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I took the card gently from his hand and let my gaze drop to the floor, looking for something, anything to say that could make this better.
Matt was meticulous with his safety, so his men’s rooms sat on either side of the door to the honeymoon suite. I paused in front of the last door down the hall, waiting for him to say something or maybe change his mind, but he didn’t.
Disappointment lined my gut. I had successfully pushed him away. That was what I wanted, right? So why was I feeling like this? Because I’d been a total bitch, someone I don’t even recognize.
I wasn’t a hundred percent sure that was the full answer to that question, but something inside me urged me to stop this.
“I’ll need a gun.”
“A gun? Ah, that’s rich,” he mocked, taking his hand off the doorknob and turning towards me. At least I’ve gained some time, if anything. “I’ll play along for the sake of curiosity. Why on earth do you need a gun, Francesca?”
“There was a shooting at our wedding, Matt, and you’re assuming they were there for you because you’re the big bad mafia boss. How sure are you about that assessment?”
I saw him thinking it through, his eyes squinting into narrow slits as he gave my question some thought.
“I packed all of mine and sent them to the apartment. I didn’t know about this trip, and you never returned the one you took from my garter.”
There was now lust mixing with uncertainty in Matt’s eyes. A new fire that lit a flame in my gut, too.
“Besides, there’s only Max here. You sent Gio away. Who’s going to guard the room 24/7?” I shut my mouth for effect, waiting for a reply I knew wasn’t coming. “That’s what I thought. So I need a gun.”
“You’re not getting one.” Matt quickly replied, deadpan, with an authority in his voice that I shouldn’t care for. Yet somehow, bossy and dominating Matt stirred my insides more than I’d like to admit. “I’ve changed my mind.”
Matt shut the door to his room with unnecessary force before walking towards me, his eyes set on mine the entire time.
Round one. I win.
Well, technically I think he’s won two rounds by marrying me and then making me come on his fingers. But that didn’t fit the victory grin that I forced to keep at bay, but fuck I was smiling inside.
As soon as I opened the damn door, it was as if Cupid himself had taken up residence in this suite.
The romantic scenery displayed throughout the room rubbed burning salt into our already inflamed wound, deeply antagonizing with our current mood.
Champagne on ice, the bed sprinkled with red rose petals, a luxurious tray of freshly cut fruit, and chocolate of different varieties. Apart from all that, what my eyes set on without a blink was the huge bathtub that sat right in the middle of the room, filled with hot water and bubbles, topped by more petals.
“I’ll take the couch for now, until James gets here and they have another room available.” Matt’s voice sliced through the explicit thoughts I was having about us and that bathtub.
The sharp sting that jabbed through my chest as I registered his words caught me off guard. It was another step back, even if it’s not as bad as him staying in another room.
What was this craving I now had? Why did I want to appease the beast when he was giving me the space I wanted?
It was his damn confession. It was messing with my head.
His jacket lined the back of the couch he had claimed for himself, and I was caught again, bewitched by his thick arms straining under the black t-shirt he had chosen to wear today.
Laid back suited him just as much as those damn suits that concealed the criminal underneath with that deceiving white-collar attire.
“Matt?” My voice was soft, almost as if he had set a spell on me, and I needed to get back on his good side.
“Hmm?” His grunt was cold, his back still turned to me. I hadn’t earned the privilege to have him look me in the eye, but I was damn sure I was about to knock him off that horse.
“Thank you.” I started, watching as Matt turned around to look at me with a question etched into his features. “For all of it. The wedding, the presents, and… this.”
Matt watched me while I sauntered towards the bathtub and scooped a handful of bubbles, blowing them out of my hand and back onto the pile I’d gotten them from.
“You’re welcome.”
The hard lines on Matt’s face softened even if just an inch, while his eyes gave away how much my words slashed through his rough façade. There was a shy glint in those gray pools that lined my gut with a warm feeling I had never experienced before.
