Page 126 of Matteo
He stood and dressed himself, facing away from me, seeming distracted as he studied the entrance of the planetarium. All the while, my guilty conscience blared.
How could you betray your sister like that? He knows what we did was wrong too.
An anguished, familiar voice halted all my thoughts. “What the fuck is this?”
Hannah stood at the door, wearing her favorite Dior pajama set and fluffy slippers, glowering at the scene that was louder than a thousand words. And I couldn’t shake off the feeling that I was staring at our destruction—my sister’s and mine.
“Arianna? I’m waiting for an explanation,” Hannah screamed while it felt like my world was burning down.
“Hannah, please—” My voice was brittle, cracking with each syllable.
My sister shook, the betrayal in her eyes gutting me in the worst way possible.
“What the fuck are you two doing?” Her scream pierced the air, and foolishly, I glanced at Matteo, who looked unfazed.
Tears escaped my eyes, but they didn’t have anything on the cutting hurt on my sister’s face. My world was falling apart while I stared at the two people I loved most through blurry vision.
“Hannah, it’s not—”That simple. Let me explain. I should have told you. Please forgive me.
The words lingered on my tongue, but my voice failed me.
“What does it look like?” Matteo cut in, his voice cold, his lips curved into a cruel smirk. The ruthlessness dripped from his every pore, not even his bare chest and six-pack abs could hide it.
Hannah shook her head, hiccupping as tears streamed down her face.
“It smells like sex in here.” It wasn’t until now that I spotted Nikola leaning against the doorframe, his arms folded across his bare chest. He glanced at me, then Matteo, and winked.
He. Fucking. Winked.
“How could you?” Hannah’s voice turned vicious, the expression on her face turning furious as she looked at Matteo. “You had to bang my own fucking sister to get your point across?”
She looked at me with her fists balled at her side, her face flushed and her cheeks tear-streaked. But it was the look in her eyes that sent panic through me.
“I swear to fuck, Arianna, I’m going to kill you if I ever see you again. Don’t ever fucking talk to me again.”
I gasped, my heart shattering as a raw ache squeezed my chest, making it impossible to breathe.
“Don’t ever fucking threaten her again, Hannah,” Matteo seethed, his voice harsh, but the look in his eyes lethal. “I warned you that I never wanted you, but you refused to let go.”
“You never told me it was about my sister,” she screamed, glaring at him and me. “My other fucking half.”
My cries and those of my sister filled the space as we locked eyes, and all I could see was the betrayal on her face. I did that. I hurt her.
And then she disappeared, leaving me choking on a sob from a pain so deep I was sure I’d never survive it.
“What the fuck, Nikola?” Matteo glared at his best friend. “I said wait for my signal.”
He shrugged. “I was tired of waiting.”
He turned around and walked out, leaving me reeling as understanding dawned on me.
He staged it all. Hemeantfor Hannah to catch us.
My gaze fell to the discarded holster on the ground and I reached for it, whirling around and facing Matteo, letting my anger and fury consume me.
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
MATTEO
