Page 9 of Tilly
Hernando has been trying to do business with us for months now. He has the cash and wants product. I’m just not sure it’s the type of product I want a psychopath getting his hands on.
“So… we’re not going to talk about the fact you had a Valentino holed up in the house all night?” Emillio hums while lifting a single brow in my direction.
“No, we’re not.” I don’t need to talk about or remember how much sleep I lost because the woman I’ve been obsessing over for years was in the room right next to mine. So close and so fucking off-limits.
“Good, because as much as I’m willing to go to war for you, bro. A war against the Vs is bad for our health. And we both know Romeo will want to fucking kill you if you touch his princess.”
“I haven’t fucking touched her,” I grind out, not that it’s any of his fucking business.
“Ah, but you want to touch her—a whole fucking lot—and therein lies the problem.” Emillio shakes his head.
I don’t confirm or deny the fact that I want Matilda Valentino. I don’t need to. Everyone in my close-knit circle is more than aware of my longtime fascination with my very real version of forbidden fruit.
Chapter Five
By the time I walk through my front door, I’m fuming. Yup, I’m beyond pissed. I’m actually fuming. How dare he! Who the heck does he think he is that he can tell me to stay away from his club?
I have more than enough men in my life dictating my every movement. I don’t need to add to that list. Not only am I angry, I’m also humiliated.
It’s not a place for girls like you. Antonio’s words repeat over and over again in my head. What does that even mean? Girls like me.
“Argh, asshole!” I scream. The cuss word feels more than a little foreign on my tongue as I throw my clutch on the entry table.
“Who’s an asshole?” My father’s voice has me jumping out of my damn skin.
“What? Oh my god, don’t sneak up on me like that,” I tell him with a hand pressed firmly to my chest. When I look past him, into my apartment, I realize it’s not just my father who seems to have helped himself to my place. My mom, my uncles, and my nonno are here.
Without a word, I storm down the hall, into my bedroom, and shut the door. I want to slam it. I really do. I want to release the anger that’s raging inside me, but I don’t. Because that’s not who I am. And that’s not what good girls do.
I walk into the bathroom and turn on the shower. I need to wash away the remnants of last night’s humiliation. I drop Antonio’s jacket to the floor and then his shirt. Maybe I’ll burn them later, since he saw to it that my Halloween costume was destroyed without my consent.
“Jerk,” I mumble as I step into the stall and stand under the spray. The freezing water has me jumping back a step and waiting for it to warm up before I move under it again.
Why do they all have to be here right now?
I lean my head against the wall. Forcing my limbs to finally move, I cover my body in suds and wash off. The sooner I face the firing squad, so to speak, the sooner they’ll leave.
I pull on some yoga pants and an oversized sweater. When I look at my reflection, I see myself and not the daring woman from last night. Just plain old Matilda. I smile. I happen to like the person I see in front of me now. I shouldn’t need to change to get the attention of a man. Not that my plan worked.
Sure, I went home with him, but not in the way I imagined.
I walk back out to the living room, where I find my father pacing in front of the fireplace. My mom looks at me with a mixture of sympathy and something else I can’t pinpoint. I avoid looking at my nonno. I don’t want to see the disappointment in his eyes.
“Where the fuck have you been all night?” my father asks, and I’m immediately taken aback by his tone. My dad never loses his temper with me. With Dante, sure, but my brother usually deserves it.
“Papa, I’m fine,” I tell him.
“I can see that now. Do you have any idea what it’s like to wake up to a phone call from a friend telling me my daughter was arrested? And for prost…” He bites his tongue and shakes his head.
“Obviously I wasn’t doing that. It was a mistake.” I roll my eyes.
“I know that,” he says, running a hand through his hair.
“Sweetie, how about you start at the beginning? Tell us what happened last night.” My mom comes over and wraps an arm around my shoulder. “Sit down. I made you tea.”
“Thanks, Mom. I’m fine, honestly. It was Halloween. I went out with Kinsley and Rosa. Popped outside for some air, and some cops showed up and just assumed I was a streetwalker.”
“What were their names, bella?” Nonno asks.
