Caught In Her Vengeance - Book 2

37

Chapter 37

Catalina

As we left the beach, I gave Matteo his keys back. I'm sure he'd had enough of me driving his precious car for one lifetime, and I wanted to stay on good terms with him. But there was still a pressing matter I wished to discuss with him.

I stared out at the highway ahead, trying to find the words. "So uhh," I paused, not wanting to really dance around what I was going to say to him. "Sal told me about your parents and what happened to you both when you were younger."

All of the air suddenly left the car, and the silence between us had become palpable. I didn't want to overstep, but I did want him to know if he ever needed to talk. I was here.

"I-I don't remember a lot." Matteo finally said, and I looked over at him and nodded. "I think to save myself....Sal is the one who bears most of the weight of that burden," he clenched his jaw and shook his head. I wanted to reach out and hold his hand, but I didn't think it was my place anymore.

"I blocked it all out because I don't remember things the way he does. Like, I know it happened, but it's fuzzy. If that even makes sense."

Furrowing my brows, I offered him a sympathetic smile even though he was looking at the road ahead. "It makes so much sense," I said quietly, and despite myself, I did reach out, and I placed my hand over his. To my surprise, he didn't shove it away or tell me to move it. Instead, Matteo smiled softly, and I could see he appreciated the small gesture.

My phone started buzzing in my pocket, and I pulled it out, already knowing it was Nic, before I even saw his name displayed on the screen. He was probably wondering where we were.

Hitting the call button, I brought the phone to my ear. "Hola, Domenico," I said, making Matteo snicker as he turned onto the Access that led to Nic's huge plot of private land.

"What can I do for you, boss man?"

I heard a deep sigh before he began to speak. "Where are you?" Nic grunted into the phone, and I smiled and sat back in my seat.

"What, no hi, big guy?"

Nic sighed again, and I tried my best to stifle the laugh I'd been holding in since I'd answered the call. I loved messing with him. "Catalina, I'm serious." His husky voice hardened, and I sat back up in my seat, more alert than before. Something in his words told me it wasn't the time to play around.

"We just turned onto the property," I told him, and Matteo looked over at me with his thick black eyebrows pulled together in question. 'What's up?' He mouthed, and I shrugged. "Why?"

"I saw you leave with Matteo on the house surveillance cameras, so I knew you two were together, and Salvatore and Lorenzo were here with me." He paused then I heard what sounded like heavy footsteps before there was an echo of car doors being slammed. "A few minutes after you and Matteo turned onto the property, the sensor went off again."

An engine revved up in the background, and I heard someone yell, 'how much longer?'

Looking up into the rear view mirror, I saw an all-black matte sports car quickly closing in behind us. "Someone is following us." The windows were heavily tinted, so I couldn't see how many people were in the vehicle. "And the windows are blacked out, so I can't see shit," I warned him before the call dropped.