Chapter 14 Matteo I couldn’t fathom how we’d gone from unbridled f*****g and intimate confessions the night before to the taciturn setting of a hostile business takeover at dinner. It was as if the prior twenty-four hours had never existed. Maria was aloof and broadcasting an air of indifference so loudly, my head had begun to throb. Each minute that ticked by wound my temper tighter, like the cogs of one of my antique watches. By the time we returned to the apartment, I was itching for a fight. I’d succeeded holding it in until we were in private, but once we crossed the threshold of my apartment, all bets were off. I stretched my neck as I set down my jacket, going straight for the wine fridge and a bottle of cabernet. “Is there a reason you have unleashed Her Royal Bitchiness or are you
