Totally Devoted

by Wanitta Praks

  “Good idea. Thanks for the suggestion. I was going to go buy groceries myself, but after that kidnapping incident, I think it’s wise if I lay low for a bit.”

  “You’re very smart, Jenny. That’s why Boss loves and trusts you,” Bobby said, and my face just blushed a raspberry red. I really did hope Giovanni loved me to bits because I was smart.

  “Oh, shit!” Bobby yelped as soon as he looked at his watch. “I’ve been here for almost fifteen minutes. Boss wants me to find that loan document, but I got sidetracked.”

  “Just tell him you’re chatting with me. So fried rice it is, then?”

  “Yep.”

  “Superb. You go on up.” I ushered Bobby out of the kitchen. “I’ll just stare at the fridge for a bit longer. Need to figure out more ingredients.”

  “You do that. Make sure you don’t freeze to death.”

  “I won’t.”

  After Bobby left, I messaged Jonny for him and Finnie to get those ingredients, when the doorbell jerked me out of my task. I quickly finished the message and sprinted to the gate, glad to have something to do while waiting for the groceries to arrive.

  “Oh, a delivery,” I muttered to myself as soon as I got near the gate. I greeted the delivery man. “Hello, sir.”

  “Oh, hello, miss.” The delivery man was startled, probably surprised by how I had addressed him. He was a true professional though, only taking less than three seconds to compose himself. “Please sign here.”

  He handed me his tablet, and I sprawled my signature on it. Maybe I should learn how to sign properly. From this angle, my signature resembled a scribble, but the kind delivery man didn’t seem to notice it. He smiled at me and handed me a bunch of flowers.

  “Thank you,” I said, watching him leave before making my way back into the house.

  Flowers. I wonder who they’re for.

  I got into the kitchen and examined the bouquet. I wonder whose they’re from.

  A sudden thought hit me square in the face.

  Crap! Don’t tell me I have a secret admirer. Shit! If Giovanni found out, I’d be in deep shit.

  Wait! Why did I think that? I wasn’t having an affair behind his back. I was truly devoted to him. There was no one else in my life. Surely, I had no need to panic.

  I checked the bouquet, looking for clues as to who it might be from, and sure enough, I found an envelope, wedged in between the flowers. Sealed within that envelope felt like a card. I turned the envelope over for closer inspection. There was only one line written on it.

  * * *

  Happy Birthday, Giovanni.

  * * *

  Love, Mom.

  * * *

  My world toppled, and I crashed onto the sofa from behind.

  Giovanni. My Gio has a mother?

  Well, that’s common knowledge, since he couldn’t have been born out of a rock, but still…

  How come I didn’t know Gio has a mother? He’d never mentioned it before. And on top of that, his birthday was today? I thought his birthday wasn’t due yet. Well, it would be in the next few weeks, but certainly not today.

  I whipped my mobile phone out of my pocket and speed-dialed the person who I knew would know the answer. He picked up on the first ring.

  “Dawson, I need your help,” I shouted into the phone.

  “Jenny. What’s up? How’s Giovanni? Is he still black and blue? And your sister?”

  I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t call him up to talk about them. “Yes, they are fine. Giovanni is fine. He’s upstairs working. And Amelia is resting, probably having an afternoon nap.”

  “That’s good. Really good. So, what do you need my help with? I’m at your service.”

  I got straight to the point. “Dawson, is today Giovanni’s birthday?” There was silence at the other end of the line. I probed him. “Dawson. Is it?”

  Instead of answering my question, he asked me back, “How do you know?”

  It should be a question that any girlfriend or lover could answer off the bat. I mean, we were lovers for crying out loud. We were intimate. These kinds of things, one should know during the dating phase. But our love didn’t really start off with dates and so on. I was his maid. And now I suddenly realized that I didn’t know anything about his private life. Giovanni had never mentioned any of those things. Things like birthdays and his parents, I hadn’t a clue. The only way I’d found out about his birthday was because I had to bribe the information out of his underlings. So did the guys assume the wrong date, too? Or was this bouquet of flowers a prank from someone who claimed to be his mother?

  “I got a bouquet of flowers delivered just a few minutes ago. The card says they’re from his mom,” I explained to Dawson.

  Me uttering the word mom had Dawson sucking in his breath, and I knew right away that I’d hit a sensitive topic.

  “Does Gio have a mother?” I asked again. “No. What I mean is, is she still alive?”

  “Ummm…” Dawson didn’t know how to respond. He was making all these weird noises, like he was clearing his throat or something. After hesitating a bit more, he finally spoke. “If I say yes, do you think Giovanni would kill me?”

  And that was all the answer I needed to hear. The startling truth hit me square in the face. This card really was from his mother.

  This sucked. I thought I knew everything about my boyfriend, but clearly this was not the case. I knew absolutely nothing about him. Apart from his life as a mafia and a businessman, I’d no clue about him at all. Like his real parents for example, or his real birthday, or any other special events in his life.

  I brought my feet up on the couch and huddled my legs, biting my fingernail to ease that ache in my heart.

  The past we’d shared when we were younger, I’d forgotten due to my accident. We finally met again under unusual circumstances; I became his maid. But I was already eighteen. There was already a fourteen-year gap where I had absolutely no idea what happened in Giovanni’s life. On top of that, I still was unsure whether I was really his one and only Jennifer.

  Was I not important to him? Was that why he never shared any memories of his past with me?

  The thought pained me. I wished he’d open himself up to me. I wished he’d share his joy and all his past memories with me. I wanted to know.

  “Jenny. Can I give you a word of advice?” Dawson’s voice geared me back to reality.

  “Yes, Dawson.”

  “These kinds of topics. It’s best to talk to him about it yourself. I’m sure there must be a reason why he doesn’t talk about it to you.”

  Dawson was right. These topics were meant to be discussed with one’s lover, but I couldn’t help feeling envious of everyone around him. Dawson, Justin, Bobby, Finnie, Heath, and Jonny. Heck, even Lorenzo. Everyone who had a past with Giovanni seemed to know almost everything about him. Except for me.

  I picked up the bouquet and took to the stairs, approaching his office at the first door down. I knocked, then waited to be called in. Once I heard Giovanni’s voice, I poked my head through. “Gio. Are you free? Can I talk to you for a sec—” There were some businessmen in blue suits sitting around the table. They were busy negotiating something. “Oh, sorry. Didn’t mean to interrupt. We can talk after dinner.”

  I was about to duck my head out when Giovanni ushered me inside.

  “No, Jay. Come on in,” he said in the sweetest tone I’d heard. There was so much love and sincerity in that voice, if I had wings I’d float right onto his lap and kiss him senseless. But his tone completely changed the second he eyed everyone else in the room. “Everyone. Get out.”

  “But Boss, we are in the middle of our negotiation,” Bobby said.

  “I said we will resume later,” Giovanni yelled. “Now get out. All of you.”

  I waited for everyone to leave, seeing Bobby and mouthing a sorry in his direction. He mouthed back, “No problem. We’re just glad to get a break.” And they were off, downstairs, properly making themselves cups of coffee. I hea
ded inside.

  “Ahh, Jay. Come here. Come sit on my lap. What’s the problem? You don’t look too happy. Ahhh. Are those flowers for me?” He asked, his eyes brightening up as soon as he saw the bouquet in my hand.

  “Ummm. Yes. Actually, they are,” I said, giving him the flowers.

  “Oh, how do you know my favorite flowers are roses?” he said, bringing the roses to his nose, taking in a few wafts of the scent while he stared intensely at me.

  I’d seen that look before. He wanted to fuck me. And before I knew it, he jerked me down and had me in his lap, winding his strong arms around me in a fierce hug.

  “Thank you, Jay. My beloved. My sweet bunny.” And he kissed me on my nose, my cheeks, and my mouth. His eyes sparkled with so much love, I hated to break the truth to him.

  “The bouquet is from your mom.”

  Chapter 11

  A Family Affair Part 2

  Giovanni’s warm sweet smile was suddenly wiped off his face the second he heard the word mom. He stood up, sliding me off his lap, and went to the trash bin, shoving the flowers into it with a loud clang, and my heart almost leaped out of my chest. Then he came back, sat on his chair, and resumed work.

  “What’s for dinner?” he asked indifferently, his eyes glued to the laptop screen.

  “Fried rice,” I replied, watching his change of demeanor.

  “Good. I like fried rice. But no seafood.”

  “I know. Do you dislike anything else? Is there any other food you are allergic to?”

  “No, nothing in particular. Just seafood.”

  “Is there anything you don’t like to eat?”

  “No.”

  “Do you like cheese?”

  He slammed his laptop down and stared me straight in the eye. “Jay, what’s with the one hundred and one questions all of a sudden?”

  “You don’t talk much about yourself, do you?” I asked, sadly watching him get frustrated.

  “What is there to talk about?” He roughly combed fingers through his hair, and I could tell he was really upset.

  “I don’t know,” I said. “Anything really. I just want to listen to you talk about yourself. Like what you were like in the past.”

  “Well, there’s nothing to talk about. Especially about the past. Everything that you need to know about me, you know already.” And Giovanni went silent, stone-cold. I knew then he was really mad.

  He was one of those people who got loud when cranky but when totally mad, he was as cold as ice.

  I sat on the arm of his chair, sliding my hands onto his shoulders, feeling his muscles tense up. I massaged his shoulders in an effort to relax him. He somewhat relaxed under my ministration, but he still stayed silent. I decided to take action first.

  “I’m sorry, Gio,” I apologized, resting my head on his broad back. “I didn’t mean to make you upset.”

  He didn’t say anything at first. But I could feel he was calming, and after a small while, he said. “It’s not your fault.”

  He tugged me forward, and I slipped off the armchair and into his lap. He cuddled me, bringing his head to bury between my head and shoulder. “Why do you want to know my past so much?”

  “Because… You are important to me. And I thought I was your special someone. And if I’m your special someone, maybe I have the right to know about your past. I’m jealous of your friends. They seem to know everything about you. I feel like I’m the only one who doesn’t know what they were talking about. Take for example yesterday. Dawson and Justin started talking about fights and how you and Lorenzo were friends or something. I was so clueless in their conversation, and I just felt weird. Like I’m the only stupid one who doesn’t know what everyone is talking about. Even the guys know more about you. You said I’m your Jennifer and I believed you, even when I wasn’t sure myself. But I trust you. I just wish you could trust me too. I just wish you would tell me about your past. I want to know more about you, learn of what makes you happy, of what makes you sad. I want to know more about your family, of what you were like when you were a teenage boy, or when you were my age. What you were doing. What you were studying. I want to—”

  “You want to know everything about me. Is that it?” He deadpanned as he came to that conclusion. And I came to realize what I was asking of him.

  “Oh, God! What am I saying?” I jumped out of his lap and started walking backward toward the door, profusely apologizing to him. “I’m sorry, Gio. I don’t know what came over me. Why am I saying these things now?”

  “Jay, come here.”

  Giovanni gestured for me to return, but I just kept walking backward, until my back hit the door. “It doesn’t matter anymore. Whatever it is that’s in the past, let it be in the past. I don’t need to know.”

  “Jay, I said come here,” he growled, and when I didn’t follow his command, he stalked toward me, a deep scowl on his face.

  I just kept talking. Once I was on a roll, I couldn’t stop. “As your lover, I should respect your decision. It was stupid of me to just blabber out questions without acknowledging the time and place. I mean, my goodness, you were working, and I was interrupting you. I’m sorry for wasting your time. Must be one of my silly hormone moments. No. Just chalk it up to youthful indiscretion. Let’s forget about it.” I turned around to leave, my hand already on the doorknob. “You go back to work. I’m going to make dinner. Fried rice and—”

  Bang! The door slammed shut in my face.

  Giovanni grabbed me from behind and deposited his head at the nape of my neck. He cuddled me so tight, I felt every little bit of him.

  “I have a mother,” he said. “But we don’t get along. I also have a stepbrother. I don’t really remember what he looks like anymore. At the age of fourteen, I left home. Was homeless for about six months. Did some shit stuff just to survive. When I turned fifteen, I met old man Dente. He gave me his last name. Adopted me as his son. I worked my way up until I became clan leader. I was given this house as promotion a few years back. And that’s about it in a nutshell.”

  “Oh my God, Gio, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean for you to relive those harsh memories.”

  “Like you said, you’re my special someone, which makes you a very important person to me. You are precious to me. And as my lover, you have full access to me. I’m an open book to you, Jay. I have nothing to hide. Ask me anything you want.”

  I fiddled with his cuff sleeve, scared to even mention that word again. But he gave me full access. I decided to be brave. “So…that card…it’s really from your mom?”

  “Yep!”

  “And, today… today really is your birthday?”

  “On my birth certificate, yep! I turn twenty-nine today. But I celebrate my birthday on the date old man Dente adopted me, which will be in a few weeks’ time.”

  “Then…then…what do you want for your birthday? I mean, today. Right now. Oh, why am I asking? I haven’t got any gifts for you. Actually, wait, I do. I went to buy you a watch with my savings. But when Lorenzo’s gang kidnapped me, I must have lost it. Now I don’t have—”

  He shushed me with his finger. “Jay. You don’t have to give me materialistic stuff. What I want is something only you can give me.”

  “Really? What is it? Oh, I know. I make a mean fried rice. I’ll make that as your birthday present. And I promise I won’t tell the guys and Amelia that today is your birthday. It can be our little secret. You’ll get to celebrate two birthdays every year. One just with me, and one with everyone else.”

  I struggled out of his arms, my hand already opening the door, when Giovanni slammed the door shut again. He spun me around so fast my head was already spinning and when I caught my bearings again, his mouth was already on me, sucking out my life and my entire soul. He pressed me into the door, one hand busy molding my breast, the other cradling my head to gain better access to my mouth. I moaned, heat raking up my core and entire being. I was on fire. I was spinning out of control. I was—

  He pulled back and gave
me a shit-eating grin.

  “Gio. You made me hot,” I whined, wanting another taste of his lips.

  “And what are you going to do about it?” he teased.

  “I…”

  “I what?”

  I was thinking. A light popped on in my head. “I know what I’m going to give to you for your birthday today.”

  “And what’s that?”

  I pointed to myself. “Me.”

  “You?” He raised his eyebrow at my answer.

  “Yep.” I nodded my head, adamant that this was what I was going to do. “I’m going to give myself to you.”

  “And how are you going to do that?” He smiled, enjoying the moment.

  “I’m going to make love to you.”

  “Oh, now we’re talking. I’m getting interested.”

  “You should be. Because in the next one hour, I’m going to take you to heaven.”

  “Wow. I can’t wait.” And he went to lie down, flat on the couch. When I didn’t move from my spot, he gestured for me to come over. “Well? I’m ready and waiting. Let’s take me to heaven.”

  I walked over to the couch, climbed on top, and straddled him. He gave me a lopsided grin. “Aren’t you going to strip?”

  “Nope. I’m not going to strip. But I’m going to strip you.”

  “Wow. I’ll like that.”

  “Yes, you will.”

  And I started by untying my bun and letting my long loose curls become carefree. I roughly combed fingers through my hair to appear seductive. Planting both hands on either side of his head, I inched my face so close, our noses literally rubbed.

  “Be prepared, Gio.” I watched his black irises gazing back at me. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Your lover, Jay Jenny Bunny Stone, aka, your ex-maid, will give you the most mind-blowing, heart-pounding, blood-surging sex you’ve ever experienced in your entire lifetime.”

  Giovanni smirked, and I started my mission, first by unbuttoning his pristine white shirt. One button then two, all the way down until there was no more left. I pulled his shirt apart, and my eyes feasted on the galore of his massive chest, broad shoulders, and six-pack abs. I was the luckiest girl alive to have such a hot handsome man as my lover.