Rafael
After I park my car in the garage, I gather a sleepy Star in my arms, heading for the door that leads to the hallway.
When we get inside she finally notices:
"Where are we, Teo?"
"At our place."
"But I don't live here, and you don't live here either. It's beautiful though." She says as she looks around , taking in the cream and gold marble floors and the ivory walls.
"I'm glad you like it. I got it for us. I'll give you a tour tomorrow, ok?"
The reason I had to personally attend a business deal today was because my agent showed me the estate. This area of Queens is where Ray and I's territories meet. The high walls guarded by our men and the fact that the manor it's secluded in a small forest, assure better security than Star's penthouse, especially given the situation. The east wing connects to a beautiful greenhouse that her black panther will definitely approve of. There's also a little lake somewhere on the property so Ray will be able to be close to a body of water whenever she wishes. I knew from the start that it would be perfect for us, so I made the aqusition. I already had some of our things brought over from our families' houses.
"Mhm". She nuzzles her nose in the crook of my neck inhaling deeply. "Did I tell you how much I love your scent? It's my favorite, you smell like home." I didn't think butterflies were still a thing after reaching adulthood, but she never fails to prove me wrong.
"Really? What other physical trait do you love about me?" I say as I open the bedroom's door, setting her on her feet. She sways a little and grabs onto my forearm for support.
"A lot of things, your eyes, your hair, your cute freckles that I always want to kiss, your smile. But your ass is one of favorite assets of yours. It's honestly unfair how round and toned it is, I feel like taking a bite out of it every time I see it."
"Yeah? " I tease as I lead her towards the bathroom, making her sit on the counter. "And what is your most favorite asset?" I ask as I grab some wet wipes to remove her makeup.
"Well, that would be your dick." Her face pinks up as she makes the admission in a low, secretive voice. She's always been way too honest for her own good while intoxicated. What baffles me is that she'd never spill any of her mafia's intel, however she'd tell you exactly how she feels about you.
"I'm hungryyyy!" Ray whines.
"But you've just eaten on our way here. You made me stop and grab you some pizza from that little restaurant you love." I remind her as I put some toothpaste on the toothbrush. "Open."
"Oh! Right. That was some good pizza." She says giggling, then she opens her mouth allowing me to brush her teeth. "Wouuz vou louve we -"
"Sweetheart, you must spit the toothpaste and rinse your mouth first. I can't understand you otherwise." I give her a glass of water and she does as instructed, then she locks her gaze with mine looking dead serious as she asks:
"Would you still love me if I were a worm?" Her pretty onyx eyes are big, hopeful, even though her question is ridiculous.
"No." I tease, but I regret it as soon as her bottom lip begins to wobble and a tear rolls down her cheek.
"Bh..but you promissed you will never leave me again and that you'll always love me." She sniffs. " An.. and.."
I hug her to me, kissing the top of her head. "I was just kidding, Star, of course I would love you, no matter what."
"Even if I were a worm?" She questions, reciprocating the embrace.
"Even then. I'd put you in a little jar and carry you with me everywhere." I laugh softly. She may be a tough she devil in the mafia world, but with me she's just a big softie. And I'm grateful she allows herself to be vulnerable in my arms. "You're my everything, Star."
"I love you more" She laughs, planting a kiss on my lips. "I'd love you even if you were a mouse. But then I'd have to constantly stop Nyx from eating you." She pouts, scrunching her pretty nose.
Now I'm fully laughing. This woman of mine...
"I want you to tell that to me again when you're sober."
"But I'm not drink, I mean drunk." She pouts.
I shake my head at her.
"Arms up." I request and she does so. I pull off her sports bra, getting a glorious view of her bare breasts. Her light brown nipples tempt me to take them in my mouth, to tease them with my teeth. And I will do so, just not tonight.
I reach for the waistband of her yoga pants, and she raises her ass helping me remove them. When they pass her hips I notice a big dark bruise on her left one. My anger flares.
"Who did this to you? " I ask her, the tone and volume of my voice changing so suddenly that she flinches.
"Oh come on, don't be so dramatic, that's from today's training." She yawns. " After the O'Brien incident I needed to rest for months. When the doctor cleared me for intense physical activity, I've started taking MMA classes with Simon to get back in shape. You of all people should know that bruises are normal in this sport. He's just doing his job."
"I don't care about them being normal. You know I hate seeing you hurt."
"I'll try to be more careful." She assures me, then her face brightens up as if remebering something. She points to her right thigh excitedly. "Look I've got a tattoo. Do you like it."
That she did. I was too distracted to notice it though. Her right thigh-hip area is freshly inked and foiled up. There's a phoenix rising from a bed of flowers, petals falling from the feathers of its tail as if it were ashes, a representation of the Moon phases at the back of its head. The majestique bird is ablaze, its wings fully open.
"Yes. It's a truly beautifull artwork. It suits you, tesoro." She burns just as brightly and is just as resilient. "Let's take shower and then we'll head to bed, ok?"
"Mhm." Her eyelids are already begining to close.
***
I make my way down the stairs looking for Star. I find her in the doorway of the main enterance, wrapping things up with the interior designer she's been working with. The poor lady seems very aware of the huge panther that's sitting at the heels of her owner, licking one of her gigant paws without a care in the world.
"That would be all, Olivia, thank you. I wish you all the best." My fianceé says, smiling brightly, as she shakes the designer's hand.
"It's always a pleasure working with you, Soraya. Have a nice weekend!" The blonde woman responds, heading for her SUV.
While we've only moved here on Monday, Ray hasn't wasted any time. She chose to keep most of the already existing decor but she made small changes, bringing in fragments of us, turning this place into a home. Not to mention she made sure we have enough personnel so everything will run down smoothly.
I wrap an arm around her waist, watching Olivia's car leave trough the gate.
"There you are, tesoro. You forgot your phone in the bedroom. Smith called to let you know he's done as requested and doubled the security for tomorrow."
We're already at the end of April, so the Asphodel Gala will take place the next day. She asked Brandon Smith, the capo resposible for her mafia defenses to asign more guards for the event.
"Good. Can you believe he suggested canceling it? " She scoffs, closing the mahogany door. "That would scream loud and clear that papa and I are cowards unable to hold our own, that we're hiding our heads in the sand at the first sign of danger."
I turn her around to face me. Looking into the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen, I tuck a stray hairstrand behind her ear. " We both know those are lies." But she's right, any display of weakness will be preyed upon. "Are the roofs covered?"
"Of course. Snipers on every surrounding bulding."
"The insiside?"
"All the waiters are my soldiers. Some guards will also be disguised as guests."
"Weapon control?"
We used to play this game where we immagined different scenarios and how to better manage them once she began her training. We'd quizz each other to see if we have everything covered, and make suggestions to improve our plans. Therefore, she's not annoyed by my questions. She only sighs deeply before continuing:
"Metal detectors and body searching at the enterance. I know you'll ask me about the food and drinks next, so just to ease your mind, the cooks are also under the Morellis' payroll. I've had their backgrounds checked and all."
"Good."
As I say that, Nyx nudges Star's leg, demanding her attention. In the past two weeks I've learned that the big feline is in tune with my fianceé's moods, trying to soothe her whenever she feels her sadness or unease. At one point she even ignored me when her owner was mad at me.
"Yes, love, you're my best girl!" Star says, looking down as she pets the midnight black head of fur.
"I must admit, sometimes I'm jealous of her stealing your focus."
She laughs softly, bringing her free hand to my head so she can run it trough my hair. "Better?"
"Much." I respond.
Star smiles, leaning in for a kiss, her pillowy lips moving in sinc with mine, our tongues desperate to taste each other.
Just then, I hear Dante clearing his throat. While he still lives with our parents, he always liked annoying me to no ends, so he spends most of his time here. Ray has already assigned him a room of his own.
"I'm sorry to intrerupt, but we have a pressing problem."
"Of course we do. There's no rest for the wicked, is there D.?" Star asks.
***
First of all, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to my special reader, thedarkling432. Thank you so much for your support and feedback.❤️
That being said,let's get down to business, shall we?
How was the chapter?Did you like it?
Here's the inspo for Soraya's tattoo, I didn't really find something to exactly matches it so feel free to use your immagination.
Don't forget to vote and comment. Thank you for reading!
Kisses,
Julia.