Page 14 of Bones of Revenge and Reckoning

“I’m going to make Matteo pay for this. For lying to me. For betraying me. For making a fool of me. One day. It might not be tomorrow, but his time will come.”

An epic plot of revenge takes root in my mind. Yes, this will be satisfyingly sweet. Matteo refused to take my virginity until I’m older, but it’s obvious he’d manipulate me with lies when he’s fucking a DeLuca behind my back.

I genuinely thought he wanted something special with me, and I even considered maybe he was old fashioned and didn’t want to rush me into having sex if he intended to have a future with me.

I should have known better. He’s forbidden, a temptation I should have resisted. He took advantage of me to make a play against my family to prove to his uncle and father that he’s ready to take his rightful place in the Mancini business.

Matteo is a prideful man. He has a big ego and is very competitive, especially with his best friend, Duncan.

I don’t like Duncan. He’s a blond rugby player and is rather unattractive. However, I’ll do whatever is necessary to hurt Matteo, and I know just where to hit him to hurt him the most.

I’m going to give his best friend and number one rival my virginity. And I’m not going to wait.

Chapter 6

Matteo

The party was absolute hell.

And I’m an ungrateful dick.

Surrounded by the social elites of our world, I celebrated my eighteenth birthday with an abundance of gifts, the finest food, and a twin on each side of me.

But it wasn’t what I wanted, how I wanted to celebrate, or who I wanted to celebrate with.

Francesca’s hyena-like laugh and incessant pawing at me all evening long left me irritable and with a raging migraine. She’s a pretty girl, but she tries too hard to garner my attention, basically serving her pussy up on a silver platter. It’s pathetic the way she throws herself at me, and if I wasn’t so obsessed with Renata, I’d likely welcome her in my bed for a quick fuck.

I couldn’t get Renata off my mind all evening. She should have been here celebrating with me, but our families will go to war if they find out about us. I feel shitty about lying to her about the party, but I could hardly invite her with all my family here. So I put on a front, alluding to make my family’s believe I might consider an alliance with one of the DeLuca sisters. If Renata and I string our families along until she’s eighteen, and I have power of my own, then we can announce that we are together.

Convincing her of that is no easy task. She doesn’t fully grasp the stark reality that love can’t bring our families together. My blood will be smeared along the streets within hours, a steep price on my head for touching a Mafia principessa of a rival family.

I’ve restrained myself from taking things too far when we’re in the heat of the moment. Renata is beautifully breathtaking and utterly irresistible, and denying myself the temptation of sinking deep between her thighs, claiming her virginity, is a punishment I curse myself for often.

One day, Renata will have to make a choice—me, or the Andretti family. I’ll make her my wife, consequences be damned. I’m a patient man. Renata and I need to keep this on the down low until I’ve earned my rightful place in the business. My father and uncle’s opinions won’t matter when I hold the power and respect once I rise through the ranks. One day, I’ll be the head of the Mancini family, and I’ll need a woman on my arm who turns heads. A woman who honors her husband with respect and dignity. Renata will offer me beauty of a kind rarely seen. In turn, she will have wealth, status, and protection.

“What the actual fuck?” I hear Clifford shout through the house. I get up and go in search of him to see what all the fuss is about.

“What’s going on?” I shout, listening for Clifford’s voice.

“Matt, get your ass in here now.”

I follow the sound of Clifford’s voice, down the service hall.

“What are you shouting about?” I ask when I draw near.

“Have a look for yourself.” He pushes the bathroom door open wider, and I charge into the room, fine shards of glass crunching beneath my step. Glass bottles are strewn about the small space with streaks of blood staining the floor, the vanity mirror splintered. Who the fuck would have done this? I’ll break their damn hands for destroying my home. I fist my hands and turn a half circle, my eyes catching on something laying in the corner of the stall. I lean down to grab the thick material and turn it over in my hand.

To Matteo, Love Rennie.

There’s no fucking way. I stumble backward and brace myself against the wall as I stare at the line drawing. She couldn’t have done this. Why would she have done this?

“Matteo?” Clifford calls out.

“I’m sorry about this, Clifford.” I push off the wall and charge out of the bathroom, brushing past him. “I need to be somewhere. Can you handle this?”

“The fuck, Matteo. Who did this? Have you checked the rest of the house? Our fathers are going to kill us.”

“I’ll be back. Just fucking handle it, Clifford.”

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