THE MAFIA'S KING RELUCTANT BRIDE

Chapter 13: The kiss

Sofia stared at Matteo.

He was looking directly at her, and for some reason, she couldn't move.

She wanted to go back, but her feet felt glued to the floor. Matteo started walking toward her, and the moment he got closer, Sofia's legs gave way.

She was scared.

But Matteo didn't stop.

He simply walked past her.

Sofia remained on the floor, staring after him as he walked toward his room. He reached his door and placed his hand on the doorknob. He didn't turn around when he spoke.

"I've instructed one of the maids to prepare the other room for you. The guards will move your things from your former room to your new room."

And with that, he opened the door and went inside.

Sofia was still on the ground, trying to catch her breath.

A lot had happened today.

Too much.

She was still trying to process everything.

The gunshot.

The attack.

Matteo.

The phone call.

Everything.

Sofia slowly took a deep breath in.

Then she breathed out.

Again.

In.

Out.

She repeated it a few more times until her breathing finally became a little steadier.

Then she pushed herself up and stood.

She went downstairs to the sitting room, asked one of the maids for a glass of water, drank it almost immediately, then sat down.

She had nothing else to do but wait.

Wait for the maids to prepare her new room.

Wait for the guards to move her things.

After several hours, one of the maids finally came to tell her the room was ready.

Sofia stood up, and two maids led her upstairs.

There were about eleven rooms in Matteo's mansion. There were two large sitting rooms, a waiting area, and even a separate place where Matteo could have meetings with clients or whoever he had business with.

It wasn't exactly part of the house, but it was still inside the same compound.

At least, that was all Sofia knew about the place so far.

She entered the new room and looked around.

Honestly, she kind of preferred her former room.

Not that this one wasn't good.

In fact, it looked like one of the best rooms in the entire mansion. It was spacious, beautiful, and everything was arranged perfectly.

But she didn't like the atmosphere.

It was dark.

Just like Matteo's room.

The difference was that this room was painted black and white, while Matteo's room was practically all dark.

Gosh.

He was weird.

Still, she had to admit his room was always neat and well arranged.

Sofia walked further into the room.

Her things were already there.

Everything had been moved without a scratch.

Her clothes.

Her books.

Her bags.

Even her phone and the little things she had left behind.

Everything was neatly arranged exactly where it belonged.

The maids left after making sure everything was in place.

Sofia stood there for a moment before remembering the sleeping medicine she had secretly requested from one of the maids.

She had been warned to keep it a secret.

Matteo didn't allow medicines to be kept in the house. Even if someone had a headache, they were expected to go to the hospital.

One of the maids had quietly told Sofia about a new maid who had died in the house years ago after taking too much medicine.

She had begged Sofia not to tell anyone about the medicine or the secret.

If Matteo found out, she was terrified of what would happen to her.

Sofia had promised.

She had taken the medicine before coming upstairs and carried a bottle of water with her.

She swallowed the tablets with the water and lay down on the bed.

With everything that had happened that day, she already knew sleep wouldn't come easily.

That was why she had asked for the medicine.

And apparently, it worked.

Sofia woke up the next morning and couldn't believe she had slept through the entire evening.

She blinked at the ceiling.

"Oh well."

At least she had slept.

Sofia turned toward the small lamp-shaped clock beside her bed.

Or was it a nightstand?

Whatever.

The time was already 11:00 a.m.

Her eyes widened.

She had a class by 12.

And she also had a game to watch.

Noah was playing for her school, and they were playing against Blackwood.

This was actually going to be the first time Sofia had ever gone to watch her school's game. 🌚

She quickly got out of bed and went to take her bath.

The game started at 12:30, and her class was also supposed to end at 12:30.

Perfect timing.

Sofia wore a pair of blue jeans.

They were the baggy, fashionable kind—the type that looked expensive without even trying. They fitted her well, especially considering how tall she was.

She paired them with a pretty white top.

She combed her hair, let it down, and styled it straight.

Then she applied some lip gloss, packed her bag, and made sure everything she needed was inside.

She was ready to leave.

And honestly?

Sofia looked so beautiful.

No makeup.

Just her natural face.

And somehow, she still looked gorgeous.

She went downstairs, ate two pieces of toast, drank a little tea, then headed outside.

The car was already waiting.

Sofia got in.

But this time, the security was even more intense.

Three cars followed behind her.

Three more were ahead.

Her car was right in the middle, surrounded by guards.

Sofia hated it.

She absolutely hated having so many cars following her everywhere.

But she couldn't exactly complain.

Not after what had happened yesterday.

The car finally arrived at school.

Sofia got down.

"Miss Sofia."

She turned around.

One of the guards was standing beside the car.

"Yes?"

"When will you be done?"

Sofia's face remained firm.

"Two or three. After class, I have a school event to attend."

"Okay."

The guard didn't ask any more questions.

Sofia turned and walked away.

She entered her lecture hall and settled down.

The lecture finally ended, but later than she expected.

It was already 12:40 when Sofia headed straight to the basketball hall.

"Oh my God."

The hall was huge.

Spacious.

Beautiful.

There were already a lot of people seated, and some were holding medium-sized posters with her school's name written across them.

Obviously, they were cheering for their school.

Some girls were holding posters with Noah's name on them too.

Of course they were.

Noah was the captain of the school's basketball team, and he was hot and popular.

That was exactly why Sofia had never wanted to get too close to him.

She found a seat and settled down.

A few girls looked at her.

They whispered to each other and giggled.

But the moment the game started, they completely forgot Sofia was even there.

Noah entered the court with his team.

He was nervous.

Last year, they had lost against Blackwood, and for some reason, that loss still bothered him.

He knew his head hadn't been completely in the game back then.

But this year was different.

He planned to win.

He couldn't let Blackwood beat them again.

As he looked around the hall, his eyes searched for Sofia.

And there she was.

Sitting like a queen.

She looked so beautiful.

When Noah's eyes met hers, he smiled.

Then he winked.

The entire hall erupted.

All the girls screamed.

They thought Noah had winked at them.

But it wasn't them.

It was Sofia.

And Sofia knew it.

She couldn't help the small smile that appeared on her face.

The game started.

The first score went to Sofia's school.

And Noah was the one who took the shot.

The crowd screamed.

The second score was theirs too.

And again, Noah.

Sofia didn't even realize when she stood up and screamed.

She only noticed after she was done.

The game continued.

Noah and another player on the team kept scoring while Blackwood barely managed to get close to ten.

Eventually, the game was over.

Her school won.

The game ended at exactly 2:00 p.m.

Sofia was tired, but she didn't want to go home yet.

So she went to the music room to sit for a while.

She had barely been seated for five minutes when the door opened.

Noah walked in.

He was still wearing his jersey.

"I figured you would be here."

Sofia looked at him.

"That was a nice game."

"Thank youuu." He smiled. "And I'm glad you enjoyed me playing."

"Oh, please. Don't get yourself flattered."

Noah laughed.

"I saw you leave after the game, so I followed you."

He looked at her for a moment.

"You look pretty."

Sofia smiled.

"Thank you."

Noah stepped closer.

Sofia looked at him.

And before she could say anything—

He kissed her on the lips.