Page 65 of Bellini Born
At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised to hear Matteo owned the entire city.
And if what Gabi was saying was true, he was dead set on owning me, too.
But for the life of me, I couldn’t conjure up a single reason as to why that was a bad thing.
“This place is insane,” I shouted over the loud music, the bass pumping so hard it vibrated through my bones.
“Yeah.” Gabi rolled her eyes.
Eyeing her as we moved through the nightclub packed with some of the prettiest people I’d ever seen, I asked, “And you’re telling me your family connections weren’t enough to get us in here before?”
“Don’t remember ever saying that.”
When we reached the bar, I tugged on her shoulder, forcing her to face me. “Wait. We could have been hanging out here the whole time?”
“Yes,” she admitted.
“Then why haven’t we?” I pressed.
Her barely contained breasts heaved with the force of her heavy sigh. “Because if I take a guy home—or vice versa—from here, there will be a hit out on him before he’s finished poundingme through the mattress. Then, once word spreads that fucking me is literally a death sentence, it puts a hell of a damper on a girl’s sex life.”
Clearly, these mafia men didn’t mess around. “Yikes.”
“Yeah. So odds of getting laid tonight just took a giant nosedive.”
I cringed. “Sorry.”
She waved a dismissive hand. “It’s fine. Even if he’s a controlling asshole, Matteo had a point. You can’t go to Ballistic. Not anymore.”
“Are you finally going to tell me why?”
With her gaze darting around the club, Gabi leaned in close enough to speak directly into my ear. “It’s owned by the Russians. And the Bellinis are currently engaged in a war with them.”
I reared back, eyes wide. “A war? What does that even mean?”
“In simplest terms? Bloodshed. There’s a target on every Italian’s back. Well, the men at least. Typically, women and children are off-limits, but every now and again, someone goes rogue.” She let out a wry laugh. “Guess you can’t always count on the villains to have honor.”
Jesus. I’d been reeling earlier when I learned that Rico wasn’t just my driver—he was also my bodyguard—but now it suddenly made sense. Matteo had enemies, and he was worried that my attachment to him would put me in harm’s way, so he was trying to protect me.
I shouldn’t be nearly swooning at the idea, but it was proof of how much he cared.
“Oh God.” Gabi groaned, drawing my attention back to her. “Your face is an open book, and I can see you romanticizing this in your head.”
Busted.
She gripped my shoulders, giving them a little shake. “Listen to me, and listen good, Summer. There’s nothing romantic about this world. It’s dark, it’s dangerous, and if I hadn’t been born into it, I wouldn’t be volunteering to jump into these shark-infested waters.”
As much as I could appreciate that she was trying to look out for me by warning me off, I feared it was already too late. I was already in love with those two little girls, and when it came to Matteo . . . well, my feelings for him weren’t very far behind.
I knew it sounded crazy. I barely knew the man. But that didn’t stop my heart from fluttering wildly inside my chest every time he entered the room. And when he looked at me like I was the center of his universe? God, there wasn’t a drug-induced high that could beat it.
“I’ll be fine.” I brushed off my best friend’s concern.
“Bet that’s what Allegra thought too,” she muttered under her breath.
“Who’s Allegra?”
Gabi froze, panic flickering over her features before she covered it with a bright yet forced smile. “No one. Let’s get a drink!”
