Kidnapped by the Devil

Chapter 26: Carina

"I am so proud of you caro," I say as I embrace Matteo. His fathers business has come a long way. He turned it into one of the most saught after multi-billion dollar construction companies in America. I inhale his strong, yet subtle, colonge and my nerves unwind. He really is someone I never thought would make me this happy. No man has ever made me feel this way.  The things I used to read about him in the paper used to disgust me, but now I can honestly care less about his past. Yes it's made him into a cold person, but I can see that he is changing for the better, especially now that Sophia is in his life. I look up at Matteo's strikingly handsome face. He is far from perfect, but his flaws are what makes him the most perfect man in my eyes. The Fates told Socrates he was the wisest man in the world because he knew that he did not know everything. Matteo is not perfect because he's flawless. He's perfect because he embraces the flaws he does have. The fact that I'm so infatuated with him after just a few weeks shocks me, but it doesn't scare me anymore. If I can do it all over again I would.

"Thank you tesoro. You have no idea how much that means to me coming from you Carina," he says with seriousness as his icy blues dig into the depths of my soul. He's more than the heartless man people make him out to be. Hell I even thought the same way, but now that I really know him, it gives me a different perspective on who Matteo is. He's kind, smart, stubborn, cynical, arrogant, and about everything else I can think of that's infuriatingly fascinating about him. I never thought that anything like this would happen to me.

It seemed like everything after the fire was just going to get worse, but the way Matteo makes me feel and what I have gained being with him has made me feel differently. I have Sophia, and I swear I can see Angela and myself in her. My sister never really was a wild child. She kept to herself, and only got violent when someone picked on me. I love Sophia as if she is Anglea. Occasionally I worry if Matteo still thinks he's going to be the monster that his father was, but then I see him talk to Sophia and I can tell that he is no longer consumed by those worries.

"Dance with me," Matteo asks hopefully, interuppting my thoughts. I smile and give him my hand. He leads me to the dance floor that is slowly starting to fill with other guests. His eyes aren't scanning our surroundings like they usually do. No, they're planted on me. My body burns to life and my stomach fills with butterflies like they always do when Matteo and I are together. "You are so beautiful," he whispers sweetly in my ear. I blush and smile softly. He makes me feel like a high school girl talking to the boy she has big crush on.

"Thank you Matteo," I say softly. Only he can make me the shyest person. He chuckles and chills go down my spine. My abdomen clenches and I becomes moist as our bodies sway to the music. I deliriously look everywhere, but at Matteo and my eyes land on a young couple dancing. "Look at Sophia," I chirp happily. She's dancing with Jessica's little shit of a brother Cooper, and she looks like she's having a good time. Matteo turns his head and looks at them. I feel his muscular frame tense once he realizes who Sophia's dancing with. I swear he can be a real caveman sometimes with how possessive he is. I don't want him interfering with what looks to be Sophia's first dance with a boy, so I tighten my grip on his arms. "Don't you dare ruin this for her darling. She is doing fine. Have trust in her," I say firmly. I know what it feels like to be embarrassed and I don't want Sophia to go through that. It looks like Cooper doesn't mean her any harm anyways. Matteo looks down at me and then back at the young couple. She has the biggest smile on her face. Her eyes twinkle with happiness and her cheeks are tinted a deep shade of pink. Matteo's body relaxes as the tension leaves his body. He looks down at me and we continue to sway as the soft music plays.

"She looks happy so I will not ruin it, but I don't like the way he's looking at her," he says bitterly. I guess I'm going to have to be happy with that, because I know Matteo isn't going to let it go. Sophia is his little sister – hell Angelo used to scare the shit out of guys who dared to look at me in any kind of way. He fought a couple of them too! Matteo is protective over Sophia, especially after what happened with Bryson. That's completely understandable, but I'm not going to have him embarrass her. He should trust her, whether he likes Cooper or not.