Chapter 19

Unspoken Desires - Chapter 19

Damian

Matteo, Matthew, and I left the safe house just after finalizing the plan and sending everyone upstairs to rest.

I should’ve gone up to see Sareena before leaving, but she needs to understand the reality of this situation. This isn’t a time for comfort. We had a mission and I couldn’t let her clog my judgement. She keeps thinking she can handle it, now she has to prove it.

Everyone had their assignments. Tomorrow would test every one of them and every part of this operation.

Demetrius would reach out to Maria De Luca in the morning. Let her know he was back from Canada and missed her. Hopefully, she hadn’t moved on to another eager pup to feed her ego.

Once he got back in her good graces and her pussy, he’d plant the bugs around the De Luca house.

Lessia was going back undercover as Karen; the devoted college student working as a temp, for multiple Temp Agencies just to make rent.

She’d also resume her twisted dance with Cesare. He was the one who invited her back, asking for help. Once he tells her what he needs, she’ll execute, but keeping us looped in so we’re ready.

Vincent wasn’t thrilled, but he had more important things to focus on. He and Matthew were ordered to lay low and monitor Svetlana’s uncle’s residence. She’s been seen going in and out of that house but she always knows when Cattaneo’s men are watching. Someone’s tipping her off. The Predatel. Hiding in our ranks.

Once we had eyes on her, we’d tail. No mistakes. No improvising. Hopefully, she’d lead us straight to where they’re keeping our people.

Gabriella was getting the full transformation; new hair, new nose, different eye color, even bigger tits. No one would recognize her.

Matteo would escort her to his parents’ estate, under the guise of being the new assistant to Constance Cattaneo. The old one died during the kidnapping.

With Miguel scheduled to leave for Montreal today, the timing worked in our favor. We’d already looped in Davide and Adriano; Constance’s personal guards. Fiercely loyal. No wavering. No risk of betrayal. One of them would always be around to watch Gabby.

Maximus and I were in charge of all comms. Everyone would be wired. No blind spots. No dropped feeds. First sign of danger, we pull them out. No debate.

Matteo would continue hunting Bratva targets. Stirring chaos in the streets. Keeping up the illusion that he’s spiraling. Let the traitors think he’s still chasing shadows.

Let them feel safe. Let them get comfortable. They had no idea we were here, no clue what was coming.

We’d strike fast. We’d strike clean. No mercy. No hesitation. Just precision.

If they wanted war, we’d give them silence and then strike like ghosts.

—————-

Sareena

The scent of coffee was the first thing I noticed when I walked into the kitchen. The second was the silence. It was heavy, a focused kind of silence that came before a storm.

Everyone was already up. Maximus at the table, watching Gabby get made up.

She sat near the window, perfectly still while someone applied her prosthetic makeup. New nose, fuller lips, a slight cheekbone lift. Subtle, but just enough to pass. The biggest difference was the fuller breasts and the blonde hair.

Lessia and Vincent sat close together, whispering. Demetrius was off to the side, scrolling through something on his phone.

But no sign of Damian, or Matthew.

I poured myself a cup, ignoring the bitter twist in my chest. Damian didn’t come up to bed last night. No messages, either. Nothing.

I inhaled slowly. This mission was real and the stakes were high. Whatever I felt about Damian could wait.

I sat down beside Vincent and took a sip of my coffee, only to pause when I noticed the way he was holding Lessia’s hand under the table.

Whispering in her ear, as his thumb brushed hers in this slow, grounding way.

Then it hit me. Last night. The walls. The moaning. The very loud sex. My eyes widened. “Wait. That was you two last night?”

Lessia froze. Vincent just raised a brow.

Maximus chuckled under his breath. “Took you long enough.”

Gabriella didn’t even look up. “We all knew.”

Lessia turned beet red and dropped her face into her hands. “Oh god.”

The room broke into quiet laughter, and was still laughing when Demetrius swaggered over, clearly not one to miss a spotlight.

“I still can whoo the ladies,” he said with a stupid grin, tossing his phone onto the table like it was a poker chip.

The screen lit up with a photo of Maria De Luca, barely dressed, posing in a way that definitely wasn’t accidental.

I blinked. “Oh.”

“She wants to see me as soon as possible,” he added proudly. “Told her I have to get assigned a new detail from Matteo and the Capo, but I’ll swing by later.”

Vincent leaned in, tilting his head. “Hey, she’s not bad for a cougar. Still hot. Bet she’s wild.”

That opened the floodgates.

“Damn, D,” Maximus said, grinning. “Is this your thing now? Menopausal seduction?”

Gabby didn’t even look up from her makeup. “Guess the young ones aren’t sliding into his DMs anymore.”

Even Lessia joined in, lips twitching. “Probably blocked at the old folks homes by now.”

Demetrius placed a hand on his chest, mock-offended. “I’ll have you know Maria is refined. Experienced.”

“Desperate,” Vincent threw in.

“And flexible,” Demetrius shot back, making us all groan.

I laughed, shaking my head as I sipped my coffee.

The door swung open just as the laughter died down, and in walked Damian, Matthew, and Matteo. All three looked serious, but completely exhausted.

Gabriella stood as they entered, a slight smirk tugging at her lips. “Well?” she asked, turning in place so they could get a full view. “Do I pass?”

Her new look was striking. Blonde hair, bigger breasts, sharper cheekbones, and that flawless, synthetic glow that made her look like a different woman entirely. Confident but deadly.

Demetrius let out a low whistle. “Damn, girl. You look hot. If Max doesn’t please, you should call me. Bring the fake tits.”

Max’s head snapped toward him, jaw clenched. “Enough, Demetrius.”

The room went still. Gabriella just raised a brow, arms folding across her chest with cool indifference.

Before it could spiral, Damian cut in, voice low and firm. “Enough, guys. We’ve been out all night tracking Bratva movements.” He shifted his gaze to Demetrius. “You need to get in with Maria as fast as possible. She was seen leaving a Bratva club last night.”

Demetrius didn’t miss a beat. “Already done, boss. Told her I just got back from a job, need to check in with Matteo and Capo. I’ll swing by later.”

Damian nodded once. “Good. Keep her distracted. We need ears in that house. She’s involved.”

“Speaking of ears, here are your comms.” Matthew said, tossing a small bundle of equipment onto the table. “Everyone gets two. The earpieces will let you hear only Damian and Max unless the guys connect you to someone else. Girls, yours are embedded in a clip-on earring, so they’re easier to hide. To turn them off, either hit the back or just pull it off. Guys, you know how yours work.”

He paused for a moment before continuing, his voice firm and clear.

“The second one goes anywhere you want to put it. It’s a listening device. This will let Damian and Max hear what’s going on. They can patch it through to others if necessary.”

We all rose to grab our comms, the weight of the mission settling in.

It was time to go.

Matteo’s voice came from behind, calm but focused. “Gabriella, are you almost ready to go? We’re stopping by the De Luca house - unannounced. Alessandro hasn’t been seen or heard from in days. Need to find out why.”

He paused, then added, “And that way I can introduce you to Maria.”

Matt glanced at Vincent. “Vin, let’s get going too. There’s been Bratva activity near the deserted Calico area, off Route 66. A lot of cars and vans going in and out. We tracked a vehicle we think was Svetlana’s to an abandoned complex around there.”

“If we’re right,” Matteo added, “that’s where they’re keeping Sophia and the rest. But we couldn’t go in. Still need to know how it’s being guarded first.”

Vincent nodded and stood, already heading off to grab his gear.

Matteo turned toward Lessia. “Lessia - sorry, Karen. I’m assigning you to an assistant job at my office. Use your old desk. Call Cesare once you’re settled. Use the office phones, they record conversations. Get him talking.”

“I’ll head out after I clean up here,” she said, gesturing to the breakfast dishes piled on the table.

“I got it,” I offered, since I was the only one not directly involved in the morning’s plans.

“Great,” Matthew said, already moving. “Lessia, there’s a BMW parked out front. That’s your car for now. It’ll alert us if anyone tries to plant a bug or tracker, and we can monitor your location.”

The room cleared within minutes after Damian’s order. Everyone scattered, prepping for their missions and heading out.

Damian just walked away without saying a single word to me. Again. The silence that followed hit harder than I expected.

I cleaned the dishes in a daze, trying to push away the ache in my chest. But it lingered. Heavy. I couldn’t take the distance anymore.

Upstairs, the sound of the running shower led me to the bathroom. Steam was curling from beneath the door.

I stepped inside his room, undressed, and slipped in quietly.

Damian didn’t hear me at first, he was facing away, shampoo lathered in his hair, head tilted back under the spray.

I stepped in behind him, the water warm on my skin as I pressed close, letting my hands slide up his back.

He stilled, then turned slightly, eyes locking on mine over his shoulder.

Damian didn’t say anything at first. Just stood under the water, staring at me like I was a problem he didn’t have time to solve.

Then, in a cold, detached tone, he asked, “What do you want, Sareena?”

I blinked, stunned. This was the man who begged to shower with me nearly every day. Who couldn’t stand being away from me. Now I was just… unwelcome.

But I stood my ground. “What is going on? You haven’t talked to me since Tennessee. Why are you mad at me?” My voice wavered, but I didn’t back down. “I should be mad at you, for how you’ve been treating me. For abandoning me when you saw how scared I was facing Matteo. For doing all of this without even talking to me.”

His jaw tightened. Eyes sharp.

And then he snapped. “You’re hurt?” His voice was razor-sharp. “You’re always the fucking victim. You brought this on yourself, Sareena. You act without thinking and leave the rest of us to clean up your mess.”

He stepped forward, water dripping down his face, tone colder with every word.

“You came here on your own. Hopped on a fucking plane without telling anyone. Fine, maybe I didn’t tell you what was going on, but we were dealing with Gabriella and Maximus getting shot at, Matthew uncovering Svetlana’s plans, trying to make sense of all of it. What would you have done if I hadn’t seen that note? You’d be in Vegas alone. Facing Matteo. Would you have been ready for that?”

He didn’t wait for an answer.

“And now we’ve got eight people putting their lives on the line because of your impulses. You should’ve waited - waited for us to figure it out, to compare notes with Matteo. We were sorting through everything in New York, and you lit a goddamn fire before we even had a chance to breathe.”

His words sliced deeper than I expected. And he didn’t take them back.

He just stepped out of the shower, dripping and silent, grabbing his towel without even looking at me.

“I haven’t fucking slept in four days,” he muttered, voice low and raw. “I’m going to sleep because I have to stay up all night trying to find ‘your family’. Remember? The only ones you have.”

Then he walked out. No glance back. No apology. Just the door clicking shut behind him.

And I was left there; naked, wet, and shaking, as the tears finally came.