“You can’t keep doing this,” I told Morgan, pacing back and forth.
“Yes I can,” she laughed. “Enjoy your dinner. Tell Marketa Dobry I said hi.” And with that, Morgan hung up.
With the phone still to my ear, I slumped onto the couch, dropping my head in my hands. How the hell she got my number, was beyond me. Why couldn’t I get rid of her? I had been doing so well. Taking one step forward only to take a million back.
“Matteo,” Mae said softly, wrapping her hand around my arm.
I jumped under the contact. “Sorry,” I said when Mae stared at me wide eyed. “I’m sorry.”
“Who was that?” she asked, linking our fingers.
“Morgan,” I mumbled, relaxing under the touch.
Mae scowled. “What did she want?”
I had no fucking idea. “To mess with me. To drive me fucking insane.”
“Is there anything I can do to help?” Mae asked, tentatively wrapping her arm around my shoulders.
“Don’t leave me. No matter what happens. Promise me.” I didn’t like the desperation in my voice but I needed to know I had some sort of solace here. I needed to know that no matter what happened, Marketa would stand by me.
“I promise but I don’t understand—”
“You don’t need to.” I kissed her mouth. “Come.” I rose to my feet, pulling her with me and placed my phone in my jacket pocket. “Change of plans.”
As we drove to the fancy Italian restaurant I had booked the reservation at, I couldn’t help but focus on Mae’s small hand in mine. She stared out at the city passing us by. After Morgan called me, I changed the dinner plans with my business associates and told them where to meet us. Not in the mood to cook or host, I called in a favor. It paid to have people of a high caliber as patients.
“Dr. Santos,” the waiter greeted us. “Right this way. Your dinner party has only just arrived.”
“Thank you.” I gave a curt nod, holding Mae’s hand tight in my own. As we made our way to the table, all I could focus on was Mae’s fingers in mine. Brett MacLean, a patient who I had come to know over the years, tried explaining to me how touching his wife made him feel normal. It made him feel sane and brought him out of the dark place he was in. I never understood what he had meant until now. Although, I knew Mae and I needed to talk, touching her helped. But I needed more. I needed to fully dominate and control her. I just didn’t know how.
“I’m nervous,” Mae confessed as we headed to our table.
“Don’t be. You’re beautiful. You’re mine. There’s no one here you have to impress,” I told her, giving her hand a tight squeeze. “Not even me.”
“I don’t need to impress you?”
“No,” I placed a soft peck on her lips. “Because you already have.”
A soft sigh escaped her. “But these people are friends of yours. I don’t want to embarrass you.”
I pulled her to a stop. “You could never embarrass me. If you don’t know by now, Mae, I don’t care what people think. I do what I want.”
“I know but I want to make you happy,” she said softly, her cheeks reddening.
Pinching her chin, I placed a small peck on her lips before leaning down to her ear. “You do make me happy. You make me the happiest I have ever been in my life.” The words were on my tongue to tell her more but I couldn’t. I didn’t want to scare her away but I refused to give anyone the chance to break me…again. It wasn’t fair to Marketa or myself but it was the only thing I had control of completely.
(Mae)
Something was off. I couldn’t place a finger on it but a bad feeling swam around in the pit of my belly. Matteo was rigid as we walked to the table to meet his associates. He kept glancing my way like he thought I would leave. If he didn’t have a tight grip on my hand, would I? No. I wanted whatever this was between us to blossom into something more. I found I needed him like air to breathe. When I wasn’t with him, I craved him. He was the sustenance I needed to survive.
“Gentlemen,” Matteo said, moving behind me and placed his hands on my shoulders. “This is Marketa Dobry.” I almost wanted him to introduce me as his girlfriend but we hadn’t talked about