The Mistress - A Mafia Romance

“Oof…” Serafina whimpered when she tripped on the kitchen step. She hit her knee on the floor and tried to get up but she couldn’t. Para bang hilong-hilo siya. She wasn’t even that drunk to trip! Or was she? Ipinilig niya ang ulo. Hindi siya lasing, okay? They just celebrated Cassandra’s engagement party and she had a few shots of tequila. Yes, it was only a few! She wanted to defend herself. Nakailan nga ba siya? Basta ang alam niya ay kaunti lang. Hindi iyon sapat para malasing siya at magkandarapa siya nang ganito. Cassandra de Luca or also known as Cassi was her best friend and the truest of all the people she knew in the entertainment industry. And of course, she was the happiest when she told her that Raven already proposed to her. She bent over to check her knee. It was pink, and she was damned sure it was turning red to purple to dark violet. She just wanted sparkling water for heaven’s sake! And this was all she got—a bruise! Sana lang ay kaagad itong mawala dahil may photoshoot pa siya sa mga susunod na araw. “If it’s not Miss Frigerio…” a deep voice rang in the kitchen. Malalim, puno ng kadiliman, at lubhang mapanganib. “s**t,” anas niya nang bahagyang kumirot ang kaniyang tuhod. “Are you alright, Frigerio?” that deep, thick voice asked her. It made the goosebumps rise along her nape. Hindi niya alam kung bakit at kung anumang mayroon sa boses na iyon at ganoon na lamang ang hatid nito sa kanya tuwing maririnig niya iyon. She looked up and saw Savio’s extended hand. Tinanggap niya iyon at tumayo siya. Naramdaman pa niya ang bahagyang sipa ng kirot sa tuhod niya nang tuluyan niyang itapak ang paa para balansehin ang sarili. It damn hurts! “What are you doing here?” she curiously asked, her brows furrowed. He watched her carefully and then a soft chuckle began to escape his mouth. Dahilan iyon para maamoy niya ang hininga nitong amoy alak din. “What do you mean what am I doing here?” he asked back. Amusement was written on his face. “This is my house—well, basically, this is where I live.” Right, of course. It’s Savio de Luca, ang nakatatandang kapatid ni Cassi. Lahat ng tanawin sa lugar na rito ay pagmamay-ari ng binata. Ang resort, ang mga puno, kahit na nga pati ang buhangin na nasa paligid, pati na ang buong isla—lahat ng ito ay kay Savio. Ano ba iyan, kahit na siya ay parang gustong matawa sa tanong niya kung ano’ng ginagawa nito rito. He went silent for a bit and tilted his head to the side as if examining her. Ilang segundo siya nitong pinagmasdan at napailing ito. “You’re drunk, Rafi.” Napalunok siya sa lapit ng mukha nito sa kanya. Her half-sober-self kicked in. Madali niyang inilayo ang sarili sa binata. Baka kasi maamoy nito ang hininga niya. Nakakahiya! Napakapit siya sa door frame ng kusina dahil pakiramdam niya ay matutumba na naman siya o ‘di kaya ay mapapatid kahit na wala namang mga bato roon. Now, she was not even sure what makes her knees go weak—if it was really the tequila, or it was this young godfather standing right in front of her. “Hold on,” pilgil nito sa kanya at hinawakan pa siya sa siko para alalayan. “What’s happening, Rafi? Did you cry?” She gulped; she blinked her eyes. How on earth did he find that out? Namumula ba ang mga mata niya? Napaiwas tuloy siya ng tingin sa binata. Napaatras din siya nang kaunti. There’s no way she was going to admit it to Savio. She was strong. She couldn’t be broken. She’s tough as a rock. She’s unbreakable like a diamond… right? Then why did you f*****g cry, Rafi?! She asked herself. Why on earth did you cry when you found out about Farah and Savio?! "s**t," anas niyang muli nang sa pag-atras niya ay muntikan na siyang mapatihaya dahil hindi niya namalayan na naroon na siya sa baitang kung saan siya napaluhod kanina. Mabuti na lamang at nahawakan kaagad siya ni Savio sa kanyang baywang at nakabig. His scent lingered on her nose, travelling through her mind. He smelled like sea. “Thank you,” wala sa sarili niyang sabi sa binata. “What are you doing here, anyway? Weren’t you supposed to stay in the other house?” She knew she was talking about Cassi’s house on the island. “Gusto ko lang sana uminom ng tubig na malamig,” she explained, “Wala kasing tubig sa labas. Puro alak na ang nando’n. And I wanted to take a rest a bit sana. And your house is the nearest I could go. I hope you—” Umiling ang binata. “I don’t mind. You used to stay here when we were younger, anyways.” Inalalayan siya nito hanggang sa makarating sila sa sala na katapat lang din ng kusina. She took a seat and sighed when her back felt the soft cushion. God, this is heaven after partying for hours. She even removed her sandals to give her feet a rest. She saw Savio went back into the kitchen. She thought of what he said. Tama naman ito. Noong wala pang sariling bahay si Cassi sa isla ay dito sila madaas na magbakasyon. Noon din ay buhay pa ang mga magulang nito at hindi pa kay Savio ang buong lugar na ito. There were lots of memories made in this house—including her firsts. With him. With Savio. And it was with an ‘s’. He was her first everything. It was a night she could not forget. Never. Because it was the reason why she fell in love with her bestfriend’s brother. It was the reason why she was still hurting up to this day. “Here, drink this…” Napaigtad siya nang marinig niya ang boses ng binata sa tabi niya. Nakaupo na pala ito sa tabi niya nang hindi man lang niya namamalayan. Masyado ba siyang na-drawn sa kanyang mga isipin? Maybe thinking of him could really make her mind blur. Maybe, he really got those super powers that can make her out of focus. She stared into his eyes. Why there wasn’t a time that he mentioned that night? Hindi ba nito nagustuhan ang nangyari sa kanilang dalawa noon? O sadyang ibinaon na nito sa limot ang gabing iyon? Kahit na kasi masyado pa siyang bata noon, hanggang ngayon ay tine-treasure pa rin niya ang pangyayaring iyon. “Savio,” she called his name softly. “Do you even know how to properly treat a girl?” wala sa sarili niyang tanong sa binata. He didn’t faze. Tila ba parang balewala rito ang tanong niyang iyon. She stared back at her. “Why are you asking me that?” Nagkibit siya ng balikat. “Because all these years, you haven’t treated me as a girl,” matapang niyang sabi. Tama naman siya. Hindi ba’t dapat lang na pag-usapan nila ang gabing iyon? Hindi dapat siya nito binalewala. Hindi man lang nito kinonsidera ang feelings niya. She knew how his world turns. She knew how their world was, but still… she wasn’t just any girl. She was Serafina ‘Rafi’ Frigerio. “You’re not a girl, Rafi,” sabi nito. “Ha—” “You’re a woman,” putol nito sa dapat na sasabihin niya sana. “I’ve never seen you as a girl. I’ve always seen you as a full-grown woman, Rafi.” His eyes darted to her lips. Napakurap siya sa sagot nito sa kanya. What does that even mean? Marang mas malakas pa yata ang tama nito kaysa sa kanya. “Ano? Mas lasing ka yata kaysa sa akin,” aniyang natatawa nang bahagya. Instead of giving her an answer through his words, he leaned and gave her a sweet kiss on her lips. Well, it was sweet at first, then the kiss deepened when she lets his tongue rummage through her mouth. She wanted to answer back. She clasped his shirt and she pulled him closer, ready to participate in the play, but he pulled away. Then came that slow, sexy small smile of his. It was alarming. She didn't see Savio as sexy as this before. "Does that answer your question, Rafi?" he asked in a low, rasped voice. "Did I know how to properly treat a woman?" Rafi didn't answer him. Ang pagkakahawak niya sa damit nito ay mas humigpit at mas hinila niya iyon papunta sa kanya. She took that as a cue and started kissing her neck, giving her a soft nibble, which made her moan his name. He leaned more and she could already feel that she was slowly lying on the couch. He kicked his shoes as he didn't stop kissing, nibbling, and sucking her neck. He's also licking it, making her goosebumps rise even more. Damn it. This guy's really good at it. A familiar heat was invading her insides. Alam na niya kung saan patungo ang tagpong ito. Because why not? They’ve been here before. They’ve done this before. This is not something new—lalo na sa pagitan nilang dalawa ng binata. Napakapit siya sa batok nito. "Savio!" she gasped as he bit her hard. Napahampas siya sa balikat nito na naging dahilan kung bakit ito napatawa nang mahina. Pagkatapos niyon ay lumayo ito sa kanya. He was breathing heavily as he smiled at her. "This is wrong—" "But—" "But it felt right," anitong muli siyang hinalikan sa labi. At muli rin naman itong lumayo. Iyon ay para alisin ang t-shirt nito. He tossed it on the carpeted floor and he began reaching the hem of her own dress. Ipinasok nito ang kamay nito sa loob niyon at nilaro ang kanyang tagiliran. "Sigurado ka ba rito, Rafi? If I'd go further, I won't be able to stop—" "I'm not gonna make you stop, silly," she chuckled as her palm landed on his bare chest. Maumbok iyon. Hindi niya napigilan ang sarili sa pagkagat sa ibabang bahagi ng labi niya. Savio's body was just perfect. She couldn’t believe he was hiding all of these under his shirt. "Oh my, you're sexy as sin, Savio..." He chuckled lowly before he leaned and gave her feathery kisses all over her face. "Lasing ka nga," sabi nito. "The sober Rafi won't even dare to praise me." Napakunot ang noo niya. "Really?" taka niyang tanong. She pursed her lips as she suppresses a smile. "Tell her she's stupid. A body like this needs to be worshipped." "So is yours, Rafi..." bulong nito sa kanya habang papunta ang mga halik nito sa kanyang tainga. "So is yours..."