Playing With The Mafia Prince

Chapter 6: Kirk’s Condolences

Social media has never been a vital part of my life.

Sure, I spend time scrolling aimlessly through i********: and laughing at stupid tweets just as much as the next person, but I never really considered social media outside of an entertainment perspective.

That changed after I was seen handing Matteo’s jacket back to him.

I’d walked out of the car without realizing I was still wearing it, so I had to give it to him the next day outside our Political Science class.

I hadn’t even noticed that many people around us at the time, but, if word on the streets was to be believed, I’d done it around the entire student body.

“Oh my god,” Amy breathed when I showed them yet another threat I’d received in my direct messages.

Val wrapped an arm around her girlfriend as though she were the one who needed comforting. She probably needed it more than me to be honest.

Even across the booth, I could see sympathetic tears glistening in her eyes for me.

Oh, Amy.

“Back off w***e or the next thing you’ll find yourself wearing is a casket not his jacket,” Alex read aloud from beside me.

He looked between the phone screen and I with furrowed brows, like he couldn’t believe someone would say that to me.

It made my face warm up.

I shrugged, trying not to let it get to me.

The comments weren’t really directed towards me, and that’s what I kept reminding myself. None of these people knew me. They were attacking the girl who was secretly going around screwing Matteo Dellucci.

That girl didn’t exist.

I wished people would realize that. Judging by the constant glares I was receiving from all ends of the cafe, though, I’d say that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

“Chin up, girl,” Valerie said fiercely. “If bitches wanna talk s**t because that Dellucci fucker isn’t giving them the time of day, then that’s their problem.”

I nodded, watching her look around the place and face each one of the glares head on.

I envied her strength.

“I think I need some air.” I took a long gulp of the black coffee I had in front of me, before getting to my feet.

I was about to squeeze past Alex when, to my surprise, he got up as well. He followed me outside silently, giving me my space.

I closed my eyes and exhaled as soon as I was away from the stifling, hostile air.

This cafe was one of my favorite places to go to in the mornings, and it was ruined now because of something I didn’t even do.

Someone cleared their throat. Loudly. Persistently. My eyes flew open in annoyance, only to land on a nervous looking guy carrying black roses.

I frowned at him.

He was dressed in what seemed to be work clothes, with a cap on his head and a name tag that had ‘Kirk’ on it.

“Are you Emma?” He inquired.

“Who’s asking?”

He cleared his throat again, and I grit my teeth. The feeling of a chest rumbling against my back made me start. I hadn’t noticed how close Alex was standing.

“Your friend asked me to deliver these to you, ma’am. For the funeral. My condolences, by the way. I lost my grandma last month, and…” Kirk sniffled. “Sometimes it’s hard to believe she’s not here anymore, you know? I feel like I can just call her and go play bingo for the night.”

My irritation faded at the genuine sorrow on his face, and I elbowed Alex in the ribs when he started shaking from the effort of holding in his laugh.

“Do you need to, like, talk to someone?” I asked, accepting the flowers from him.

I noted that there was a little card placed inside the bouquet.

Kirk’s face brightened instantly, but he frowned again. “I’m working right now.”

“After work, then?” I offered.

The guy looked sad and lonely. I felt bad. He gave me a smile that revealed teeth in desperate need of dental care. I let him save his number on my phone.

Kirk repeated his condolences and headed back down to the florist shop down the street that I assumed he worked in.

“Are you really thinking about talking to that guy?” Alex’s voice was filled with disbelief.

I ignored him, too busy yanking the card out from between the roses. Written on it was what looked like a phone number.

I chewed down on my bottom lip, contemplating the likelihood of this being a prank.

Kirk knew my name, though.

Whoever sent the flowers knew where I was too, which was unsettling enough that I found myself dialing the number without a second thought.

“Do you like them?”

The familiar cold voice made my stomach clench.

“Lucas.”

He laughed, and, even through the phone, the sound grated on my nerves. “I was thinking they’d be a good choice for your funeral. Decided to run it past you, even though you won’t be around to admire them.”

“What the f**k are you on about?”

Lucas clicked his tongue. “Did you really think you could spread all those f*****g rumors about Matteo? You want clout? I’ll give you clout, but it’ll come with a whole lot of consequences that your good girl ass isn’t ready for.”

“Rumors? Listen, Lucas, whatever you think—”

Alex tensed and shot me a questioning look at the sound of Lucas name.

“No, you listen. Don’t f**k with us, little girl. You have no idea what you’ve gotten yourself into,” he hissed.

My fingers clenched around the phone. I’ve been getting threatened, insulted, glared at, and called cheap by people that I’ve never even met, all because of some stupid jacket.

Enough is enough. I won’t take s**t from him too.

I threw the bouquet onto the sidewalk and stomped on it. Hard. Rubbing it into the concrete. I didn’t acknowledge any of the stares I was receiving from passersby because I knew I looked like a psycho.

After I had successfully ruined the stupid roses, I brought the phone back to my ear.

“f**k. You.”

I hung up before he could do anything more than exhale harshly. I whirled around to face Alex when he tried to put a hand on my shoulder. My whole body was shaking.

With anger or fear, I didn’t know.

“What’s happening?” Alex's green eyes were worried as they searched my heated face.

I wanted to tell him, but I didn’t want to bring him into it. He’d only just found a new job. I didn’t wanna risk him too. No, this was between them and I. So I shook my head at my best friend, brushing his hand off, and I headed down to my next lecture.

On my way, I texted Dev.

Me: Fwd Matteo’s number to me pls

Dev responded in two minutes.

Dev: ??? Y???

Me: Questions later.

It seemed that my no nonsense tone along with the period I never used made me sound urgent enough for her to actually do what I said. I called him as soon as she sent me the number, my blood scorching through my veins.

“Hello?” His smooth, raspy voice made my step falter.

I caught myself just in time to keep from slipping and breaking my neck on the concrete.

“You tell your stalking little fucker to get the hell away from me before I file a damn restraining order against him. I’m being disrespected and insulted at every turn just because you have some twisted f*****g followers. I started no rumors about you, no nothing, and if you don’t—”

“Where are you?” His calm question cut through my furious rambling.

“I—what?”

“Where are you?”

“On my way to class.”

“Text me your location.”

“Matteo—”

“Text me,” he repeated.

I huffed but agreed.

I was on edge the minute I took my seat in the lecture.

Fifteen minutes of absolute torture went by, with me tapping my foot against the floor anxiously, annoying the f**k out of everyone sitting next to me.

I was turning to look at the clock again when I saw Matteo walk in.

My heart lurched somewhere into my throat.

He looked as put together as always, calm, smiling, making his way down towards my professor without so much as a glance at me. He spoke a few words with Dr. Reese, who was nodding enthusiastically at whatever he was saying.

Matteo smiled at him, shook his hand, then marched right over to me. His brisk pace matched my pulse beat for beat, step for step. He stopped beside me and whispers erupted through the hall.

“Hello again,” he greeted, unfailingly polite.

I swallowed. “What are you doing here?”

“You wanna talk. Let’s go talk.”

“I’m in class.”

“Ask me if I care,” he said dryly.

I caught the professor throwing an impatient look in our direction, and I decided not to push my luck. Quickly, I gathered my things, doing my best to ignore the assuming murmurs and heavy weight of everyone’s stares.

Matteo carried my bag for me and led me through the door with his hand on the small of my back. My skin burned from his touch, every nerve in my body focused on the one spot where his fingers were.

I could feel his warmth through the fabric of my T-shirt.

“How’d you get my number?”

I glanced away from him, my face heating up. “I asked Devyn for it.”

“Devyn?” He echoed, his brows drawing together.

“Lucas's step-sister.”

He hummed in recognition. “So, what was it you were trying to talk to me about?”

I hated how much harder it was to summon up my anger when he was standing in front of me, a smile tugging at his full lips, golden eyes twinkling with amusement.

“I… I want you to tell your people to back off.” I didn’t sound nearly as firm as I’d hoped.

“My people?”

“Don’t play dumb. All of these girls are attacking me over a goddamn jacket, and Lucas is giving me s**t about starting rumors about you.”

“Huh,” was all he said.

My head snapped up and I met his gaze. “Excuse me?”

“Here’s the thing, curly—”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Fine. Listen, Emily—”

“It’s Emma.” I couldn’t deny that I was a little stung that he didn’t remember my name.

“Emma.” My heart jerked at the way he said my name. No, ‘said’ didn’t do it justice. It fell from his lips like honey and, angry as I might’ve been, I’d never loved my name more than I did then.

“I hear what you’re saying, and I hate that you’ve been having a rough time.” He paused until I nodded in acknowledgement of his words.

"Feel free to clear up the misunderstanding about the jacket with the girls that are giving you a hard time, and whatever’s between you and Lucas is exactly that—between you two. I don't know what you want me to do about it."

I gaped at him like a fish out of water.

What. The. f**k.

But he kept going. “In other words, what you’re dealing with sounds like a personal problem. I can recommend you to the campus counselor if you’d like. She’s good at her job from what I’ve heard.”

Shame, deep and debilitating, curled in the pit of my stomach. There was no denying it. I had been as star-struck and awed as every girl he’d ever fixed those bright, alluring eyes on. I stood there enchanted by his charm, his intellect, his good looks.

I’d been completely at his mercy, and all it had taken was a few smiles and a drive home.

"I see." I shook my head in disbelief.

I’d always prided myself on my rationality. Even while my sisters and friends fawned over a man’s attractiveness, I’d been the one to see through it.

Except for him.

I stepped away from him and held out my hand to take my bag back.

“You didn’t need to go out of your way and come here to be a d**k. It was a waste of both of our time.” It felt strange to hear the coldness in my own voice.

Matteo’s polite expression didn’t waver as he rubbed his thumb along his jaw. He didn’t hand me back my bag.

I tried to take it from him, but he pulled it out of my reach.

“Give me my bag.”

“Try that again. Nicely.”

My brows shot up. “Are you serious right now?”

I’ve never wanted to punch someone as badly as I did at that moment. He continued to stare at me like he had all the time in the world, and I knew that the only way I’d be going back into my lecture would be to do what he wants.

My hands curled into fists at my sides.

“Could you please give me my bag back?” I asked, my tone poisonously sweet.

“Of course.” He handed it back to me like that’s what he meant to do this whole time.

With a scoff and shake of my head, I turned on my heel, heading back into the lecture hall. I didn’t pay attention to another word that the professor said.

My guard was up for the rest of the day.

I was wary of every customer that entered Mel’s during my shift, thinking that one of them would be sent by Lucas or Matteo or whoever else held a grudge against me.

Although, to be fair, I wouldn’t say Matteo had a grudge against me. He just didn’t give two shits. And he thought my name was Emily. Yeah, my ego was a bit bruised from that.

Despite my worries, work went by uneventfully. I was going to receive my paycheck tomorrow and send as much of it as possible to mom.

I called out a goodbye to my coworkers and headed out, tying my hair up in a ponytail as I walked.

I thought about setting some money aside to buy Dev a birthday present, although I was still nowhere near deciding on what to buy her. I sighed.

My to-do list seemed to be growing longer and longer by the day.

“Rough day?”

I whirled around, my heart jerking in my chest. Lucas was leaning against a wall, a cigarette between his lips. His blond hair seemed to glow in the dim lighting of the evening as he pushed off the wall and stalked towards me.

I felt frozen in place.

“Would’ve been fine without seeing your face.” My eyes scanned up and down the street desperately in search of someone who would help me.

The only people around were hurrying past us with fearful glances at Lucas. I cursed under my breath. I was on my own.

“Here I was hoping you’d be happy to see me,” Lucas murmured, forcing my attention back to him when I realized he was frighteningly close.

There were barely a few feet between us, and I found myself taking a step back, trying to subtly slide my phone into my hand. Lucas's eyes caught the movement.

He smirked.

I backed up further and was aided by his grip on my throat.

He pushed me back lightly until I hit the wall.

My breath quickened and I contemplated whether kneeing him in the groin would do any actual damage. It’d probably just aggravate him further.

“Lucas—”

He tsked loudly, his fingers tightening around my throat. My lungs burned with the need for air, my eyes stinging.

“Did you really think we wouldn’t find out who you were?” He purred. “I can smell bitches a mile away, and you’re the biggest b***h of them all.”

“True.” I managed to choke out a laugh. “But I’m not your bitch.” I rammed my knee into his crotch.

He grunted at the impact, his hold on me loosening as he stumbled back. I didn’t have time to catch my breath because I had already taken off running.

My feet crashed against the cobblestone pavements, and I shivered when the sound of his laughter rang out.

“I’m gonna have so much fun with you,” he called out.

I ran faster, almost at the same pace as the questions that raced through my mind. I had a new reason to worry about going to Dev's party.