Filed to story: Submitting to My Bestie’s Daddy Read Online >>???
Again, I wanted to believe my inner voice on this. I wanted to believe that Elio really was discussing the European market with Alessandro for nearly six goddamn hours and that nothing else was going on. Even though the nerves in my body were telling me that there was something else at play here, I fought the urge to continue to question him.
I wanted so badly to believe that Elio wasn’t keeping things from me again. I also wanted to believe that any business that was going on between him and Alessandro was nothing more than literal ‘business.’ There was no doubt in my mind that Alessandro was a force not to be trifled with. And Elio was not foolish enough to get himself involved in something so heinous… so dangerous.
‘I’m going to believe what he’s telling me,’ I concluded.
Wanting to push Alessandro and the rest of my wavering thoughts out of my head, I took a sudden step back from Elio. His eyes curiously followed me while I gestured my head toward the kitchen.
“Come on. Let’s see if we can find something in the kitchen that I can make for dinner.”
Elio smiled and graciously followed me.
A short while after we were through making a mess, I gingerly placed our fettuccine on three separate plates. I heard my mom come in. She looked exhausted from work as usual, but she was happy to see Elio and me moving about the place together.
“Hello, you two,” she greeted us.
“Hi, Mom. You’re just in time. I just finished up with dinner. Come sit down.”
The three of us took our seats at the table and fell into a comfortable silence. We were all about halfway through when my mother lifted her head.
“So, New Year’s Eve in two days,” she began. “Do you two have any special plans?”
My face instantly flushed. It was crazy to think that now my mom knew the truth about Elio and me being together.
“Um, I was just sort of thinking about staying in that night,” I said. “We could all hang out and watch the big countdown on TV.”
My mom smiled. “Sorry, Cat. As relaxing as that sounds, I actually have a date for that night.”
My brows raised. “Really?”
She sheepishly nodded her head.
“Oh, well, that’s okay. I’m glad that you’re seeing other people. What’s he like?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “His name is Robert. He’s nice, I suppose. It’s nothing too serious as of right now.”
I had half a mind to press for a little more information, but I could tell that the woman was exhausted. My mom finished what was left of her pasta and offered to help clean up. I shook my head and softly pushed her off to her room to rest.
I carried the dirty dishes over to the sink. Not a moment later, I felt Elio snake his arm around my waist and pull me back into his chest. My breathing grew hitched when his lips brushed the side of my ear.
“Since your mom won’t be here, let me plan a trip for us,” he suggested.
*Caterina*
My whole body went still.
“What?”
I thought for sure I’d accidentally misheard Elio when he spoke. But by the confident look on his face when I turned my head to glance back at him, I knew right then and there that he was completely serious.
“I said, let me plan a trip for us,” he repeated.
A small smile started to curve the corners of his mouth.
My brows pulled together in hesitation over his unexpected suggestion. A trip? Right now? Was that seriously the best idea given our current situation?
I parted my lips to speak but nothing immediately came out. That unsettling feeling that I’d been battling nearly the whole day started to rush back in with a bitter vengeance on me. Meanwhile, Elio’s eyes glanced over my worried features with a notion of concern.
“What is it?” he asked.
I lightly shook my head. “I just… don’t think a trip would be a good idea right now.”
He tilted his head and gave me a look of genuine interest. “Why?”
“Because,” I stated firmly.
Elio stared at me, waiting for the actual answer to come flying out of my mouth. But the truth was that I didn’t want to tell him the real reason. I didn’t want to tell Elio that I was nervous and borderline intimidated to travel together because of his family’s previous connections. The mere idea of someone possibly following us made my skin crawl.
“Look, as nice as a trip sounds, I’m going to have to pass on the idea right now,” I told him. “I have to start thinking about the new semester.”
He curled a brow at my reasoning. “Cat, you and I both know that you’re more than ready for your new classes.”
I bit the inside of my cheek and tried to fish for another sad excuse. “Look, I just—”
I wished I found the words to properly express my thoughts without sounding like a complete hypochondriac. Unfortunately, Elio quickly caught onto my intentional dodging before I got the chance.
“Caterina… are you… are you saying no because you’re scared?”
His voice was absent of any and all teasing and disrespect as he took a slight step back to better look at me.
“And what if I am?”
“But why?”
My brows drew together as a humorless laugh slipped from my throat. “Why? You’re seriously asking me why? Aren’t you the one who’s been telling me over and over that it’s not completely safe right now?”
I could tell Elio was doing his best to suppress a laugh, which I found to be less than amusing myself. I gently shook my head and narrowed my eyes.
“What if I could promise that nothing bad will happen?” he tried.
I rolled my brow and scoffed. “Well, that would be one hell of a promise to keep.”
Without another word, I quickly turned my attention back to face whatever I was doing before. I hastily reached for the sponge on the counter and turned the faucet on. I picked up one of the plates and went on to scrub the hell out of it.
I could feel Elio’s disappointment in my response to his idea. Personally, I was in love with the idea of going away for a few days. I wanted nothing more than to spend some quality, uninterrupted time with him, especially before the new school semester started.
But there truly came a price when it came to knowing the full truth about a situation as dangerous as our own. To find out Elio still had ties to the Italian mafia, just as my own father had, brought on a new sense of awareness that left me feeling constantly on edge.
For a moment, my hands stopped their rigorous movements. I turned the water off and sagged my shoulders back.
“Elio, don’t get me wrong. It’s not that I don’t want to go. But what about my mother? You can promise all the security in the world for us, but what about her?”
He let go of my waist and framed the sides of my face with both of his hands. His eyes poured into my own with a firm notion of promise.
“Trust me, Cat. I’ve thought all of this through already,” he said. “I’ve hired guards to look after the place and your mom. They’ll be here twenty-four-seven, watching her no matter where she goes.”