace could be and clasp the hook into the loop at the back of my nape.

  The ruby catches the last of the sun; the red reflects like flames.

  Wow.

  I never want to take it off now.

  “Cazzo, you look good enough to eat, Stellina.”

  I spin around to see him standing in the doorway, in black shirt, black blazer, black pants, and with a red rose pinned to the left lapel.

  We match.

  “So do you.” I try not to notice that my voice deepened.

  When he takes the first steps toward me, my eyes roam over the tailored suit hugging his fit body. His long legs eat up the distance between us and the scent of the ocean hits me like one of its waves as he stands in front of me.

  He takes my hand and presses it against his cock. “Do you feel what you do to me?”

  “Mateo,” I chide him, yet love that I make him crazy like that.

  “You are beautiful,” he tells me, twisting one of the loose hairs
around his finger. “We better go or I’m going to hike that dress to your hips and ruin it.”

  “You better not. I feel pretty. I never want to take it off. And this necklace! What were you thinking, Mateo? It’s so—”

  “Money isn’t an object when it comes you. I’ll buy you all the necklaces, all the shoes, all the dresses, if that’s what you want. At the end of the day, I just want you.” He is careful as he kisses me so he doesn’t mess up my lip gloss. He holds out his elbow for me to grab onto. “I’m ready to show you off. I can’t wait another second.”

  I bite my lip and he growls.

  “What did I say about that?” He gives me soft spank on the butt, drawing a giggle from me. “I love that sound,” he says.

  I love you.

  I keep the statement to myself and have him lead us out the doors and hallways toward the elevator. “What’s the plan for the night?”

  “Grand opening of Club Lussuria. But first, I’m treating you to a gourmet meal, and then you’re going to tell me who taught you to count cards, amore.”

  I almost lose my footing when we enter the elevator and nearly smack my head against the wall. “You knew?” I question, a nervous grip tightening around my throat.

  “Of course I knew. I shouldn’t be surprised with how smart you are. I just want to hear the story of how you learned. After that, I’ll feed you dessert by hand, and then we will go to the club where another surprise awaits. I can’t wait to see your reaction.”

  If he is trying to seduce me, it’s working.

  I’m a woman, after all.

  And he is Mateo Moretti.

  My heart never stood a chance.

  Dio mio.

  She looks fucking incredible. That dress slinks along every inch of her body, tight as a glove, showing just how petite she is. Her breasts are pushed against her chest, creating small mounds curving between the plunging neckline of the dress.