Page 72 of Sinfully Savage Mafia

Something changed back in there, and I’m free falling.

Deliberately, I focus on what happened with my brother. And I close my eyes a moment. “Conor?—”

“Is fucking lucky I didn’t end his pathetic life.” Matteo’s voice is quiet, but it’s pure, ice-cold steel and it makes my pulse flutter for reasons I don’t comprehend. “And you? I should punish you within an inch of yours for disobeying me.”

“I don’t follow your orders, Matteo,” I say, looking at him.

“Take off your jacket.” He leans forward and opens the glove box, pulling out a small first-aid kit.

I frown. “I don’t need?—”

“Choose your battles wisely, Heaven. This isn’t a good one, and neither was that.” He’s eased the jacket off me and is now examining my arm. And I’m…letting him. “You don’t think he’d have killed you?”

“Honestly? I don’t know.”

“There was coke, bud, and crystal in there. From the smell, they were also smoking the coke. Turning it into crack. Add the booze, and...” He applies some alcohol and I hiss. Matteo smiles, but then it fades. “Next time I make good on my promise. No one dares hurt what’s mine.”

My heart’s thumping a wild beat against my ribs. “That’s what I am? Your property?”

“I’m not a modern man in that respect,amore mio. I’m possessive, and I want you in one piece.”

A strange look comes over his face, but it’s gone so soon I probably just imagined it. “Good to know you’re at the caveman stage.”

“It’s not deep enough for stitches,” he says, patching me up like an emergency medical technician.

“What a pro you are at this.”

He shrugs. “Occupational hazard, I guess. I think the biggest danger to you is probably tetanus.”

“I’m up to date on my shots.”

“Good,” Matteo murmurs, running his fingers over the bandage, his blue eyes dark. Heat coils in my belly. “You’re okay with all this? Back there?”

“No.” I swat his fingers away as they run lightly along my cheek. A hint of a smile appears as Matteo drops his hand to my thigh. “That might have been fueled by drugs, but the sentiment was all him. He’s dangerous to the whole family business.”

“Then we do something about it.”

I nod.

Matteo shifts in his seat, the medical kit between us as he lifts his hand and cups my chin, easing my face toward him. His mouth brushes mine and then he kisses me, so soft and sweet I’m tumbling through the air. When he lifts his head, he doesn’t say a word.

How he can be so cool, so calm, so untouched after that kiss is anyone’s guess. Me? I’m a maelstrom of emotion inside, and there’s nothing to cling to.

Except, perhaps, my anger. “Take me to my father. He needs to hear about this, all of it. The money, the attack, everything.” I tug at my ponytail, waiting for Matteo to start the car. The rush of anger comes fast and furious, immersing me in Conor’s toxic aura. “What are you waiting for? We need to handle this now.”

But instead of starting the car, he touches my hand.

“Matteo,” I say. “Let’s go.”

He shakes his head. “No. If you think he doubted you before, he definitely will now if you go in there on a rampage.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” I pull free of his touch. “I’m just supposed to forget about it?”

“Not at all. You need to be calm when you go to him.”

“You’re the one who threatened to chop Conor into little pieces.”

A ghost of a smile touches his lips. “I didn’t threaten. And it isn’t the point. It’s all a game, Heaven. I know how these things work. Declan knows Conor is a fuckup. But you won’t gain anything by shoving that into your dad’s face. He doesn’t need anyone to tell him what a liability Conor is.”

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