twenty-six
I waketo the sound of my alarm blaring on the bedside table. Sebastian groans in bed next to me, the feeling of his strong arm wrapped around my waist a comfort I didn’t realize I needed this much.
“Make the evil stop,” he grumbles, and I smack the screen until the alarm quiets.
Drama king.
“Go back to sleep. I’m going to open the shop,” I attempt to lift his arm off my waist, but he holds me tighter. I can’t help the smile that spreads across my face.“Not sure if you remember but I have a little mess to clean up this morning,” I tell him with a wide grin.
“Don’t leave me,” he says, burying his face in my curls. Being wrapped in his powerful arms is intoxicating. I never want to leave this dream, but reality pays the bills.
“Go back to sleep. I’m just gonna open the shop, I’ll be back later.” I slide out of bed, dropping his arm back to the mattress.
“Wait for Teo. He’ll be here in ten minutes.” He mumbles into the pillow, his voice heavy from sleep.
I’m obsessed with this version I’ve him. Knowing no one has ever had the pleasure of seeing this side of him fills me with a kind of privilege I’ve never known before. Many have loved and lost before us, and many will love after we are gone from this Earth. But this love, here in these moments, however fleeting they often feel, is mine.
“I’ll tell him to meet me downstairs. I love you.” Kissing his temple, I brush his messy hair out of his face, tracing the lines of tattoos down his shoulders and torso.
“Keep doing that and I won’t let you leave this room,” he says, and I laugh softly.
“I’ll see you in a little bit. Take your time, I do have actual work to do.” Stretching until our fingertips no longer touch, I finally leave the apartment and make my way down to Mug Life.
The dining room sits just as we left it last night, and I smile at the memories. As angry as I felt when he finally removed his mask, the night he spent worshipping me, body and soul, definitely made up for it. Righting the table and chairs, I busy myself wiping everything clean, erasing the evidence of what we did here last night. Starting my morning duties, I pop my earbuds in, my favorite upbeat music making everything feel like my life is finally falling into place. I know Sebastian still has uncertainties in his business. I know there are still problems on the horizon. But after last night, after the things he said to me and the promises we’ve made, I can’t seem to care about anything or anyone else right now. Faintly over the sound of my music, I hear the click of the back door. Matteo must be arriving finally.
“Wow, that was way less than ten minutes. For once you’re early, Teo. I’m impressed.” I laugh, pulling my earbud out and turning to greet him.
Suddenly I’m face to face with a man I don’t recognize. He appears young, olive-skinned, with striking green eyes and alarge scar trailing down one cheek. His features look familiar, but I’ve never seen this man before. His face is completely devoid of emotion, cold and empty, yet his smile looks almost sinister. The expensive suit he’s wearing tells me he’s not here for coffee and a pastry, but likely for something far worse.
“W-who are you? What the hell are you doing here?” I attempt to take a step back, but he steps closer.
“My associates were correct. You are exquisite, Ms. Diaz. I can understand what my cousin sees in you.” He twirls a lock of my hair around one finger, and I shiver. Cousin? This man is an enemy if I’ve ever seen one, I feel it in my fucking bones.
Yet again, I find myself only feet away from the gun I keep behind the counter. How do I keep getting into these situations? I can throw a decent punch, but that would only serve to piss this guy off. He’s got at least a foot of height and a hundred pounds on me. There’s no telling if he’s alone. Surely, Teo will be here in just moments. I could scream, that would likely wake Sebastian. But in the meantime, this man could slit my throat in a matter of seconds. I slip the earbud in my hand into the pocket of my linen pants.
“What do you want?” I ask, shuffling backward, bracing a hand on a table. He advances, a predatory look in his eyes.
“What I’ve always wanted. To hurt Sebastian. And this is how I accomplish that goal.” He grins that wicked grin again, and I turn to make a run for the front door.
I only make it a few steps before he grabs me by my hair, ripping my head back towards him. A scream rips from my throat, but he slaps a hand over my mouth. I bite into the fleshy part of his palm hard enough to break the skin. The taste of iron floods into my mouth, and I feel a sense of triumph knowing I made the fucker bleed.
“Fucking bitch!” He rips his hand away, backhanding me with the other.
The slap surprises me, stinging like a brand across my cheek. Tears spring to my eyes involuntarily, but I will them away. Only one man can bring me to my fucking knees, and it’s definitely not a man as weak as this one. He grips my throat tightly, and I wince.
“You try that shit again and I will kill you. You do not matter to me, cunt. I will tell your worthless father you were collateral damage and call it a fucking day, do you understand me?” He growls and I’m so fucking confused.
My father? What does my family have to do with any of this? And how does this shit keep happening? Moments when I’m most vulnerable, the few minutes I’m left unguarded, the wolves descend every time.
“We’re going to take a little drive, and you’re going to come quietly. Or I’m going to shoot you in your pretty little face, understand? I will burn this building to the ground with your man sleeping upstairs. That would be so much easier for me, honestly. But I need him to willingly give me the keys to his kingdom first if I want the elders to obey. So you’re going to follow the rules, and we’re all going to have a good day, got it, sweetie?” His lips press against my cheek and bile rises in my throat.
I nod as his fingers tighten in my hair. A whimper escapes my throat, and I wonder what’s keeping Matteo. Why is no one here to interrupt this encounter? Tears spring to my eyes again, spilling over my lashes.
“I think Sebastian will be a little distracted when he wakes, my dear. You see, Matteo is his closest friend. And imagine the devastation he will feel when he discovers I burned that shitty little house of yours to the ground with him locked inside.” There is joy in his voice at his admission, and I can’t stop the sob that rips from my chest.
Oh Matteo. My Dougy. My home.
All the memories of the life I’ve built with my own hands from the moment I came to Grovewood, everything stolen by this monster. I can’t begin to understand what he wants from me. But I know, with the nature of Sebastian’s family, it can only be power. It will always be power they come for. I vow to myself in this very moment, they will never strip it from him because of me.