◆ MILES ◆
After shooting at dozens of beer bottles in my backyard to blow off some steam, I texted Enzo to ask where he was at the moment. Niccolo also said Enzo flew out of Italy again and that Enzo wanted to talk to me about something urgent.
Despite my reluctance, I decided to contact Enzo to ask him about his Uncle Ignazio's preferences...what booze and drugs the DOM liked, and what type of women his uncle preferred besides the usually underage hookers.But the jerk wasn't answering my calls. Or maybe Lorenzio just didn't take calls from unregistered numbers. "Pick up the damn phone," I mumbled with a groan as the ringing went on, my hands busy cleaning up some of the mess I just made with my handgun and twenty or so blanks.I had enough bullets in my ammo drawer to practice with, but I opted to use blanks tonight. Just for safety reasons.◆ MILES ◆ Meet up with his COO? Lying bastard. Before I could shout profanities at my phone screen like a drunken lunatic, I rang his number and waited as my jaw tensed up. The odd, aching sensation in my gut just got worse. But I had to confront him now and get some things off my chest. Not very nice things. The prick probably thought I wouldn't find out about him seeing Mykaela again. Did he think I was that clueless and stupid? The guy picked up after two rings. "Hey, Maxim. You got my message last time?" I ignored his question and held back a sigh of frustration. I clenched my fist. He just called me by my childhood nickname again, as if we were old friends. "What the fuck do you want with her?" I blurted. No time for bullshit. We'd better get straight to the point before he could think of an alibi, and
× WARNING! × CONTENT BELOW INTENDED FOR MATURE AUDIENCES ×◇ KEL ◇...It started with a quick kiss—a little chaste buss I left on his lips. Our first ever real kiss. It felt light. Easy. Almost natural. I wanted to comfort him in some way before I had to leave. So I kissed him again.Then he just grabbed my arms and pulled me to him. He showed me how to really kiss someone.But our first one didn't end there. His breath smelled of alcohol but I just didn't give a crap. I wanted to prolong the feeling of his mouth on mine. Just for tonight...I wanted to know how he really kissed a woman.He brushed his soft lips onto my neck, then on my shoulder, his firm arms embracing me. It felt right. Last time I checked, we're just two friends hanging out, but it definitely felt far from a friendly hug. Before I
◆ MILES ◆ ... "We're cooking something up with Leandro, Lorenzio's brother. He's got a new lab." Ricchar grabbed the wine bottle in front of him. "It's a new one. Not as dangerous as meth or heroin." "Are you kidding?" I wanted to swear at the underlying suggestion. "You're turning into Pappa." Ricchar shrugged nonchalantly at my comment, his lips pouting somewhat. "Leandro's chemists say it's just like taking vitamins, or painkillers. It's more of an opioid. Cheaper than blow. You could easily sell it to your friends." For Pete's sake. Now my own cousin's convincing me to become one of their drug dealers. Chemists... I wondered how many millions they got paid per year straight from the Tomassinis' offshore bank accounts. "Fuck no. Not gonna happen." I chuckled and looked away from him in incredulity. I had enough life-derailing addictions to deal with on a regular basis. Wh
◇ KEL ◇ "Why are you still there?" "No— I was gonna..." The rest of my reply got cut off when I almost dropped my phone in a hasty attempt to lower the volume. I rushed out of Enzo's hotel room, my legs barely able to hold my weight. Miles' indignant tone shouldn't be a surprise, but... I just didn't expect he'd actually call me this morning. "He told you not to leave?" "No. It's not like that," I lied. Some part of my head throbbed as my brain tried to come up with a better backup lie. "Just wanna make sure he's fine. He drank too much last night," I explained, keeping my voice down as I stood alone in the dim hallway. It wasn't like I was cheating on him or anything—nothing beyond friendly gestures happened last night. Enzo would never take advantage of the situation like that. Wait. Did Miles think we're in a real relationship now? Why? He never said anything about us dating or being official. Though at times it felt like we're getting there, I just didn't know if he saw me
◇ KEL ◇ The sight of a barechested, damp and scowling Enzo surprised me when I got back into his hotel room to get my things. His bodyguard showing up in the hallway also reminded me to leave now. Or else Miles might do something drastic about this whole issue. Wouldn't be the first time.As I tried not to check out Enzo's exposed body, I grabbed my old tablet to put it in my satchel. Time to come up with my goodbye spiel. I wanted to chat with Enzo for a bit. Say bye properly. Check how he actually felt right now after all that alcohol. I just couldn't stay any longer. Miles and Niccolo would find out if I stayed another hour in this hotel with Enzo. Why's he ignoring me? Enzo hadn't paid me any mind since he stepped out of his shower. The relaxing scent of soap that reminded me of fresh linens occupied the hotel room. Enzo kept his phone on his ear, talking in fluent Italian to someone. At times in English as well. No clue who was on the phone with him. But I had a feeling it w
◇ KEL ◇I knew it. It was Miles on the phone. But what and who were they talking about?His brother? Why? Or perhaps Miles only called him up to warn him to stay away from me.Again.Then, maybe, they ended up talking about their family's most recent business deals and whatnot.My curiosity was pushing me to ask Enzo about their conversation, but like Miles said, I should get going. I shouldn't even be here in this expensive hotel. Or anywhere near the Tomassinis. For my own sake. Quietly and with some hesitation, I approached Enzo as he stood still on the balcony, the faint sunlight not doing much to lighten up the atmosphere in this part of the city."Hey."Enzo turned to regard me, his phone no longer stuck to his ear. He put his phone away and just waited
◇ KEL ◇ He tilted his head to stare at my face again, his tone close to pleading. A glimmer in his beautiful eyes held my attention. His long lashes emphasized his squint before he glanced away and sniveled. Was he crying now? Shucks. In just seconds, my hands already felt drenched in sweat. "Fine. Just get off your knees." I looked away, my hands and armpits sweating profusely, not because of his heartwarming gesture but because of his tight grip on my hand when I helped him up. For a moment, it felt like he didn't want to let go of me. "I need to hear it." Hear what? That I already forgave him? Did he see me as a vindictive person? "I said 'fine', Enzo." "Really?" he murmured. Clearly he'd never stop begging until I said yes. He even leaned in to force a
◆ MILES ◆ The Falco Estate Umbria, Italy "You're not coming to the party?" I asked the question before sitting next to my older cousin in his favorite patio, minding the dark half-circles under his light blue eyes and the semi-permanent scowl on his mouth. After that awfully long travel by car, I should be the one sulking and making faces, but I caught Ricchar at a bad time today. Well, he was still working despite being stuck home all month long. Perhaps Ricchar was more stressed than usual by his current responsibilities in the family business. Plus, Cloe being pregnant and mostly bedridden for the time being... "Cloe doesn't want me to leave," Ricchar muttered, his eyes busy on his phone. His outfit today was a simple black tracksuit with white stripes on the unzipped front, not very "businessmanly" like his usua