AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He loved seeing Chase in such good spirits. God, he loved this man. With that thought in his mind, he leaned over and gently kissed Chase on the cheek.
“What was that for, babe?” Chase looked lovingly at him.
“Just because.” Levi smiled back, then glanced over at Matteo. “Can you and I talk in private for a moment?”
The table fell silent.
“Of course, we can.” Matteo pushed his chair away from the table and signaled for Raj to stay put. The large cat looked at its master with big, sad eyes but obeyed his instructions. “Shall we?” Matteo gestured for Levi to follow him into the gardens.
They walked over to the large water fountain that stood in the center of the massive grounds and sat down on the ledge.
The fountain had been sculpted by a famous sculptor who had died nearly eighty years ago. Levi had heard his name mentioned once years ago but had long since forgotten the name. He would have to look it up sometime, but that was a job for future Levi, not current day Levi.
Levi always wondered if Matteo was part nobility or something. Given the massive size of the château and the gigantic fortune that Matteo had locked, he often wondered about Matteo’s past. That was one topic Matteo never discussed, and the history books didn’t seem to cover. Was that a coincidence?
Matteo sat patiently and waited for Levi to make the first move.
God, he felt so nervous. He didn’t want Matteo to think that he was ungrateful or was turning his back on the family, but if he wanted to be with Chase, he needed to do this.
“Well, first off, I wanted to thank you for all that you’ve done for me. You rescued me from the streets and gave me a family and a future. Without your love, compassion, and generosity, I would probably be dead.”
Matteo took Levi’s hand in his and gave it a firm squeeze.
“Seriously, M. You don’t realize how much you mean to me and the other guys. We think of you as a father figure, and we’d be lost without you.”
“Thank you, Levi. You boys mean the world to me, and I’m so glad that you are all a part of my family.”
Now, for the hard part.
“Now that I’ve met and fallen in love with Chase, I would like to see where things go with him. Hopefully, one day soon, he will be added as part of our family as well.”
Matteo nodded slowly. He knew where this was going.
“And in order for that love to continue to blossom, you don’t want to work for me any longer,” Matteo whispered.
“Well, kind of. I know I don’t want to continue to entertain your guests. Now that I’ve fallen in love with Chase, my body belongs only to him.”
“Understandable.” Matteo nodded and lowered his head. “You know that you will always have a home here at the château. And I will be more than happy to help you achieve whatever career goals you choose. You name it, and I’ll make some calls.”
There goes Matteo, showing his big heart and always willing to help those he loves.
“Well, actually, I love working here. Being surrounded by the people I call family and being close to you.”
Matteo’s head lifted, and he stared at him, confused.
“I don’t understand. You just said that you didn’t want to entertain any longer.”
“Yeah, but I was hoping that perhaps you could hire me as a bartender or a server or something. This way, I could still work with you at the château, but I wouldn’t have to get naked and dirty.”
They both chuckled.
Matteo leaned over and wrapped his arm around Levi. “Of course, you can bartend. I’m so happy that you want to stay.” He pulled Levi in close and gave him a big hug.
A huge weight had been lifted off Levi’s chest. He couldn’t wait to tell Chase and the guys.
33
CHASE
