Brave In Violence ( A Mafia Romance Book Three)

Chapter Forty-Four

It was

The perfect

Storm.

You, me,

And a hint

Of forever.

~storydj~

Ele

He was seated directly opposite me, laughing, using his thumb to rub the curve of his nose, his pinkie pointing upwards, and the handle of the spoon inside his fist. He looked like a boy; in fact, he resembled Luca so much my heart thumped a little at the humor clouding his green eyes.

It boggles my mind at how much I could make him laugh; at first, I thought he laughed to make me happy, but he did find me funny, and I loved every bit of it.

He was wearing a grey sweatsuit with a short-sleeved top; his left hand spread on his chest as he spoke, like he was pleading something. I imagined him feeling his heartbeat, making me wish I could reach out and touch the exact same place.

It was midnight, cozy and romantic. It felt as if we were the only people in the universe at that moment, silent; even the birds were asleep. "Can I ask you a question?"

He sobered, placing the spoon on his plate, pushing it aside, and then pulling the cup of black coffee he'd prepared to sit right in front of him. "Yes," he finally said, lifting his gaze to me. He seemed serious like he was afraid of what I was about to ask him.

"It's not such a big deal; it's about Matthew Ocean, " with his brows up, I saw irritation in his eyes and a bit of impatience.

"What about Ocean?"

I had noticed that every time I mentioned Matthew, he called him Ocean. It was as if he wanted to distance himself from the man he called friend by identifying him with his second name, hence relegating him to a stranger or an acquaintance.

"How comes he is where he is, and you're where you are?" It wasn't until I heard the question out loud that I realized how tasteless it was.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean.."

"No, don't apologize." he cut me off before I could finish apologizing. I felt so bad, ashamed even. I run my hands through my hair, avoiding eye contact. Bruno didn't say anything for a while, which made me feel horrible a thousand times over because I thought I had hurt him.

I did not mean that Matthew was better than him. I wished I could find my voice to tell him what I meant, but somehow, my mouth remained shut.

"He is a smart motherfukka, " he finally said with a chuckle full of humor. He wasn't bitter or angry; he said with pride.

"When father Josè forced us to go to class, Matt excelled in it; he did math without a pen or a calculator. I think he is a genius, or so i've heard"

"But Rom does that too, sometimes," I argued, shrugging, leaning forwards, my body gravitating towards him, resting my face on my hand.

"Yeah, sometimes. But Matt does it quite often. He also understands tech hence the success of Ocean corporations. The first time I saw him on the cover of Forbes, I couldn't believe it, yet I always knew he would somewhat end up there.

"Have you ever been jealous?" I asked in a whisper, my gaze intensely on him.

"Of Matt? Good god, no!" he grumbled, taking a sip of his coffee, " I'm proud of him." he murmured, then threw me a slight smile. "But I get a little jealous when you talk about him, " I chortled, circling my index finger across his hand, a flirtatious smile spreading on my lips, "really?" I asked in a wispy voice. He nodded, then opened his palm so my hand could slip across his. He then crossed his hand over mine. I couldn't help but feel protected by that simple gesture.