Maya's P.O.V
I yawned, stretching my limbs. I was still lying on the bed but Massimo wasn't there beside me anymore, and I had a comforter covering my body. I was still only wearing my bathrobe.
I lazily stood up from lying position. As I looked up at the wall clock it showed that it was 10 a.m. in the morning. I pushed the comforter away and put my feets down on the ground.
A shy smile came up on my lips as I remembered what had happened last night. I blushed as I thought back to things Massimo did to me last night. I also remembered how gentle and different he was, a good different. My heart skipped a beat as I also remembered the last thought I had on my mind before drifting to sleep.
I have fallen for him...
***
After brushing my teeths and doing my morning routine I made my way downstairs to have some breakfast.
As I reached the dining room my steps slowed down when I heard Massimo's deep husky voice. He was saying something to Enzo, more like ordering something in Italian. I couldn't help but to feel hot.
Also, after what had happened last night I didn't know how I was going to face him without thinking back to what he did to me last night.
"Good morning." I greeted everyone as I made my way inside. I smiled up at Martha & Gaby as they gave me their warm motherly smiles. I could feel his eyes on me the moment I walked in.
I made my way directly over to my seat, which was next to Massimo's seat. "Good morning tesoro." Said Enzo who was busy stuffing his face with food but still managed to greet me. I gave him a smile in return.
"I hope you're alright cara. I heard about what happened last night." As Martha said that I almost choked on air.
I knew from that she meant the attack that had happened and not what had happened in my bedroom, but my stupid mind still had to do the overthinking!
"I um I'm fine." I said simply, trying not to blush. I could still feel his eyes on me. And sure enough when I casually looked at him he was looking at me and that too with a smirk on his face!
Ignoring his gaze I started to fill my plate with food since I was hungry. The plate of food that Massimo had brought for me last night, I couldn't actually eat it, because I never got the chance. 'And who's responsible for that?'
I started to eat my breakfast in peace. I took a buttered toast and as I was about to put it into my mouth, my hand halted midway. My eyes immediately looked up at him. I cleared my throat to gather his attention and to also tell him to remove his hand from my thigh. My eyes slightly narrowed when I saw him eating his food casually as if he didn't do anything!
With one hand he was eating casually and his other hand was under the table. If you looked at him it would look like he was just resting his hand on his leg, but in reality it was my thigh that he was resting his hand on!
Since he was not pulling his hand away I thought to just pull my leg away but before I could he grabbed my thigh. I slightly jolted but immediately made it look like I was just adjusting my seat. I sighed when no one noticed.
I heard his slight chuckle to which I glared at him, but what he did next made my heart flutter. He just gave me a playful smile and winked at me. I gulped as I saw that playfully, carefree look on his face. 'He can look so cute when he wants to!'
"Is something wrong amore?" He then asked me in a fake serious tone. That gathered everyone's attention. I wanted to curse him but I just gave him a fake smile, "I'm absolutely fine."
My eyes slightly widened when he then started to caress my thigh under the table. I looked down and just tried to focus on my food. "Are you sure?" I wanted to groan. "Because to me you look quite tensed." I looked up at him, looking straight into his eyes I licked my lips as I said, "I'm damn sure that I'm fine Massimo." I smirked inwardly as I saw his eyes going a bit dark at the way I said his name.
"Mio dio....can you two not do this while we're eating." Said Enzo. "The sexual tension is too much to handle!" I blushed at his choice of words.
I sighed inwardly when Massimo took his hand away from my thigh. After that we fell into silence and ate our food in peace.
***
I hummed as I walked around the mansion. Since that was what I'd usually do. I sighed as I thought back to what had happened in my life in those past few months. It had been 5 months now since I had arrived here. At first I wanted to leave this place, because obviously like any other sane person I wanted to go back to live my old life as I desired, and not to be caged in the mansion. But since I now had a problem over me named Dino Ivanov, I couldn't have just gone back to my life, atleast not until Massimo had taken care of it.
The other day when I requested Enzo that I wanted to talk to my friends and let them know that I was fine, he declined saying that involving my friends into this would put their lives into danger. Since they were dear to me, if Ivanov found out about them he could have used them to get to me. So, for now it was better for me to stay MIA.
"Trouble in paradise?" I turned around to look at Massimo, who was leaning against a wall with his arms folded in front. He looked hot.
I shrugged my shoulders. "I was just thinking." He stood stand and started to walk towards me. "About what?" He asked.
I sat down on the nearby chair. "Nothing just about how my life has changed in these past few months."
I looked up at Massimo as he stood in front of me, offering his hand to take. I furrowed my eyebrows as I eyed his hand. "Come." Was all he said while still offering his hand.
I bit down on my lip as I put my hand in his and stood up from the chair. He slightly squeezed my hand and then started to walk. With confusion as to where he was taking me, I followed him.
As we were walking, I noticed how he was taking me to a part of mansion I had not been to before. It wasn't like I didn't want to but everytime I tried Massimo's men would stop, saying no one was allowed to go there.
That area of mansion was just like the other areas but it was a little dusty as if not even cleaners were allowed to be in that part of the mansion.
"Where are we going?" I asked. Now, I wasn't scared because I knew that Massimo would never put me into any danger. But I was still a bit anxious as to why he was taking me to a place where no one was allowed to go.
"Just keep following me." Was all he said. He left my hand as we then reached in front of a room. I saw him pulling out what looked like a key from his pocket. He looked at me and then back at the door of the room. I saw him contemplating as to whether he should open it or not. My confusion intensified. 'What's behind this door? What's this room?'
Finally he put the key inside the door lock and with a click the door got unlocked. I saw him giving the door a slight push as if it was a little difficult to open. The moment the room got unlocked all I could see was darkness. I heard Massimo sighing beside me as he stood there.
"What place is this?" I asked as I tried to figure out what room was that but since it was all dark inside, I couldn't see anything properly.
Massimo didn't say anything and just started to walk inside the room. I stood there watching him go inside, contemplating if I should follow him. Before I could, Massimo halted and turned towards me, "Come inside." And with that I also started to walk inside the room as well.
It was day time so the darkness wasn't the creepy one that you get to see during night. It was the kind of darkness you see in a room where there's no natural light coming. As I was thinking all this, Massimo went to a corner and then he with a swift motion pulled the curtains away that I didn't see there until now, and with that the room lit up with natural light.
Following the rays of light, when I moved my gaze away from the curtains & towards the surroundings of the room I almost gasped. The room had to be the most huge and massive room in the entire mansion. The ceiling was high than any other room ceiling there. But that wasn't what caught my eyes, it was the paintings or should I say beautiful paintings hanging and lying all around the room!
It looked like something that had come out of an art exhibition. All the paintings were beautifully designed and painted with different kinds of colours & patterns.
I chuckled in astonishment. "This is...um..WOW!" Was all I could say.
When I heard no response I looked back at him only to find him standing near a particular painting. It was a beautiful painting of the flowers lavenders.
I walked towards him as I saw him taking in the beauty of that painting. I saw how his hand was hovering over the painting but not actually touching it, as if he was afraid that he'd ruin it.
"This is all so beautiful." I said as I now stood by his side. "I didn't know that a person like you could be in art." I teased him.
"You're right. A person like me could not be in something as sensitive and pure as art." He replied as he looked at me. And as I saw him I could swear I saw his eyes going a little vulnerable. "Because these are not mine." He then added. "They are my mamma's."
As he said that I immediately understood why he was looking at the paintings especially that Lavender painting with so many emotions in his eyes. He missed his mum.
"Your mother was so talented. All of these, they're so gorgeous and beautiful." I said as I looked around at all of the paintings.
"Ya she was." Was all he said. I felt something in my heart as I saw that vulnerable look on his face. "If you um don't mind can you - can you tell me more about your mother?" I didn't know why I said that but I felt right so I just did.
He looked at me with his dark brown eyes, eyes that held so many emotions in them. I gave him a slight but genuine smile to which he suprisingly smiled back. And not a smirk or sly grin but a real genuine smile!
'Progress!'
I looked down at my hand as he again took it in one of his and without any doubt I followed him. He took me towards a couch that was lying in one corner of the room. We both sat down face to face on the couch.
I kept my eyes on him as his gaze moved towards all the gorgeous paintings surrounding us. As if sensing my gaze his eyes landed on me, making our gaze to collide with each other. But I didn't look away, instead we held each other's gaze.
"My mother was the most beautiful, innocent, kind yet a fiesty woman I had ever seen." He stated as he chuckled a little. "From what I know, she met my father when he was attending some business meeting in Russia." As he said that I couldn't help but to ask, "Your mother was Russian?"
He nodded. "Yes, she was. Her name was Nina." He then continued, "So, as I was saying my parents first met each other in Russia."
"Oh so it was love at first sight?" I asked now getting a little excited.
"For my father, yes but for my mother it was a different story." He said and that slight smirk he gave in the end was enough to make me more excited.
"I remember her telling me how at first she didn't like my father at all." He chuckled slightly. "Instead she thought of him as some psycho, because my father then started to follow her everywhere." At this, I furrowed my eyebrows. "Oh no he didn't do anything he wasn't supposed to. He was just following her discreetly because he was afraid to confront her." Oh okay.
"What happened after that? Did your father finally confront his feelings to your mother and got married to her?" I asked but slightly blushed when I realised I must've sounded desperate to know.
He shook his head with a faint smile on his face. "No, it wasn't that easy." I again furrowed my eyebrows. "Just know, that at that time my father wasn't in a position where he could just confront his feelings to my mother."
"Oh." Was all I said.
"But nevertheless they actually got married you know." He then said. "I was actually in my mamma's womb when my father married her." A smile half sad half happy came on his lips. "I had seen my father all authoritative and intimidating but in front of her he would become an entirely different person. " I smiled at this. "He couldn't go even a single minute without her. Sometimes even mamma would get irritated by him." He chuckled slightly. "But she loved him as much as he loved her."
"They sound so much in love." I said to which he looked at me and my heart broke a little when I again saw that vulnerable look on his face.
"They were very much in love with each other." I blinked my eyes as I tried not to cry. "He still is." I said as I remembered that day when Mr. Romano was here. The small time that I had got to spend with him, I had noticed how he was all happy & witty with others around but the moment he was alone he'd become a little different, a lone sad person. I had unknowingly witnessed him having an emotional moment, where he was sitting on a chair with a photo frame close to his chest. I was not close by but even from the distance I could see his blurry eyes while he caressed the photo frame.
I came out of my thoughts as I felt a hand on my cheek. I blinked my eyes when I realised that I was crying. Massimo came a little closer to me as he started to wipe my tears with his thumb.
"Why are you crying?" He asked.
"Nothing I-I just um it's alright. I'm fine." I said since I didn't know what to say. "I think we should go back. It's almost afternoon and I um feeling a little hungry." I blushed as I said that to which he just smiled at me. 'I know I've said how he looked hot when he smirks but, Oh lord when he smiles I get butterflies!'
"Come." He said as he stood up from the couch. He again offered me his hand that I took happily. "Let's get you some food." And with that we left the room.
***
"What would you like to eat for lunch mia cara?" Asked Martha as I munched on some nuts that she had given me since I was hungry and the lunch wasn't ready yet.
"Um anything. I mean you ladies make everything delicious." I simply said with a shrug.
After taking a little peek-a-boo of that room, Massimo had brought me to the kitchen and excused himself saying he had something to attend but he'd join us in a while.
"By the way those paintings, they shouldn't be locked in a room like that." I said still munching.
"Paintings, what paintings?" Gabrielle asked with furrowed eyebrows.
"I'm talking about those gorgeous paintings by Massimo's mother, Mrs. Romano." As I said that their moments got halted.
"You know about them?" Martha put the vegetables that she was cutting aside. Gaby also put her attention on me. "Um ya." I said simply. 'Why do they look so surprised?'
"Oh also that room, it was locked. I mean why would you lock paintings this beautiful in a room?" I looked at them with confusion as they gave me surprised looks.
"You went inside that room?" Asked Gaby. "Um ya, I mean not by myself, Massimo took me with him." I said, still having no idea why that was so surprising to them.
"Nostro figlio si è sicuramente innamorato di lei!" Gaby said with a wide smile on her face.
(Our son has definitely fell hard for her!)
Martha returned her smile with hers as she said, "Non vedo l'ora che si sposino e abbiano figli!"
(I can't wait for them to get married and have children!)
At this Gaby chuckled. "Lascia che escano prima a un appuntamento." And with that they both started to chuckle as if they just cracked some inside joke.
(Let them go out on a date first)
"Um can someone tell me what's the matter?" I asked since I wanted to know what inside joke they just cracked😐
They both continued doing their work. "Nothing cara. We were just talking about how not once you've had pizza here since you arrived." As Gaby said that I realised that she was right! How could I not eat pizza in Italy!
"So are you ladies going to make pizza for lunch?" I asked as I licked my lips.
"We would love to but the ingredients for pizza aren't available here actually." I literally pouted as she said that.
"Then why did you mention pizza if you weren't going to make it in the first place." I mumbled. 'Now I really feel like eating pizza!'
I playfully glared at them as they chuckled at me. "Stop sulking like a child mia cara. So what if ingredients aren't here, this doesn't mean you can't have pizza." My soul literally jolted with happiness as Martha said that.
'I can be overdramatic sometimes😐'
Before I could say something I heard his voice from the distance. He was on a phone call, talking in his rough husky voice. "...prendere tutti gli accordi necessari entro la mattinata." And with that he ended the call.
(make all the necessary arrangements by the morning.)
From my place I saw him walking further inside the kitchen. He made his way towards the fridge and then took a water bottle out. I watched him shamelessly as he gulped down the water from the bottle. His lips moulded against the bottle, his adam's apple that was moving up and down with every gulp, it was a sight to behold.
I came out of my thoughts as a loud clearing of throat sounded. I looked away from him, blushed since Martha & Gaby definitely saw me eyeing Massimo. From my peripheral vision, I saw him coming my way.
"Is your hunger cured?" I made eye-contact with his eyes as he asked me that. "Um working on it." I said gesturing towards the ladies, who were preparing the lunch.
"Actually..." Said Martha. "We were thinking how about pizza for the lunch?"
"Pizza sounds great." Massimo simply said as he casually took the half-eaten cherry from my hand and put it into his mouth.
"But we can't make it here. We don't have ingredients for that." She repeated what she said earlier.
"Nonsense." Massimo said as if he just heard something unbelievable. "And even if they're not here you can just go get those ingredients from the pant-." And before he could finish his sentence a basket accidentally fell from the countertop.
"Oops." Martha said as she gave us a sheepish smile. "I've gotten an oldy now, has become difficult to handle heavy things." She exclaimed, trying to lift a pressure cooker while huffing as if it weighed 1000kgs.
I heard Massimo scoffed and when I looked at him, he was looking at them with an accusing glare. "Cosa state combinando voi due questa volta?"
(What are you two up to this time?)
"Oh figliolo, siamo solo due vecchie signore. cosa potremmo mai fare?" Martha said amusingly.
(Oh son, we're just two old ladies. What could we possibly do?)
"I really need to learn Italian if I'm going to be here for a while." I said, cutting their international conversation. I was obviously being sarcastic. As much as I'd love to learn a new language, but there was no way I could actually learn Italian. It sounded so difficult, so it would definitely be more difficult to actually speak!
"That's actually a very good idea." Said Massimo as he gave me his infamous sly smirk. "I mean I can feel how irritated it could get when you don't know what others are talking around you since you don't understand a word." I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Ha ha you think this is funny." I said still narrowing my eyes at him.
"Oh no mio amore I absolutely don't think this is funny." He said trying to look serious. "You know what I think you should start taking Italian speaking lessons." He said in all seriousness but it all gave away when he then slightly smirked at me to which I rolled my eyes at him.
"Whatever." I said and was about to walk away when he put his hand over my shoulder. I halted in my place as I looked at where he was touching me.
"We will have pizza for lunch." He said looking at me intensely. "So what if ingredients aren't available here, we can go out and eat."
"But after yesterday night..." I blushed as my mind wandered towards the night. "I mean to say after the fight that happened yesterday, would it be safe to go outside?" I asked.
"Don't worry about the safety amore." He said as he slightly caressed my shoulder. "Besides where I'm taking you, it is the safest place to have pizza." I furrowed my eyebrows at this. 'What does that mean?'
"Don't overthink. Just come with me." He said, pulling his hand away from my shoulder and offered me his hand to take.
'What's with him and offering hand today?'
*********
A/N : Finally.....another chapter done! It was really hard for me to complete it since I just couldn't figure out how to end it.
(Why do I get so much Writer's block?!🙄)
So, how was it? Did you like this chapter?
Also, more progress in between Massimo & Maya!!😀
What do you think Martha & Gaby are trying to do? Are they playing cupid again?😁💕
You'll see much more progress in their relationship- communication wise, and other stuff too!😉
THANK YOU FOR MAKING THIS BOOK REACH 40K READS!! THAT'S A FUKIN LOT!! SO THANK YOU ALL!!💛
Apologies for errors or mistakes.
PLEASE DO VOTE!!⭐
Thank you💕
All the love
~G🤗