Page 52 of Mafia Don's Secret Baby

“I know that. I do. But I never told him the truth about us. I don’t think I could have ever gone through with a relationship without getting his approval first, and knowing that he didn’t approve of us together…”

“Do you know why he didn’t approve?” Matteo asked.

“Because of the mafia and your connections to it. He wanted me to be with a normal person,” I said adamantly.

“Because,” he corrected, “he knew you were getting out. He said that you had planned to leave for years. Silas knew that he would never escape this life. It wasn’t an option for him. But you have always had a way out, and he wanted you to take it.”

“He said he wanted to go, too. I was waiting on him,” I argued.

“He wanted to help your desire to leave flourish. He never intended to be a part of it.”

I furrowed my brows. “You two spoke about me?” I asked.

“Silas and I talked about everything, and you were one of those topics, yes. He didn’t want us to be involved because I would hold you back from leaving. I swore I wouldn’t do that to you, and I didn’t plan to.”

“You could have gotten out, too,” I argued.

Matteo shook his head. “We both know I couldn’t have left.”

The mafia had strict laws on that. Once sworn into the family business, there was no escape. The only way out was death. I grew up hearing men swear themselves to my father. I’d seen the blood ritual. Men swore their lives to my father, and there was no exception for Matteo. Looking back, I wondered when Silas had sworn himself to my father. Had it been before or after our conversations about leaving?

“Silas knew he’d never get out?” I asked, stretching out my legs. My foot brushed against his calf, and I left it there.

Matteo nodded.

I took a long breath and nodded. I wanted so badly to believe that I knew my brother better than anybody, but that wasn’t the case. Not with Matteo sitting right here.

“There was so much I wanted to tell him about the last three years, but I couldn’t,” I admitted. “I had vague conversations with him, but I never told him where I was. I didn’t want my dad to know, so I couldn’t tell Silas either. I never even told him about Callum because I was afraid of my father learning about him. I couldn’t let them learn there was another male heir, or my dad would have tried to find us. So Silas never met Callum. He didn’t know that I had a passion for private investigating. I feel like he was cut off from an entire chapter of my life.”

Matteo’s body shifted, and he moved across the tub slowly, planting himself beside me. He grabbed my hips and moved me from the seat before placing himself behind me and pulling me down.

I gasped as I felt nothing but bare skin beneath me. The hard length of him sat beneath me, a reminder of both of our needs. My breathing quickened.

“Matteo…”

“You only said that we couldn’t fuck. Let me hold you.”

His voice left no room for debate. He was every ounce of the demanding Don that I’d grown to know at this moment.

Shivers ran down my spine as I sunk into his lap. My petite body seemed to fit perfectly against his, and I found myself relaxing there. He didn’t soften as we sat there. If anything, with each small movement, he hardened more. I made an effort not to move, but with the jets shifting us, I found stillness impossible.

God, I wanted him so badly.

I knew that if we weren’t submerged in water, his leg would be damp with proof of my desire.

“Does staying away from me make you feel like you’re doing what your brother wanted?” he asked.

“Yes.”

There was no hesitation behind my words.

“All he ever wanted was for you to be happy. That’s it. He knew that our goals didn’t align, and he knew that would deter you from finding your happiness.”

I felt a tear fall down my face as I looked out at the city around us and rested my head against his shoulder. This time, I didn’t bother keeping myself still. He stiffened, but I ignored the clear physical reaction.

“Being with you makes me happy,” I admitted. “It makes me really damn happy, even though I shouldn’t feel that way.”

“It makes you want to stay,” he remarked.

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