Page 2 of Deviant Desires

“It’s going to be fine,” my lawyer reassures me in a hushed tone. “He’s done time before for felony battery. The judge will throw the book at him.”

But it wasn’t fine. When the judge got the courtroom back under control, he flipped through his paperwork and left us all stewing in silence as he determined Mateo’s prison sentence. It took a few minutes and many whispered about the court breaking for a recess to give the judge more time to consider severity, but nothing like that happened.

Instead, the judge banged his gavel a second time when he’d finally made his decision. “On the charge of criminal possession of a firearm, I sentence defendant, Mateo Valenti, to three years at Leavenworth County Jail. That’s all. Court’s dismissed.” He’s the first one out of his chair as he retires to his chambers.

In the meantime, outbursts erupt in the courthouse. A guard comes to handcuff Mateo and lead him out of the courtroom and a few other guards try to suppress the rage of the Valenti family.

“I forgive you,” Mateo yells over the crowd. His eyes are pinned on me, but where I used to see love, I now see vengeance. “But you will pay for this, Bambi. You will regret this one day.”

My lawyer stands up to call for more guards while I stare at the man I’ve spent the last three years dating get carted away by the cops. He swears that we’re going to spend the rest of our lives together. He says that he’s coming back for me.

A chill races down my spine as I listen to him yell across the room about our future. Mateo Valenti is a powerful man; if he says something will happen, it’s as good as done.

1

MATEO

3Years Later

“You’re joking, right?” I stare at the shoes I left with intake when I was processed into Leavenworth County. Both of them are missing their shoestrings. “You think I arrived here with shoes looking likethat?”

The man who returned my bag of belongings to me looks unbothered by my unspoken accusation. “Criminals come in here every day, sir. I just put their stuff in the bags and put the bags in storage. The storage is locked, sir. No one has touched your stuff since you arrived.”

That’s bullshit. I had two fucking shoestrings when I walked through these doors and now I have none. Not to mention there was a pack of smokes in the breast pocket of my suit that are now missing. I might have kicked the habit behind bars, but they were still mine. “I’m also missing $20.”

The guy turns a blind eye to my struggles. “Move it along. I don’t have time for this today.”

I didn’t have time to spend three years behind bars. I don’t have time to spend another two hours driving back to Manhattan. I don’t have time to rebuild my life because of this stupid fucking setback. But I guess my time doesn’t matter.

I grab what’s left of my things—a wallet, an empty money clip, and my grandfather’s watch—and head for the exit. Just a few feet outside the door of the prison stands my brother. “You’re a sight for sore eyes and that’s saying something because you’re one ugly motherf—”

Raniero embraces me before I can finish. “Good to see you’re still a pain in the ass.”

One of my brothers came to see me every other week for the last three years. I didn’t have time to miss them even if I wanted to. But their presence at the prison was vital to my ability to stay out of trouble. “Get me out of here, Nero. I need to get home and take a long hot shower.”

“One where you can drop the soap and not be afraid to pick it up?” He jokes as he pulls away from me.

This isn’t my first stint in prison, but it’s been the longest. Half a dozen years ago I spent twenty-six months behind bars for felony battery, but that fucker was asking for it. “It wasn’t that bad. Thought it’d be worse, frankly.” I wasn’t beaten bloody on my first day, so that was a plus.

Raniero leads me to his car, a black Tesla, an upgrade from the last time I saw him. “Nice car,” I announce as I walk around to the passenger side. Where the door handle should be is instead a metal bar that’s flush with the car. “What the fuck is this?”

He snorts as he lets himself in. “Push in the left side of the handle and pull the right.”

I do as he says and when I press the left side, the right pops out like a handle. “Fucking new ass car shit,” I announce as I pull the door open. “What other shit has changed since I left?”

“Not much,” Raniero shrugs as he backs out of the parking space and heads for the parking lot exit. “Cesare got a belly button piercing.”

“No fucking way,” I slam my hand down on my thigh. “That little—”

“It was a joke,” Raniero adds with a laugh. “Seriously though, nothing has changed. The world is just the same way as when you left it.”

It doesn’t feel that way to me. I missed three years of my life. Instead of marrying the love of my life and starting a family, I spent every waking minute working out, reading books, and plotting how to get my girl back. “You’re gonna need to take me to a phone store ASAP. I gotta get back on the grid.”

He nods his head and with a few taps on the oversized screen in his Tesla, we’re led turn-by-turn to the nearest Verizon store. “You need some cash?”

I’m about to tap my pocket and tell him I’m fine when I remember that I didn’t take anything with me to prison. I had my driver’s license on me, but I gave my lawyer my credit cards and told him to give them to my brothers. I figured I wouldn’t be able to use plastic behind bars. “I’m probably going to have to order new shit,” I shake my head as I get out of the car. “What a fucking waste of my time.”

Raniero follows my lead and climbs out of the Tesla with me. “I don’t know why you had that guy there when you were having dinner with Bambi anyway. That was a stupid fucking move, Mat.”

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