The Shadows We Keep

CHAPTER NINE

Matteo's pov

I couldn't believe she tried to escape, couldn't believe she even hurt herself in the process. She felt so light in my arms. and I couldn't help but notice how fragile she seemed. Her cheeks looked hollow, and her skin was pale.

"When Gretta told me you were skipping meals, I didn't think you'd actually loose this much weight in a short period of time."

She looked away from me, her brows furrowed in the defiance. "Where did you go to?"

As I walked into the house, Gretta's eyes widened as she noticed who was in my arms. "Sir, I swear…I…I don't…"

"You're dismissed for the night, Gretta." I said, my tone sharp.

"I'm sorry sir." She said quietly, before scurrying off.

I knew it wasn't her fault that Gabriella hurt herself, but it was her silence that caused her to make this decision. I wasn't even supposed to be back this early. But then she had called last night complaining about Gabriella's refusal to eat and how worried she was. Looking down at the fragile woman in my arms, she should have called me the first time it happened.

"It's not her fault for what happened." She said, her eyes out of focus. "It's yours for being so hard to reach."

Hard to reach? I was only a phone call away. I mean yes I had warned Gretta that when I'm on business trips, I only pick emergency calls. But anything that had to do with Gabriella was an emergency.

I walked into the living room, and laid her gently on the couch. "I'll be right back." I said, and headed to the kitchen to get some ice and the first aid kit.

When I returned, she was in a sitting position on the couch, glancing frantically around.

"You need to calm down." I said as crouched in front of her. "No one is coming to hurt you here."

She hissed in pain as I placed the ice pack on her ankle. "Why did you jump out of your window, Gabriella?"

She stared up, her eyes staring past me. "Why won't you let me leave?"

"You are allowed to leave, through the front door." I replied calmly, as I pulled out some bandages. "If you had just waited till I came back, and talked to me about it, then you wouldn't be with a twisted ankle."

"Stop making it sound like I'm some stupid child!" She snapped.

"The way you acted definitely hinted at that." I said, slightly pissed.

"I want to leave, Matteo." She gritted through her teeth. "You can't keep me here against my will."

I put a considerable amount of ointment on my palm, and began rubbing her ankle. "Last I checked, you agreed coming to Los Angeles with me. Why am I suddenly the bad guy in your story?"

"Because I don't know anything about you. I'm still trying to….ouch!"

"What exactly is the problem, Gabriella." I said, looking up at her eyes that burned with defiance. "If you want to leave, then are free to, but you and I know there's nothing left in Miami for you."

"There's no one left in this world for me." She whispered.

I sighed, and picked up the bandage. "It's hard to start over, but it's not impossible."

She said nothing as I began wrapping up her ankle carefully. I knew this was hard for her, and even though she doesn't see it, I'm actually surprised at the way she's handling her loss. After what happened to her, most people would have gone insane. But here she was, lips pouted, eyebrows furrowed, and eyes complete distant.

"I'm lonely." She finally said once I was done wrapping her ankle. "Gretta only talks to me because she has to, your bodyguards don't even say more than two words a day, and you're like a ghost. I'm sick of feeling like a doll that's just kept as a house piece."

"I didn't know you felt that way." I said, not sure why the muscles in my chest twisted about the fact that she felt that way.

"Well I do, and if I spend one more day in this house repeating the same routine, I'll jump out of that window, and my landing won't be an accident."

Maybe it was the way she said it, or the empty look in her eyes, but something told me that she meant every word.

"From today on, I'm leaving two guards at your disposal. You can go anywhere you want, whenever you want."

"I'm blind. There's only so much places I can visit."

"I think you can visit anywhere you want. Gabriella, I understand that sight is important in life, but it doesn't beat the feeling. I think there's something about creating your idea of a place you've never been to before."

"You're just saying that because you're not blind."

"That I am, but there is a little bit of truth in it. No?"

Surprisingly her hand found mine and she smiled. "All it took was me jumping out of a window and spraining my ankle, to turn you into some kind of philosopher."

"Trust me, I am not a philosopher. And jumping out the window, that was all you. You could have just waited for me to come back and calmly talked about it, but I guess extremity is your thing."

At first it was a light chuckle, and then a full blown laughter. Her eyes squinted into slits and her cheeks became rosy pink. Never have I seen someone so animated, it sent some kind of ripples through my chest.

"I guess it is." She said once her laughter had died down. "Do I get to see you too? I'd like to know you're actually really and not a figment of my imagination."

"Mia cara." I said softly. "You'd know if I'm not real."

There was a beat of silence before she spoke again. "Where did you really go?"

"A business trip."

"My dad used to go on lots of business trips, lots of them."

My jaw tightened. "I'm not your father Gabriella." I let out a sigh as I got to my feet. "Let's get you something to eat."

She didn't complain as I carefully lifted her into my arms again, and headed to the kitchen.

"Since you dismissed Gretta, I'm sure I'll be expecting some p&b."

I chuckled despite myself. "I assure you, Gabriella, I can cook more than a sandwich."

She smiled, looking up at me. "Admit that was what you planned to do before I mentioned it."

I smiled at how right she was, but I felt the need to challenge her. "Actually it wasn't."

I placed her on the kitchen counter. "All you're going to do is sit pretty, while i surprise you."

"Ouuu okay." She said, chuckling. "If you give up, door dash isn't a problem."

As I began rummaging through the fridge, a piece for tomato slipped from my fingers. "s**t!"

Gabriella's attention snapped towards me. "You know, I'm not sure what's more entertaining, listening to you cook, or listening to you trying to cook."

I shot her a playful glance. "Hey, I'm a decent cook. I've even made a few dishes that would make your taste buds dance."

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah? Like what?"

I smiled, pulling out a bunch of vegetables. "Let's just say I've mastered the art of making a mean stir fry, which is what I plan on making tonight."

"We'll see about that."

Her face tilted as i began chopping the veggies. "That's quite a fast chop. Careful not to cut your fingers."

"Mia cara, knives don't scare me."

Her lips quipped up, and I focused my attention back on what I was chopping. As I cooked, she talked, and I found myself smiling, laughing, and even feeling...content?

This was a weird feeling. Having a woman sit on the counter while I whipped up dinner. I couldn't even remember the last time I had cooked dinner. I was living off take outs and Gretta's food.

"Here you go." I said as I placed her food in front of her. "It's a Matteo's special."

I guided her hands towards the fork, and waited for her to take a bite.

"Mmm, this smells good." She said, taking a bite. He face lit up, and she nodded in her approval. "Oh my God! This is so good."

My muscles relaxed and I ker out a chuckle. "I told you they were to die for. I'll definitely add chef to my list of skills now."

She pointed her fork at me, still smiling. "Don't gloat."

"Too late."