The lighting was dim, elegant, cold as Lorenzo stepped into the luxury hotel bar. His confidence and look caught the eye of many of the patrons of the establishment. Even the male bartender glanced at him up and down as he approached the bar.
Lorenzo spotted her as soon as he entered the establishment. She was hard to miss. She was always the one to watch when she was in a room.
He stood beside her and glanced at her almost empty cocktail.
"What can I get you, handsome?" The bartender said in a flirtatious manner.
Camila smirked as she watched the scene unfold. He really was a man now. He was always confident, but now he had a maturity about him that was mesmerizing.
Lorenzo ordered a refill on her drink and a shot of whiskey for himself.
"Coming right up, sexy."
"Driving the men crazy too I see." She said close to his ear.
He turned and his eyes looked her up and down.
"Here you are...Lo." The bartender said then bit his bottom lip.
Lorenzo smirked at him and gave him a wink. He then held up his shot glass to her.
She was as poised as ever — older, striking, confident in a way few people are. A woman who was always in control. She held up the cocktail and locked eyes with him.
They tapped glasses.
"You've aged well. The brooding suits you."
He downed his shot and waited.
"Don't even think about commenting on my age."
He chuckled. "Wouldn't dream of it."
She took a sip then looked him over.
"You haven't changed." He said.
"Oh, I have. I just hide it better." She confessed. "Why don't you sit?"
There was a long pause as they looked at each other, measuring the years, the unspoken things.
"You didn't call just to talk about my ex wife's dating interest, did you?"
"No. But he is such a cliché, isn't he? Handsome, flashy, hot-head, desperate to be seen. I always preferred quiet confidence. Dangerous men who didn't need the spotlight."
She leaned in slightly.
"You were always better than him. On the field. In bed. Everywhere that counts."
Lorenzo smirked, but it was tinged with bitterness. "Please tell me he hasn't fucked you." He said then glanced around to see if anyone is paying attention to them.
She smiled. "Are you jealous, Guevara?"
"We shouldn't do this here."
She raised an eyebrow. "What is it we are doing...exactly?"
Lorenzo smirked then held up his empty shot glass to the bartender who practically ran over to him.
The bartender placed another shot before him. "Would you...sign me?"
Camila smirked.
"My agent said I am not allowed to do that anymore." He confessed.
"Please? I won't say a word."
Lorenzo leaned over the bar. "Where do you want it?"
His eyes widened. "My chest."
Lorenzo smirked. "Put your arm out..."
"Miguel." He said enthusiastically.
"Do you have a pen?"
Miguel nodded quickly then grabbed one from under the cash register and slid it to him.
Lorenzo held his forearm and signed his nickname and number- Lo #30
"Oh my god. Gracias, Lorenzo." He said then scurried over to help another customer.
"Oh you just made his gay fantasies come true right there, sweetie."
"Is that why you called me after all this time? Any fantasies I can make come true...again?"
She shifted in her seat. "Oh hunnie, don't forget who is in charge here."
"Enough with the bullshit, Meels. What do you want?"
"I was in town."
He chuckled. "No shit. What are you in town for?"
She took another sip. "Business."
He nodded. "Why reach out?"
She discretely rubbed her foot against his leg seductively. "Because I still know what you need. And I think you know I can give it to you."
He felt a jolt between his legs but kept his composure. He wasn't an inexperienced horny twenty year old anymore. He could keep his cool and that is what he did.
She slid her room key across the bar and under his hand.
Lorenzo didn't move.
"Well, it's getting late." She said then stood up and reached for her purse.
"I got it." He said firmly.
She bit her bottom lip and stood as close to him as she could without drawing attention to them.
"You certainly do." She said then walked out slowly without looking back. She knew he was watching her walk away.
After he paid, he slipped the key card into his pocket and left the bar.
Lorenzo slowly made his way until he was outside Room 715, the key card Camila slipped him earlier in his hand.
He stared at it like it was radioactive.
He was frozen. Memories of the past flooding his mind.
Flashback to the Juventus VIP lounge 7 years ago.
The room hummed with soft jazz, glittering chandeliers, and murmurs in Italian and English. It was an exclusive gathering — post-match. Celebrating a win, and one thing more:
LO'S FIRST CALL-UP TO THE FIRST TEAM.
He was 20. Clean-shaven. Sharp suit, but slightly stiff in it. His smile was proud, but uncertain — like he didn't quite believe he belonged just yet. He had been doing well with the Junior team- they had won the world cup and now he was a professional.
Across the room, CAMILA VERÓN, early 40s, powerful South American executive with deep connections to European football. She was in black silk and diamond earrings — understated wealth. Eyes sharp. Watching him.
She approached as others peeled away.
"You're the one they're whispering about."
Lorenzo turned, surprised she was talking to him.
"You've probably heard worse."
"I've heard everything. But it's rare I see someone who doesn't realize they're already being hunted."
He raised an eyebrow. "Hunted?"
"By agents of course. Media. Girls who'll throw themselves at you just to say they did. Men who'll use you up and discard you when your legs stop running."
She stepped closer.
"But I'm not here for that. I'm here because I recognize hunger when I see it."
Lorenzo studied her — unsure, intrigued. He laughed nervously.
"You don't even know me."
"I know you're about to turn 21. I know Juventus has plans for you. And I know you haven't learned how to say no yet."
She gently lifted his champagne glass, and took a sip.
"You're not just an athlete, Lorenzo. You're a commodity. The trick is deciding whether to be used... or to play the game yourself."
"And you're offering to... what, teach me?"
"No. I'm offering you a choice. However, I can teach you a lot."
She winked at him then set the glass down and slipped a hotel key onto the table beside it — same move she'd use years later.
"I have a penthouse suite upstairs. I can give you ten minutes, or the rest of the night."
Lorenzo said nothing — his silence charged, frozen between temptation and pride.
Camila leaned in. Her voice a whisper, dangerous and warm.
"This world will swallow you if you don't learn how to own it. You can start tonight — or not at all."
She walked away, leaving him with the key card and his pulse racing.
He looked at the key.
Then up at the elevator.
He thought about his fiancé, Delfina. They were to be married next month. He thought of Gabo and if he too was being hunted as Camila had explained. Somehow he knew Gabo would not choose the road he was being tempted with.
End of flashback.
He exhaled slowly, and slid the card through the door.
BEEP. GREEN LIGHT.
He opened the door.
The room was warm, elegant, low-lit. Jazz playing softly in the background. Camila was sitting in a silk robe, legs crossed, a glass of wine already in her hand. She didn't rise when he entered — she just looked at him.
"Didn't think you'd come."
"I almost didn't. I have a son now. Delfina and I are finally in a good place...well, we were." He confessed.
"But here you are."
He closed the door slowly. Stood by it, uncertain. She gestured to the drink waiting for him on the table.
"Have one drink with me. For old times sake."
He moved slowly, taking the glass, but didn't sit.
"This feels like déjà vu."
"That's because you haven't changed. You still come when you're lost."
"I came because...I dunno why I came."
Camila watched him closely — reading him like a chessboard.
"She has moved on and you should too."
He flinched— because it was too close to the truth.
"You were never meant to settle, Lo. You know that. I heard about what happened with Nadia."
Lorenzo felt a weight on his chest. He was so torn about what he had done to the women he cared about. He really thought maybe he could have a second chance with Delfina and here he was in the hotel room of the very scandalous relationship that was a major cause for his divorce.
"Delfina will never be enough for you Lorenzo."
"Don't talk about her."
Camila knew how sensitive he was about his ex wife so she stopped. She simply nodded.
A long silence stretched between them.
Then she stood, crossed the room slowly, stopping just in front of him.
"Stay. Just for the night. No promises. No strings."
He closed his eyes. Everything in him screamed that this is a bad idea — but the emptiness was louder. He had lost Delfina to his rival and now he was going to be in his son's life.
"I shouldn't."
"But you want to."
She leaned in, just enough for her breath to brush his skin.
"You always come back when you're breaking. That's when you're mine."
She started to walk away — not looking back — toward the bedroom. The silk robe swayed with each step. She disappeared through the doorway.
Lorenzo stood frozen, glass still in his hand.
Torn.
Then, slowly... he took a step forward.
His phone began to buzz.
Incoming call from Gabo.
His thumb hovered over accept. He was hesitant. Gabo would hear it in his voice. He would talk him out of it.
He lowered the phone, exhaled and followed her into the bedroom.
She felt his strong hands slide around her waist from behind. She could feel his breath near her ear. "One night."
She smirked. "You sure you can handle that?"
He spun her around and pulled her close. "You know I can...you taught me well."