Page 48 of Seductive Desires

The sun rose and the house rose with it. People talked and joked as they moved through the hallway. Jo stopped by again, pleading with me to join her and Gabi for a morning workout. Gabi stopped by a little while later, asking if I wanted to talk to someone. I never answered the door. I sat unmoving, my tears finally dried up. I almost rolled my eyes when someone knocked on the door again, until I heard the voice.

“Mariana, could I have a minute?”

Liam was standing outside my door. No way was the boss of the Irish mafia coming to cheer me up. Since he was probably there for something actually important, I slid off the bed, throwing the door open. He stood stoically, his hands tucked behind his back like he was some lord from the 1800s. When he took in the state of me, he grimaced.

“I want to apologize for my part last night. Jo pointed out… Well, she spent most of the night yelling at me, but she did make me realize I should have done better. You are going through enough without me picking a fight with Mateo.”

I just looked at him. I didn’t want an apology. I wanted Mateo to be standing outside my door, not him. All I could think all night was I was an idiot for ever letting him go in the first place.

Liam rubbed his neck awkwardly. “Okay. Well… we are going to start prepping your apartment today. Do you think you would be comfortable giving me your key? It would draw less suspicion if we weren’t breaking into your apartment.”

I bobbed my head slowly, moving through the room as I searched for my bag. I hadn’t thought about it since I got here, given that I wasn’t allowed to leave. It took me a minute to remember that it had been left by the front door when Jo brought me inside.

Liam followed me as I trudged toward the entryway. I kept my eyes on the ground. I didn’t have the energy to paste on a fake smile for everyone who passed by me right now. A few people greeted Liam, but no one said anything to me. Either they could tell now was not the time, or Liam was keeping them at bay.

I dug through my bag, searching for my keys. When I came up empty, I frowned. I never misplaced my keys before, I was almost obsessive with how often I checked that they were in my bag where they belonged. I checked again, a little more anxiously. Maybe I dropped them outside? I was about to turn to Liam to ask if anyone has seen them when I froze. It felt like ice slid down my spine. It took Mateo longer than a second to leave the house last night. At the time, I figured he was putting on his jacket or something. What if…?

I spun on my heel, horrified. “They’re gone.”

He frowned. “Really? No one has touched…” He seemed to come to the same realization I did, his gaze jerking to mine.

I ripped my phone out of my pocket, dialing Mateo’s number as Liam raced to his office. It rang and rang until it went to voicemail. I tried again. Nothing.

I decided to try and call Amari. Mateo had given me her number in case I was ever unable to reach him. She answered after the first ring.

“Speak.”

“Amari? It’s Mariana. Is Mateo with you?”

I could hear the frown in her voice. “No, I thought he was staying with you.”

“He was. Last night he and Liam got into a fight and he stormed out. He was supposed to go back to the hotel to cool down.”

“He made no mention of it,” she hissed. “Have you tried calling him?”

“Yes, several times. He’s not answering.”

I heard her curse in Spanish. “He has been purposely not telling me where he is going, like he’s trying to prove he is tough.”

I sucked in a breath. “I think he did something stupid.”

“What? What did he do? Mariana!”

“I’m sorry, I have to go. I’ll let you know when I know.” I hung up, dialing Mateo’s number again. The third time, right as I was about to hang up, I heard the click of someone picking up.

“Mateo?”

“Hello, Anna.”

* * *

I couldn’t breathe,my spine stiff as I held back tears.

“Where’s Mateo?”

“Oh, Anna. When will you ever learn?” I heard a muffled shout in the background. Mateo!

“Stephen! Don’t!”

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