Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 23226 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 116(@200wpm)___ 93(@250wpm)___ 77(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23226 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 116(@200wpm)___ 93(@250wpm)___ 77(@300wpm)
“Trafficking?”
“Yep.”
“And you don’t do it?”
“Fuck, no. Trust me, there are a lot of women willing to work in brothels selling their pussy for good money. You don’t need to go kidnapping women off the street, drugging them up, and forcing them to do shit they don’t want to do.” He rubbed his temples. “See, another reason I was not considered the ideal son.”
“But a lot of people that wanted you to be in charge?”
“True, but they also didn’t like the fact I had ... standards.” And then, he couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m a guy that kills people without feeling, and I have standards.” He rubbed his temple.
“There’s nothing wrong being that way,” Ella said. “You can do bad things and be a good person.” She shrugged. “Life takes it out of all of us. Some of us fall, others rise. You didn’t fall, Mateo. You rose up and took matters into your own hands.”
“You can dress it up any way you need to, babe. It doesn’t change who I am.”
“As it happens, I quite like who you are.”
And she continued to fix the cut on the side of his face.
Chapter Seven
They didn’t go straight back to his country home. Mateo still had to take care of business, and Ella, during the day, with a couple of guards by her side, went to the city. Even though it was a city she had lived in for a long time, she had never truly taken the time to explore it.
Ella headed out, with a rucksack full of snacks, along with her cell phone, a map, and two guards to keep her company. One of her guards was called Steven, the other was called Jay. They were sweet guys and also married. They didn’t talk to her but had no problem with her talking to them.
She went to a couple of the parks, stopped off at one of the museums that had a lot of history, which was fun to just walk around. She did have to pay for three tickets to get inside, but had no problem doing that.
They also stopped at a small café for lunch. They didn’t talk; however, she had started to see little cracks in their hard-ass demeanor. Steve didn’t so much as quiver, but there was a slight lift to one of Jay’s lips, which told her he was entertained. By five in the afternoon, she was exhausted, but she stopped off at a small artisanal grocery store for some ingredients, then made her way home.
Steve and Jay did not step foot in the apartment, instead held their guard outside the door. Ella went straight to the kitchen and got to work on some food. She grabbed the chicken breasts she had marinated last night in some spicy seasoning, and then the grill pan. She washed the potatoes, gave the skins a good scrub, and placed them in a pot to boil.
Checking her cell phone, she saw there was a text left by Mateo, to let her know when he would be coming home.
Tonight, rather than allow his food to spoil, she intended to serve it when he said he would be home, and he would just have to eat cold if he didn’t make it.
With the potatoes boiled, she put the chicken on the grill, and her mouth watered at the scent. She made a quick dressing for the potatoes, then got the salad ingredients and started to build up the two plates. There was plenty of food for them both, but not too much food, which she was pleased about.
Just as she put the finishing touch to her dinner, the door opened and she carried both of their plates to the table as Mateo finally made his appearance. Tonight, there were no cuts, no bruises, and no blood. He looked exactly the same as when he left. Only the suit he wore was not the same.
“Did you change your suit?” she asked.
Mateo stared at her. “You can tell?”
“Yeah, you left this morning in a grey one, and that is a black one,” she said.
“You noticed?”
She rolled her eyes as he came toward her, putting his hands on her ass. He did this to distract her.
“Of course I noticed.” She put her hands on his chest. “You changed your suit?”
“Had to.”
She sighed. “I made dinner.”
“And I want a kiss.”
This made her smile. “Are you used to getting what you want?”
“Yes.”
She laughed. “Fine. Fine.” And then, she leaned forward and put a tiny kiss on his lips. “You owe me.”
“For the kiss?”
“No, to sit your ass down and eat this meal I made, seeing as I ended up destroying spaghetti and meatballs. I mean, what kind of person is so late they have no choice but to overcook pasta and end up with dry meatballs?” she asked, raising her brows.