Page 60 of Keeping My Captive

Gripping the stair railing, I take a seat on the first step, needing a minute to calm myself down. I was on the verge of a breakdown with the startling news of how long I’ve been here, but now…now I’m just trying to process everything.

Mateo doesn’t push, doesn’t try to pry into my thoughts. He simply just stands there; a comforting force even if I don’t want him to be.

“I wonder if my family thinks I’m dead,” I ponder aloud. I can imagine my mother sick with grief; my father angry beyond words that he hasn’t been able to find me yet. My brother and Renato would definitely be sharing in the rage and guilt. And Selina… Oh, Selina is probably distraught, blaming herself for everything. She couldn’t have known about the tracker that Constantine had inserted into her body. Had she known, she would have told someone, and she would have never left the sanctity of our home.

Mateo is quiet for a beat before he offers, “I can put out word that you’re alive and well, if that would make you feel better.”

My eyes lock onto his, searching his face for any signs of deception. He’s been so against me contacting my family since that phone call where I spilled a lot of information to my brother out of fear. “You would do that?” I ask, my voice just above a whisper.

“For you, yes,” he responds.

Again, I’m reading between the lines with him. I don’t know exactly when I became the woman he cares for instead of the woman he purchased and was forced to take care of. But more importantly, I don’t know when he became the man I want to be with instead of the man I’m trying to run away from.

“Consider it one of your birthday presents,” he offers. And then he reaches around the corner and pulls out a pretty, white box with a bright pink bow. “Along with this.”

Tentatively, I take the box and open it. There’s a layer of matching pink tissue paper, and I carefully pull it back. My eyes widen at the pair of metallic gold Louboutin heels nestled inside. They look exactly like the same shoes I was wearing the night I was kidnapped. The pair of heels that my mom had given to me as a present.

Slowly, I pull out one of the heels and study it. It looks new, but I suddenly have to know. “Are these…?” My voice trails off as a lump forms in my throat.

“Yes,” Mateo says. “They’re the same ones. I had them restored.”

Tears fill my eyes as I hold one of the heels to my chest. I know it’s stupid to cry over a pair of shoes, but these were a gift from my mother. Quite possibly the last gift I’ll ever receive from her. I wore them when I thought my life was over. I endured so much with them on my feet, and they made me feel powerful. Unstoppable.

Mateo could have gone out and bought me something new, something meaningless like a piece of jewelry or brand-new shoes. But instead, he went above and beyond and did something he knew I would love, something I would cherish.

And now I’m crying for a whole different reason.

Mateo frowns, studying my reaction. “I hope they didn’t fuck them up. I paid a lot of money to —.”

I don’t let him finish his sentence. I set the box down and throw myself into his arms, practically tackling him as my mouth claims his in an intense kiss. He wraps his arms around me, pulling me closer and deepening the kiss. When he pulls back, his eyes search mine. “Do you like them?”

“I love them,” I confess in a rush. “Thank you.”

A smile graces his sexy mouth, and it takes my breath away. Shaking my head, I slowly step away from him and take a deep breath. I went from my lowest low to my highest high in a matter of a few minutes, and I’m still trying to play catch-up. All these new feelings are bombarding me, but I’ll deal with them later when I’m alone and have time to think.

“So…is there cake?” I finally ask.

“Of course,” Mateo says, his expression softening. “Esmeralda makes the best chocolate cake you’ve ever tasted in your life,” he promises.

“I’ll hold you to that,” I tell him before I let him lead me into the kitchen and to my birthday party that goes well into the night.

CHAPTER45

Aria

MATEO HOLDS TRUE to his word, and he even lets me sit on his lap while he types out an encrypted email, informing his contacts in the United States that I’m alive and well and to put out the word to my family.

After that’s done, he takes me on the surface of his desk. He fucks me slow with emotion hidden behind every thrust. I think he’s scared of losing me. And honestly, I’m scared of losing him too. I know deep down we shouldn’t be doing any of this for a billion different reasons, but I can’t seem to slow down or stop. And maybe I don’t want to.

Mateo gets a phone call shortly after our lovemaking, and I retreat to our room to take a hot shower. The water feels so good cascading over my sore muscles. It feels like I just did an hourlong cardio session. Sex with Mateo is just like doing a workout, but better. I get to come afterwards. And I don’t remember that happening in my old spin class.

Stepping out of the shower, I go to the sink and comb out my long hair and brush my teeth. I stare down at my flat stomach, studying it in the bathroom mirror with a frown on my face. The thought of getting pregnant with my captor’s child should scare me. The part of my brain with rational thought is definitely terrified, but then there’s a curious part that wonders…what if. What if I get pregnant with Mateo’s baby? Would he be a good father? Would he take care of us?

I think the answer to those last two questions would be yes. I think he would be an amazing and extremely protective father. But the thought of having a baby down here in Mexico away from my family and in captivity scares the living hell out of me. The realistic part of my brain overrides all curiosity. And that is why when I emerge from the bathroom and see Mateo, I tell him, “I need to take Plan B. Do they have that down here?”

“No,” he simply answers as he goes to the walk-in closet, ignoring me.

I follow him. “No as in they don’t or…?” I ask, my voice trailing off.

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