{TRIGGER WARNING! EXPLICIT CONTENT! DO NOT READ IF YOU CAN'T HANDLE IT, THANK YOU! Otherwise, enjoy!}
Ariana takes a seat across from Valentina and waits for her daughter to look at her, while I awkwardly stay behind Valentina.
'Please do sit down, you're making me nervous.' Ariana says, looking directly at me. I nod and take a seat next to Valentina, feeling her tense by the second.
'Explain why you didn't tell me before, please.'
I stare at Ariana, trying to see if she's angry or disappointed. But she's not.
She's just curious and worried. No anger or disappointment anywhere, which makes me worry a little less about how this could end up.
'How do you even know-' 'Stop avoiding the question, Cataleya.' Ariana says, keeping her eyes on her daughter.
Valentina looks at me for a second, silently asking me for permission to tell her mother about what happened.
About me.
I would give everything to start over with her mother and just keep her out of this, but it's impossible.
She was going to find out at some point, I just didn't think it was going to be now.
But I nod and watch as she turns back to her mother, sighing deeply. 'It all happened when-' 'I'm not asking about how it happened, I'm asking you why you didn't tell me before.'
'Because I couldn't tell you.'
'Why not?' Ariana asks, even though she probably already knows. 'It's not safe.'
Ariana turns to me now, staring right into my fucking soul. 'Are you putting her in danger?'
I would never... But I did.
'He's not.' Valentina answers instead, making her mom turn to her again. 'Cataleya, I don't see why you couldn't just tell me.'
'Who told you?' Valentina asks, putting all her energy in her body as she moves to the edge of her seat. 'Neveah.'
North... I'm going to fucking kill- 'Why?' Ariana scrolls through her phone and places it on the table.
I stare at the phone and almost laugh at the picture on it.
The picture TMZ took just outside Le Carmen.
The one almost everyone in the world saw already.
The one where I'm trying to keep her face out of the picture, but it failed miserably.
'When you left with Hunter, I did some research because nothing was adding up.' Ariana starts, keeping her eyes on Valentina the entire time.
Not that Valentina notices, because she's too focused on the picture. Probably trying to avoid eye contact with her mother at all costs.
'I remember the name of the hotel chain you interned at and found this picture.' Ariana points at the picture and looks at me, before sighing deeply, 'I dug deeper into his history and found out that everything was clean, which is impossible.' Fuck...
'A man your age, Rafael, can not be this rich without getting his hands dirty, everyone knows that.' I nod, genuinely not knowing what I'm supposed to say at this point. 'The world thinks you just have this huge legacy, it's like they're blind.'
'Most of them are.' I state, watching as she raises a brow at me. 'But not you, miss Velez.'
Valentina looks at me with wide eyes, shifting in her seat when her mom turns to her instead of me.
'I asked Veah what was going on and told her to be honest with me, which she was.' Fucking hell... 'And I don't understand why you didn't just tell me.'
'Mom, I couldn't just-' 'What if something happened to you?' Ariana asks, raising her voice a little.
Again, she's not angry. She's genuinely worried about her daughter's wellbeing.
'Cataleya, you could've died because of this stuff and I wouldn't even know because you didn't tell me.' Valentina looks away again, staring helplessly at the table between her mother and herself, 'Do you understand what I'm trying to tell you?'
'I'm sorry.'
'Don't keep stuff like this from me, especially if it has anything to do with your safety.' Ariana states, waiting for her daughter to look at her again. Which she slowly does.
'You're my daughter, Cataleya. If he makes you happy, I would never stop you from being with him, but I need you to talk to me about everything going on, especially when he's in the mafia.' She says with tears in her eyes.
Wait...
'Rafael.' I look at Ariana and wait for her to continue, unable to say or do anything else right now. 'I'll ask you again, are you putting her in danger?'
Again, the answer is simple.
I don't want to put her in danger, but there will always be some kind of danger. If it's out in the open, or lurking around the corner. There will always be someone out to get us.
So lying won't be any good.
Especially if I want Ariana to somewhat like me...
'There will always be a threat.' I answer honestly, making her frown a little. 'But I will do everything in my power to keep her safe.'
She inhales slowly, holding her breath for a few seconds, before nodding and slowly releasing her breath.
'Thank you.' She says as she tries to blink the tears away.
'Now what happened with that Hunter guy?' Ariana asks, turning to her daughter again.
Valentina sighs deeply and shakes her head, smiling a little. 'He's a psycho.'
'I could already tell something was off with him, but at least he didn't hold Theo at gunpoint.' She says, frowning when she quickly glances at me. 'I wanted to apologize for the way I acted the first time around-' 'You did what?!' Great...
'Let's just say that he did the same to us.' I say, hoping that it will calm Valentina down. But it does the exact opposite.
'That doesn't mean- God Rio! Are you fucking insane?' Ariana chuckles and shakes her head, making me frown a little. 'Calm down, mi amor, Theo was a bit tense after you left so he did it out of self-defense.'
'Well... I kind of held a knife at his throat, so I guess he had every right to be tense.' Not just Ariana's eyes widen, but mine do too. 'You stabbed Theo!?' Her mom shouts.
'I didn't stab him, I just thought he was this random dude in our house!'
I can already imagine her pressing the blade against his neck, slowly waiting for him to squirm and just- 'We'll talk more tomorrow.'
Apparently, I missed the part where Ariana announced that she was leaving because she was already at the door when I realized she is.
'Let me-' 'I know where the door is, Curzio!' Ariana chimes, her footsteps fading down the hall, before the door slams shut, the sound echoing through the house.
'I'm sorry about that.' Valentina grunts, trying to cover her face out of shame. What?
'Why are you apologizing?' 'It's just a lot to take in all at once, telling my mom about all of this, and I-' She slowly stands up, stumbling forward a little, and catches herself leaning on the table, before I can even reach her.
'I honestly like your mother a lot.' I say instead, pulling her closer so that she can lean on me instead of that stupid table. 'Really?'
I nod and take a deep breath, allowing my senses to take her all in.
She's here.
I can see her, I can smell her, I can feel her.
'I'm tired.' She admits, placing her tiny hand on my chest.
I bet she can feel my heart race as she looks up at me and tries to smile. 'I can tell.'
'Go to your room, I'll get you something to eat.'
She frowns for a second, before taking a step back. 'Fine with me, I could use some alone time for a few minutes to let everything sink in.' What?
She stumbles out of the room, leaving me a little stunned as I hear the words in my head.
"I could use some alone time..."
I know I've been sticking around her a lot more than before, but is it bothering her?
No. I'm just being dramatic, acting like North right now. Fucking hell...
About that...
I reach for my phone as I head to the kitchen, texting North:
𝚃𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚔𝚜 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚜 𝚞𝚙
The entire pantry is empty. And so is the fridge. Great...
Leonardo didn't even think to fill the house with food.
She needs to eat something though...
I sigh deeply as I head up the stairs and slowly open the door.
She already changed into different clothes and is lying underneath the covers.
'Valentina?' Is she sleeping already?
'Mhm?' She turns around, but her eyes are still closed, 'What is it?'
'There's no food, what do you want to eat?' Her eyes open just a little and she frowns. 'Didn't you just say there was no food?'
'I'll go get you something.'
'You don't have to,' She mumbles, turning back around, 'I'm too tired to eat anyway.'
'Valentina you have to eat something.'
'I'll eat in the,' She yawns and settles in the bed, 'I'll eat in the morning.'
Fucking hell...
I head back to the hall and take a deep breath, right as my phone starts ringing in my back pocket.
When I look at the screen, I see the word North on screen.
'Rafael?!' She shouts right as I pick up. I roll my eyes and head down the stairs, just in case it wakes Valentina up.
'Why are you shouting?' I can hear music blasting from her side of the phone and roll my eyes. 'I can't hear you!'
I hang up the phone and make my way to the kitchen, staring at the empty fridge.
My phone starts ringing again. 'Yes?'
'I'm outside now,' She laughs, 'And that was very rude of you.'
'What do you want?' I just want to go to bed, but I should first find Valentina something to eat. 'Who fucked you in the ass?'
She's drunk... She's just drunk... But I want to kill her.
'If that's all-' 'Wait!' She shouts, almost making me throw my phone out of the fucking window. 'What do you want?'
'Where did you guys go?' She asks, probably smiling like crazy. 'We left.'
'Why?' Jesus fucking Christ... 'Can you lower your fucking tone.' 'I'm sorry.' She says, mumbling something to someone on her side of the line.
'I just wanted to say that Ariana didn't give me a way out, I had no other option and you guys basically ran away from the club so don't blame me.' She says, struggling to finish her sentence in one run.
'North, who are you with?' She can't be alone right now. Not in this state.
'I'm alone- outside.' Great... 'But Marco is standing by the door, staring at me like I'm crazy or something.'
'You probably look insane.' I state, leaning on the counter. She needs to eat... 'Shut up-' She mutters before giggling like the idiot she is.
'Is Leya mad at me?' She asks, suddenly sounding like she's about to cry. 'I don't know.'
She didn't seem mad, just in shock. 'You'll have to ask her.'
'Are you mad at me?' She asks curiously. 'The next time I'll see you, I'm going to kill you.' I joke, making her go completely silent for at least a minute.
'You don't actually mean that, do you?' I chuckle and look at my watch. It's already past midnight and I'm exhausted. 'You'll have to wait and see.'
'Neveah!' Someone's calling her name, probably waiting for her to go back inside. 'I'm going back in, good night curse!' Curse... I smile and roll my eyes at her stupid nickname.
'Goodnight North.' She hangs up the phone, making me sigh deeply as I grab my phone to text Marco.
𝙺𝚎𝚎𝚙 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚎𝚢𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚗 𝙽𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚑
I put my phone away and head back up the stairs, entering another room and taking a seat on the bed.
I take off my clothes and place them on the dresser, before laying down.
It feels empty... Because Valentina's laying in the other bed... Idiot...
How did it come to this?
I was fine before I met her. I didn't need her before, so why now?
I shouldn't be this obsessed with her, but I am. And I hate every second of it, but I don't want to think about anything else either. It's driving me insane.
I slowly drift off to sleep, damning myself for feeling something because she said she needed space.
The next morning, I wake up and look at the time.
It's almost six in the morning. I have that meeting at nine...
I take a quick shower and head to the closet.
Leonardo only put casual clothes in the closets, as if to mock me, and made sure that there were no business clothes hanging in any of the closets.
I could barely pull together the clothes I wore last night because of it.
So I grab some trousers and a simple shirt to wear on top, hating the fact that I kind of look like a fucking frat dude, and head towards Valentina's bedroom.
She's still sleeping while I sneak into her room, watching her sleep so peacefully.
I take a seat on the bed and watch as she breathes.
It's all she does, and my heart swells a little because of it. Fucking hell...
'Why are you staring at me?' She whispers, keeping her eyes closed.
As if she felt my presence, the exact way I do with her.
'I didn't want to wake you up?' She stretches a little, before rolling over to my side and placing her hand on my mine.
I take a deep breath, loving her sweet scent as it fills my nostrils, and grin as she moves closer to me. 'What are you doing?'
'Touch me.' She whispers with her eyes closed, making me wonder if she's dreaming or not. 'I want to feel your hands again.'
Fucking hell... If she knew what her words did to me, would she still say them? Yes. She definitely would...
I lean over, slowly moving my hands down to her stomach. Her breath hitches in the back of her throat and I place a kiss on her neck while I slowly lower my hand towards her panties.
'Is this what you want?' I ask, watching as she tries to move her hips closer to my hand.
I push her panties to the side and reach her clit, slowly stroking it as she bites on her lip to keep herself from making a sound.
But I want her to make those sounds. I want her to moan. I want her to pant. I want her to fucking scream. I want her to be loud.
Because it's just us.
Her hips thrust back and forth on my fingers and she leans her head back, biting her lip even harder when I slide two fingers into her as well.
'Don't hold it in.' She shakes her head and keeps her eyes shut, 'Valentina.'
'Fuck-' She breathes, pressing her face into the pillows instead. 'Don't stop.'
She would have to do a lot more than just begging to make me stop right now, because fucking hell...
She looks straight out of fucking heaven right now.
'I want more-' She groans, pushing my hand deeper inside of her as she rides on it. 'Give me more...'
Jesus fucking Christ... I want to fuck her so bad, but I barely have any time.
If I fuck her now, I know I'll be late for the meeting and I can't let that happen.
I reach for her breast and take her nipples between my thumb and index finger, pulling a little. 'Fuck!'
'Demanding more is not the way to go.' I groan as I almost cave in and give her what she wants, 'If you want me, take me.'
That's how she did it last time.
She asked first, yes, but I never told her when she was allowed to take charge. She just took it.
And that's what made me enjoy it. She didn't fucking ask.
'I wan-' I fasten my pace and watch as she moans for me, trembling while her orgasm builds up.
I want her to explode. I want her to enjoy every second of her orgasm as if it's the best and last she'll ever have.
All for me.
'Come for me, Valentina.' She shakes her head, fighting the climax building up, and tries to push me away so she can be in charge right now, but I'm stronger and pinch her nipple just a little harder to make her stop trying to push me away.
'Rafael!' She screams as she comes all over my hand, her legs trembling as I continue to rub on her clit, making sure she gets as long as she needs.
'This is all your getting for now, Valentina.' I say, kissing her hair before pulling my hand back.
She's breathing rapidly, rolling onto her back as she tries to catch her breath.
After a moment of silence, she breaks the ice with a sigh.
'Why didn't you come to bed last night?'
Her fingers intertwine with mine and I keep my eyes on her thumb as it slowly caresses my finger. 'Rafael?'
She sounds so sleepy and I actually want to- No. I have a meeting to attend to and I can't just fuck her and leave, so- 'You said you wanted space.'
'For a few minutes, not an entire night.' She mumbles as she tries to open her eyes.
It's like a weight drops from my chest, one I could feel the entire night as I thought about her words over and over again.
'Then I think you should be a little clearer next time.' I say as I keep my eyes on her.
She rolls her eyes and smiles at me, bringing my hand towards her lips and placing a warm kiss on it. 'I'll try.'
I nod and stay put, not wanting to leave her now or ever again. But I have to go to this stupid meeting.
'Why are you wearing a shirt?' She asks, opening her eyes a bit more now. 'There's nothing else in this house,' I've checked every closet yesterday, 'And I have to go and meet someone later on.'
'Right... Business...' She mutters, loosening her grip on my hand. She settles into the bed again, fighting the tiredness trying to pull her back into sleep. 'Do you really have to?'
'You could come with me if you want?' I ask before I can even think about it for a second.
I instantly regret it as she frowns at me, and shake my head. It's not safe... Archer and his men are going to be at the fucking meeting... Shit.
'Forget I said it, it's stupid.'
She shakes her head and sits up, a smile forming on her lips. A smile I've never seen before.
She seems excited?
'No. I want to come with you.' She says, leaning in as she grabs my hand again. 'I'm coming with you.'
'Valentina, you don't-' 'Just give me fifteen minutes and I'll be ready!' She exclaims as she runs into the bathroom, suddenly filled with energy.
'I'll be waiting in the car!' I say as I head to the door, waiting for a reply. 'Fine with me!'
I head to the car and wait for her to join me. She's right on time, exactly fifteen minutes, and looks absolutely stunning.
Even if she's just wearing a simple brown dress that fits tightly around chest and- Fucking hell...
Something's definitely wrong with me.
'Is this appropriate or should I change?' She asks as she opens the door and waits for me to answer. 'If they have something to say, I'll shoot them, now get in.'
She takes a seat in the car and looks me dead in the eye. 'No need to get violent, Rio.'
I will if I have to. 'How about we get something to eat and I'll drop you off at your mother's place?'
She smiles as she turns on the radio and goes through the channels. 'I'm not going anywhere, but is this your way of asking me out on a date?'
A date?
We've never been on an actual date, but is this a date? No. It's just getting breakfast, that's not a date, right?
'I'm kidding, Jesus.' She laughs at my confusion and shakes her head, 'Also, I know a place so can I drive?'
'You can just tell me where to go.' I state, making her sigh deeply and turn her head the other way. 'Fine, just go down the road.'
I roll my eyes and start the car, before driving off.
She tells me where to go and almost makes us crash when she delays her directions, but we make it to a small restaurant near the river.
'I'm hungry now.' She says as she hops out of the car and heads inside. I follow her lead and keep my eyes on everything.
It's a small restaurant with no other customers at all. But an older lady frowns at us as we enter and starts rushing towards us, towards Valentina, when she realizes who she is.
'Ah! Cataleya! Look at you!' She shouts, with no Spanish accent whatsoever. 'You're so beautiful!'
'Thank you, Violet, how have you been?' Valentina asks, hooking her arm around Violet's as they head to a table in the corner of the restaurant.
I follow and take a seat, staring at the interior of this restaurant.
It sure has a lot of potential as a café, but not a restaurant.
'So that's that, but you didn't come here for the talk, did you?' Valentina smiles at the old lady and grabs her hand. 'Of course not! I wanted to check up on you since it's been a long time. And the food is just something extra.'
'Alright. Alright, what can I get you?' She asks as she snaps her fingers.
A boy, no older than seventeen, rushes out of the kitchen and hands Violet a notepad and a pen. 'I would like the eggs with some toast and fresh juice, please?'
'Alright, and what about you?' The lady turns to me and her blue eyes remind me of the deepest ocean to ever exist. 'I'll-' 'He'll take the same.' Valentina answers in my stead, making me frown at her for a second.
I haven't even seen the menu and she already decided?
'Are you sure? I mean we have-' 'He's sure.' Valentina says, keeping her eyes on mine.
'Alright, I'll bring it right up.' Violet says, slowly making her way back to the kitchen.
The radio is playing in the background and they're talking about the news in Barcelona.
'You sure are testing your limits this morning.' I say when she smiles at me. 'Am I?' Yes...
'Everything okay?' She nods and takes a deep breath as she leans back a little. 'Are you?'
'Why would I not be?' I have her back so nothing would be wrong.
'You're acting differently.' What? The little boy runs back with our drinks and places them on the table with a smile, before rushing out again.
'Different how?' Good or bad? 'I don't know, you're just different.' She says, frowning a little as her eyes focus on mine. 'I need you to be a little clearer there, Valentina.'
'You're being nice.' Is she serious? 'A little too nice for some reason.'
'Do you want me to treat you like shit?' Her smile instantly disappears and she kicks me underneath the table, 'Act like a piece of shit and watch what happens.' Really?
'You wouldn't do anything.' I tease, ready for her to kick me again. But she simply stares at me, her eyes pinned to mine as she frowns. 'You think?'
'I know.' 'You should be happy I'm not wearing heels because I swear to God I would've just-' She stops and starts smiling when the boy comes rushing back in with two plates.
Toast, avocado, eggs, fruit, and a croissant for each of us.
It smells and looks delicious, but nothing too fancy.
'Thank you, Xavier.' She chimes at the boy, who smiles at her and walks away again.
He's staring at her strangely though... As if... Stop it... He's fucking seventeen, Jesus.
I look at Valentina and notice that she's waiting on the edge of her seat, watching me stare at the food again. 'Everything alright?'
'Try it.' She says, smiling as she takes a sip from her juice. 'Just eat your plate.'
'I will, just try it first.' I roll my eyes and grab my fork, containing my smile when she follows my every move with her eyes.
I slowly put some egg on the toast, put the fork down again, and take a bite of the toast, enjoying the taste more than I thought I would.
'And?' She asks as I chew on the piece in my mouth for a few seconds. 'Do you like it?'
I nod and look at her plate, waiting for her to take a bite as well. 'Now you.'
We came here so that she would eat something since she hasn't eaten anything since yesterday.
'It's the best breakfast ever, Neveah and I would always come here when we were little.' She says, slowly putting her bread together.
We finish our plates, sometimes staring at each other, sometimes complaining about how the other is eating their toast, sometimes talking about the past, especially about when Valentina and North were little, and head to the counter.
I pay for our food and tip like I normally do, a hundred euro extra.
'I can't take this.' Violet says, shaking her head as she slides the money back to me. 'I really enjoyed the food, so please take it.'
'Cataleya-' 'You deserve it.' Valentina says, sliding the money back to the lady on the other side. 'Plus, he won't miss it.'
I roll my eyes and smile at the lady, before pulling Valentina out of the restaurant. 'Thank you!'
She breaks free from me and stops in the middle of the street, looking at me. 'Was that necessary?'
'I don't need you to tell the whole world that I'm rich.'
'Are you kidding me?' She asks, pointing at me and my car, before crossing her arms. 'It's not like you're trying to hide it!'
'That's beside the point, now get off the road.' I say as I try to get her off the road. She rushes to the other side of the car and hops in the passenger seat.
The entire drive to the meeting goes by quite fast.
When we drive up to the parking lot, I notice that there are a few cars parked already. But when I look at the time, I see that we have a few more minutes.
'I still think I should just drop you off first.' She shakes her head and looks at me. 'We're already here and I'm not leaving.'
This is going to be a big mistake...
I open the glove box and grab the knife set and a gun, before checking if it has bullets in it and handing it to her. 'Take these.'
She smiles and lifts her dress up a little, revealing a strap around her thigh. She came prepared...
'Anything I should know?' She asks as I watch her hide the weapons underneath her dress. 'I really don't want you here, to be honest.'
'I'll be fine, trust me.' She says. I quickly lock the car as she reaches for the handle, and sigh. 'Rio-' 'Valentina listen to me.'
She turns around again, looking me dead in the eye. 'I want you to stay close to me, okay?'
'I will. I promise.' She states. I take a deep breath and unlock the door, before opening my door and locking the car when she's out as well.
'Anything else?' She asks as I walk over to her side of the car and look at the building in front of us. 'Don't test me.'
She rolls her eyes and hooks her small arm around mine, before pulling me towards the entrance.
The doors open and I stride past the front desk, straight to the elevators.
They already know I'm coming and I don't need to get permission to go up there.
'What's the meeting about?' She asks as we wait for the doors to open again. 'You'll see.'
The doors finally open and we step out into the hall. I can already tell that all his men are here by the bodies behind the hazy glass.
Say one word... 'Stay close.' I say as I straighten my back and open the door leading to the meeting room.
Everyone goes silent and turns to us, their eyes going wide at the sight of Valentina next to me.
All except for Archer of course.
'Who's this?' He asks with a grin on his face. 'None of your business.'
I head to the head of the table and nudge Valentina towards the chair, waiting as she takes a seat.
Some guys start murmuring and I glance around the room, hating the way they're looking at her. It's disgusting.
'It is my business if you take her to our meeting, Curzio.' Vinny says, glaring at me, before looking at Valentina.
'Watch your tone, Calzone.' Archer says, trying to keep him in check, 'that's our boss you're talking to.'
Vinny looks away in shame, muttering something I wish he would say a little louder. 'Speak up.'
'If she snitches, we're all fucked.' I chuckle and lean over the chair, looking straight at Valentina's face. 'Are you going to snitch?'
She shakes her head and looks at all the other men in the room, not showing them any ounce of fear, even though it's clear that she is.
To me. It's clear to me.
But not to the others in the room.
'Is she your girl, Curzio?' Ajay asks, grinning a little. If I tell them she is, they'll tell the world, but if I don't they might treat her like shit...
'She is.' His eyes widen and some guys start muttering again, making me wish I would've just kept my mouth shut. 'If you guys have something to say, please speak up so I can respond.'
They go silent and nod as they look at Archer.
'It doesn't matter, we have shit to discuss.' Archer states, throwing a bunch of papers on the table.
'Someone called the Cleanser has been killing a lot of people in Florence.' I frown and look at the pictures on the table. They're all women who are barely wearing any clothes. 'He only kills women who work in the sex industry.'
Valentina looks at the pictures as well, before taking in every word that's coming out of Archer's mouth.
'The police caught a guy named Nicholas Turb, but the murders haven't stopped.' He continues, 'So they contacted us to take a look and they've killed three of our own.'
'Who?' I might not know their faces, but I'm good with names. 'Nadia, Vicky, and Morena.'
I turn to Vinny. I remember him having a sister called Morena. 'We know it's a group of five and caught most of them. There's only one guy left, but we can't track him down.'
'Why not?' They should be able to. 'Because Glitch is covering for him.' That bitch...
'Does she know what he's running from?' I doubt she does. She would kill him herself. 'I don't know, but it's best if we handle the situation right away before we end up losing more.'
'We already lost too much.' Vinny says, gritting his teeth. I nod and suddenly feel the tension rise.
'You weren't there to guide us, give us directions, boss.' I scoff and look at him again, tilting my head a little. 'Do you need me to hold your hand while you work?'
He jumps to his feet and points at me, clearly angry that I'm pushing him. But I'm his boss, he can't blame me for his sister's death.
'While you've been fucking her,' He says, pointing his disgusting finger at Valentina, before turning back to me, 'We've been fighting for our fucking lives!'
That finger... His fucking index finger...
'Calzones, enough.' Vinny shakes his head and makes another mistake by moving closer to my side of the table.
His crew tries to stop him, but he's too persistent.
'You should've handled it! Not us!' He shouts, taking another step forward.
He's getting awfully close to Valentina with that disgusting finger of his. 'Vinny, just drop it.'
'My sister is dead because of his absence!' He shouts, pointing at me again. 'I didn't even know this was going on.'
'Because you didn't care enough.' He sneers taking the final step over the fucking line.
I push him against the table and watch as he squirms underneath me, screaming for the others to help.
But everyone stays silent.
'Let go of me, you piece of-' 'Watch your tone before I shoot you right here and now.' I state, pushing his right arm flat on the table.
That disgusting finger.
I pull on his index finger until I hear the familiar sound of bones breaking.
Crack.
Vinny starts screaming and falls onto the ground when I let go of him, the others all staying silent and simply staring like fucking puppets. 'Vaffanculo pezzo di merda!'
'Anything else I should know about?' I ask while Vinny rolls around like a little kid.
I can tell Valentina wants to help him, but she knows better and stays put.
Archer fills me in on everything else I needed to catch up on, telling me that some local gangs are ready to negotiate now that they know that we're going to be a part of the Downridge deal.
'They want to meet in Florence soon, so maybe you could come by and take care of the killer as well?' I nod and look at the pictures again. Why the fuck did no one tell me?
After making plans about our next move, Archer gets up from his seat and leaves, his men following behind him. Even Vinny.
'Was that really necessary?' Valentina asks after a moment of silence. 'I don't tolerate disrespect.'
She looks at me and takes a deep breath, before getting out of her seat. 'I want to go home.'
Fuck.
Something changed. She doesn't seem the same after what just happened, meaning something I did fucked her up inside.
'Okay.' We head back into the elevator and wait for the doors to open, staying awkwardly silent.
'Everything okay?' She nods and keeps her face forward, not looking at me once. 'I want to talk to my mom about everything that happened last night.' Right...
'Are you sure that's all?' I ask as I start the car and drive away. 'Yes.' She answers, smiling a little. 'I just processed it and I feel bad for keeping stuff from her.'
I nod and continue to drive towards her mom's place, before stopping in front of the gate. 'Are you coming as well?'
I shake my head and she finally looks at me, still a little distant. 'I still have some shit to deal with.'
'Alright.' She says as she gets out of the car, 'See you later!'
I wait until she enters the gate, before driving off to the next meeting.
The Downridge deal...
Everything seems to pass by in front of me, as if I'm floating through time, spacing out time and time again.
I barely pick up anything from the entire meeting and get back into my car. Next week in Florence...
That's all I got. And they probably asked to meet again because they noticed how spaced out I was.
Which I absolutely hate.
She's taking over my mind again...
Is she mad at me? I make my way back to Ariana's place but realize no one's there, so I head towards Valentina's place.
There are a lot of cars parked in front of the house, making me wonder who's inside.
'You're back.' North says as she walks out of the front door. 'Should I leave or-' 'No, Leya was actually waiting for you inside.'
She was?
'Do you want me to get her or do you just want to go in because she's helping her aunt with the food right now?'
I stare at the house and already hear the shouting coming from inside. 'Who's in there?'
'The entire family came by and she invited the crew as well.' Fucking hell...
North looks me up and down, before crossing her arms. 'Are you scared?'
'Why would I be scared?' I ask as I step forward, heading towards the door. 'You seem scared.'
'I'm not scared.' I sneer, trying to keep a straight face. 'Well, you are nervous.'
'I hate you.' She chuckles and leads the way, opening the front door as if I can't do that myself, and follows me inside. 'I'll give you a quick guide so don't be nervous.'
As much as I want to ignore her and just walk in, it might be handy to know who everyone is.
Because I haven't done that much research on her family yet.
So I follow Neveah's lead and enter the foyer.
'The entire Velez family moved to the US for a few years, but they moved back here due to financial problems. Only Ariana stayed because she met Leya's dad. If you want more background info on that, you should ask her.'
I frown, wondering if it's Valentina she's talking about or not. Because as far as I'm concerned, she doesn't care about her father.
'Ariana loves to talk about her family history, but that's beside the point here.' She says as she heads towards the living room.
'Ariana has two younger brothers and one younger sister,' She says, nodding her head towards a man standing outside, close to the grill. 'That's Berto.'
The man is holding a plate with raw meat, ready to be grilled, and is talking to someone I can't see yet.
'He's married to Maria and they have two kids, Rosalia and Carlos.' North continues, pointing at Rosalia and Carlos. 'Maria was the one who called me handsome right?'
She thinks about it for a second, and nods. 'She might've been.'
'And of course, there's Abuela.' I'm honestly in awe because of North's pronunciation. It's better than I expected. Almost as if she's Hispanic herself.
I nod and follow her to the kitchen, 'That's Maria.' She says, nodding her head at the lady stirring in a big pot.
'After that, there's tia Carla, she's the one with the big hair.' She states with a smile. I look at the lady she's describing and nod.
North walks back to the living room and points at the other man standing outside, the one talking to Berto, 'She has three kids with Samuel Martinez.' Martinez?
I heard that name before, but I'm unsure if that's in a good way or bad.
'Randy, their oldest,' She says, pointing at a boy who's lifting a baby in the air, 'He has a son with Olivia.' He's barely twenty and already has a son.
'After Randy came Martina, aka Tina, her and Rosalia can be absolute devils, but you just have to live with that.' She says as she heads to the door leading to the garden. 'Then there's their last kid, Ivan, he's absolutely adorable!'
Two boys are playing soccer with Victoria on the big field, shouting at each other as they play around with the ball.
'And then there's...' North stops and looks at the only man she didn't introduce yet. 'That's my tio Diego,' I turn around and come eye to eye with Valentina, who's holding a stack of plates in her hands. 'And he has a child with Autumn Reeves apparently, and that's their child.'
She points at another girl who's holding a baby, and turns towards the table set outside.
'And that's the entire family.' North finishes, patting me on the back, before she runs over to Celine. Great.
'Come on, let me formally introduce you.' Valentina says, pulling at my arm as she drags me towards her uncle first.
They all introduce themselves with the same names North gave me, meaning she wasn't playing around and actually is trying to help me.
After introducing myself to her entire family, she pulls me back to the front door and steps outside.
I follow her and frown a bit, wondering what's going through her mind right now.
What the fuck is going on?
'Okay, so you know how I said I was going to stay unconditionally, right?' Oh... My heart starts racing and I shift on the spot, trying to act like her question doesn't make me freak out at all. 'Yes.'
She changed her mind. She's leaving and I'll never- 'I have some conditions.'
I look behind her and see North and those two cousins, Rosalia and Martina, peeking around the corner.
'And what might those conditions be?' I ask curiously, containing my smile when I hear them whispering in the distance.
'Well, we want our dream cars, a lot of money to keep us all set for life, jewelry, lots and lots of jewelry, and uhm... A new phone, some want two, and a few mansions around the world.' She lists, smiling at me.
I nod and take a step forward, closing the gap between us. 'Is that all?'
She nods and takes a deep breath before placing her hand on my chest.
'Fine with me,' I say, quickly glancing at the girls by the door. Her other cousins joined in as well, I think their names were Ivan and Carlos, 'But that does not sound like you at all, Valentina.'
'It's their request.' She answers honestly, making me smile a little.
She would never ask any of those things.
'And what is your request?' She frowns for a second and shrugs. 'There must be something you want from me.'
'There is.' She admits, taking a step back. 'What is it?'
If she wants jewelry, I get it for her. If she wants a fucking house in every country we visit, I'll get her those houses. If she wants every car in the world, I'll make sure she gets it.
I would give everything for her to be happy.
And it scares me to death, but at this point, right at this moment, I don't give a single fuck anymore.
'I want you.' Fucking hell... If her family wasn't standing a few meters away from us, I would've dragged her inside and show her that she has every part of me.
For as long as I'm alive.
'And?!' Rosalia shouts, waiting impatiently for Valentina's answer. Or more, my answer. 'Did he agree!?'
'Cállate!' Valentina sneers, making her cousins flinch and run the other way. Only North stays, laughing as she heads over to us.
'I'll leave you to it, don't forget that the food will be ready in like two minutes!' They all run off while Valentina pulls me further away from the house so that we can talk.
'About what happened earlier, I just got startled, but it's not your fault.' She says, looking at me with the most genuine look ever. 'I thought you got scared or something.'
'No, I just wasn't expecting you to act that way.' She says taking a step forward to grab my hand. 'So what's the next step?'
Her questions should have a simple answer, but I can't just answer. It's too complicated.
'I have to go and see what's going on in Florence.' I say as she sighs deeply. 'I know... I know...'
But... I know it's not fair of me to make her come with me, but there's no way I'm leaving her.
'I just don't want to leave my mom again, I mean, we just got back together and I really like it here.' She says, looking at me as she grabs my hand. 'We don't have to go now.'
'But people are being-' 'We can stay a little while longer, I'll handle it.' She shakes her head and sighs deeply. 'Or I could stay and you could go and return?'
I shake my head and pull her closer. 'I'm not leaving you here.'
She sighs and lets go of my hand as she starts pacing around. 'How long do you want to stay?'
'Forever.' She whispers before burying her head in her hands. 'A week?'
'A week should be fine.' I state, making her look up at me. 'But people are dying, maybe you should-' 'I'm not leaving you.' I repeat as I slowly pull her into my arms.
'I'm never leaving you again.'
----
A/N: So they'll be moving again!!!! LETSGOOOOO!
What about the Downridge deal thingy... How will that go?
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