Page 104 of Matteo
“What did she say?”
“That she’d wait,” I said.
“That seems so unlike her,” she commented dryly. “Hannah hates playing second fiddle to anyone.”
I completely agreed with Grace, but the fact of the matter was that unlike Arianna, Hannah’s stubbornness knew no bounds. It was a trait of hers that reminded me of her biological father, something that had constantly gotten him in trouble during his life.
“What was Matteo’s plan?” I asked, shaking off the dark thoughts before they could consume me.
“I’m not sure,” she muttered. “He’s been tightlipped about everything except the fact that he will not, under any circumstance, marry Hannah.”
“I don’t know if I can handle this four more times.” I let out a heavy breath while tugging on my hair. “Why did I have so many children?”
She chuckled despite our predicament. “Maybe we should start with staying out of their romantic lives.”
My lips curved. “You might have a point there.”
Over the years, I’d grown close to Nico’s friends’ wives, but with Grace being geographically near to us and our children being similar ages, it was inevitable that our friendship had blossomed.
We remained silent for a short moment when Grace said, “I overheard something, but you can’t repeat it. Not even to Nico.”
I tensed. “I don’t like keeping secrets from him.”
She cleared her throat uncomfortably. “Neither do I, but my guess is he already knows.”
An unsettling feeling crawled up my spine. “Go on…”
“There are rumors that someone is trying to resurrect the Belles and Mobsters Agreements, but with new and improved auctions.”
“How can that be?” I rasped, knowing this news must’ve knocked her off her feet. My mother suffered through one of those ordeals and it cost her dearly—her life.
“I don’t know, but let’s keep our ears open.”
I finally understood why my husband had been on edge lately. I contributed it all to the mishap with the engagement, but it was so much more than that. The extra security he’d implemented. The constant chiming of his phone with alerts to anything out of the ordinary.
My husband definitely knew about the auction’s resurrection.
Nico
I stared at Matteo Vitale, so fucking tempted to get rid of him.
He shouldn’t be here, demanding Arianna’s hand. Not after he had his wrapped around her neck less than a week ago. Not when he looked at her with his heated eyes like he would fucking burn her alive.
Why in the fuck couldn’t he want Hannah? She was more resilient and would fuck him up if he broke her heart. Arianna was… fragile.
“You shouldn’t be here, Matteo.” I placed my gun on the desk, the barrel facing him.
The boy kept his expression blank.
“This is exactly where I should be,” he commented dryly. “I want to make it clear to you that Arianna is the only woman I will marry. Consider the other arrangement null and void.”
I scoffed. “The fuck it is. Hannah wants to marry you.”
The truth was I believed Hannah would eventually bail out, but until she did, I’d keep this shit going.
Arianna said no—thank fuck—and I would ensure her wishes were respected. My daughter needed someone… I didn’t know, but I knew it wasn’t a mini version of my best friend. She needed to be nurtured, not get swept up in someone else’s drama. Arianna was a dreamer and so damn close to finishing her post-graduate degree in astrophysics. Matteo would be nothing but a distraction.
“I’ll talk to Hannah and explain, but I won’t marry her. Ever. It’s high time she learned it from me.”
