Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 80550 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 322(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80550 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 322(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
“You don’t have to worry about any of it, nor the tracker. But there was a … shoot-out in the cemetery right after you left,” Matteo explains.
“Oh dear,” she mutters, clutching her glass of champagne tightly.
“But my men took care of it,” Matteo says.
“And I protected you.” I wink.
Matteo smiles at me. “You did, and I’m grateful, you know that. I just worry about the impression I’ve left on your mother.” He clears his throat. “We didn’t have a very good start.”
Mom rubs her lips together. “It’s okay. It’s not your fault.”
Suddenly, he goes onto one knee and grabs her hand. “Yes, it is. I stole your daughter’s hand and whisked her away, and for that, I want to apologize. I don’t regret making your daughter mine, but I do regret the way I went about it. Will you forgive me?”
She stammers for a moment. “I-I …” She glances my way, and I nod to signal it’s okay. “Yes, of course. If my daughter has accepted you, then so will I.”
He looks up. “I also put you in harm’s way, and I am sorry for that as well. I will do my best to make everything right again. I want to be the son-in-law you wished for your daughter.”
“Thank you.” Mom smiles, and Matteo gets up from the floor again. “And it’s fine. You did what you did, and it was wrong, yes, but if she’s over it, I’m over it. I’m just glad that bastard Lucio didn’t harass me again after that first wedding. I don’t even know how that tracker got into my bag in the first place.”
“Lucio has his ways, unfortunately,” Matteo says.
“Had,” I correct.
He narrows his eyes at me, and I can just tell I’ve pissed him off the right amount to later get my ass handed to me with a thrust of his cock, and I’m so ready.
“Suffice to say, Lucio has been taken care of. You do not have to worry about him anymore,” Matteo says. “Either of you.”
“Good. That’s the last time someone will ever try to marry my girl just for the sake of money,” Mom says, and she takes a big swig of her drink.
“Should you be drinking that?” I ask. “You know, with your meds and all that.”
She leans in. “I grabbed one of the kiddie drinks.” She adds a wink, and we both laugh.
“I heard about your diagnosis from Stella. I hope everything is okay?” Matteo asks.
“My doctor has actually cleared me. The cancer is gone.” She focuses on me. “Thanks to my Stella, who went above and beyond to help me when there was no one else.”
She wraps her arm around my shoulder, and we hug again.
“Anything for you, Mom,” I say. “I’m just glad you’re still here with me.”
“Agreed. And if there is anything you need—anything at all—just call me, and my men will be ready to assist,” Matteo adds. “That includes anything you want to purchase.”
She leans in to whisper, “Such a gentleman. You really got a good one this time.”
I chuckle. “You wouldn’t say that if you saw what’s underneath.”
Her lips tighten, and her eyes widen, a red flush crossing her cheeks, before she bursts out into laughter in such an infectious way that I can’t help but laugh with her.
“How are the newlyweds doing?” Angelo’s voice booms over the laughter as he approaches us from behind, and Matteo leans into him for a bro-hug.
“Glad to see you made it too,” Matteo says.
“Dad’s here too, somewhere,” Angelo responds, eyes skittering about the room.
“You left Dad here to fend for himself between all these single ladies?” Matteo jokes. “He’ll have a hard time swatting them away.”
I snort. “I doubt that.”
“Wait until you see him,” Angelo replies, raising a brow at Matteo. “Where else do you think he got his looks?”
Matteo nudges him with his elbow, and it only makes me snort harder.
However, from the corner of my eye, I spot someone I didn’t expect to see.
My father.
STELLA
My father reaches for a glass of champagne while grumbling at the servers, and I clear my throat. “If you’ll excuse me.”
“You’re gonna talk to him?” Mom whispers.
I nod. “I have to. For my own closure.”
Matteo rubs me on my back. “If you need me, just glance, and I’ll come rescue you.”
I press a kiss to his cheeks. “Thank you. I’ll be fine. I’m a big girl.” I wink.
“I know.” He gives me a gentle nudge.
I walk toward my father, but the second he sees me coming, he immediately lifts his head high and looks away.
“Hi. Can we talk?”
Before he can protest, I drag him into an adjacent room and close the door so no one can hear us.
He clears his throat. “I’m impressed … you finally managed to convince a man to take you as his wife.”
I frown. “You do realize all the trouble I went through was because of your inability to help Mom, right?”