29. Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Matías Moreno

One Year Later

We just landed at Barajas airport, and a freezing wind greets us as soon as we get off the airplane. Since the attack in Buenos Aires, we've been flying private. I think at this point, it'd be best if Samuel buys a jet for the family to fly safely.

Cattleya was able to leave the hospital in Buenos Aires a month after she was shot. Thankfully, the bullet didn't compromise any arteries, but the femur and some nerves were pretty wrecked. It took Cattleya long hours of physical therapy before she was able to walk, and even longer to run again.

It's been a very challenging year for her physically, but especially mentally. She had nightmares for months, waking up screaming and punching anything and everything that was near her. I think being shot was hard for her, but losing Stefa was the hardest pill to swallow. She blamed herself for not being able to save her friend.

Seeing mi ángel so broken was the last push I needed to deal with my demons for good and be her rock during those agonizing hours. You never know how strong you can be until being a tough motherfucker is the only option left. Dr. Sosa helped me navigate this new reality via virtual appointments.

I was also finally able to talk to my dad and tell him how much damage he did when he never allowed me to express my feelings as a child. When he made me doubt myself over and over again. Even when I achieved an academic award in school, it was never enough for me. It turned out, my dad never realized what he was doing was wrong. After talking on the phone, he and Mom went to Colombia to see me, and Cattleya and to apologize personally for all he put me through. Our relationship is better now, and I'm thankful I've been able to turn the page on my past and focus all my energy on Cattleya—my present and future.

Going back to Colombia was the best thing that could happen to mi ángel . Being away from the familiar places where she spent time with the team—not seeing the stadium where she got shot—definitely helped with her recovery. Samuel and Claudia transformed a wing of their farmhouse in Tamarind Valley into a training facility for Cattleya. They hired the best physios, doctors, and psychologists, all available on-site. I'm sure without all this, Cattleya's recovery would have taken much longer. It also helped her to be around her parents in her favorite place on Earth, and after spending a year there with her, I can definitely say it's my favorite place too.

Once Cattleya started doing better, I opened my own consulting company. I provide support to construction companies when they need an extra hand. It's been a good gig because it gives me the flexibility of creating my own schedule, which was key to being there for Cattleya during her recovery. The Golden Warriors didn't push her to come back and play for them. They understood how deeply this incident had cut her. The only condition they set for her return to Colombia was that she consider moving back to Bueno Aires to resume her professional career when she was ready.

Since the shooting happened at the stadium, the media was all over it. General management and the police got slammed, coming under public scrutiny for keeping the threats under wraps. Esteban got out of the hospital before Cattleya. Since there were no witnesses or video footage of the actual shooting, he was sentenced to life without parole. Same for Romina: the evidence we sent was pretty damning, and she'll spend a long time in jail, as well. She will no longer be able to continue to tear down young female athletes and put them at risk.

The Women's Soccer Tournament was canceled for an entire season, and a judge mandated that the Argentinian government cover all the players' and staff's salaries. The judge determined that the police were responsible for their poor management of the situation, and since the police work for the government, they had to pay.

Stefa's family got a big chunk of money from the government and the club. Cattleya used the money she was awarded to establish an afterschool program for girls. She named it "Stefa Mendoza's Rising Stars." Sofi oversees it since Cattleya thought the money should be used in Argentina.

Luciano, my boss, didn't fare much better than Esteban and Romina. According to my colleagues who I've kept in contact with, once the league was canceled for a year, the stadium construction was halted. The Golden Warriors decided to run an audit on the build. When they found inconsistencies between the materials purchased and what had been spent, Luciano had no other choice but to declare bankruptcy and sell his company. He's lucky the team was so busy with the shitshow from the shooting. They decided not to press charges against him if he returned the money he had stolen.

Cattleya considered playing for the Golden Warriors but to this day, she hasn't been able to set foot in Argentina. So here we are, in Madrid, ready for her next chapter as the badass soccer player that she is.

"Ready, bae?" Cattleya asks me, reaching for my hand after we've cleared customs.

"So ready," I say as I take Tinta from the bag on her back.

"You know I'm capable of carrying him, right?" I roll my eyes at her and chuckle, letting her keep our furball. Sometimes the urge to help her, and protect her makes me forget how strong-willed she is. Though we've been living together since we moved to Colombia, I haven't proposed. To say that the boys want to cut my balls off is an understatement. I just don't want to pressure her to think about a wedding when her whole focus was supposed to be getting back on her feet. I know she'll never be the same person—this incident changed her perspective on life—but her new version is even more resilient, more motivated to achieve her goals. I feel so damn lucky to be able to experience all this with her. We don't need a ring to know we're it for each other.

When we get to our piso (apartment) in Salamanca, an upscale neighborhood in Madrid, I'm struck by the beauty of the place.

Cattleya lets Tinta out of his backpack as soon as we close the door. The little furball, who's not little anymore, darts off like a mad cat, inspecting his new kingdom. Cattleya does a 360 of the living area, and I thank the heavens for giving me the chance to build a life with this amazing woman.

"You know what I've been thinking, mi ángel ?"

She hums in question as she comes to hug me.

I trail kisses all over her neck as she sways us side to side. I've been getting better at this dancing thing, but I don't think I'll ever be able to match her on the dance floor; my woman is candela (fire). "Now that we're in our new place, and you still have a couple weeks before you join your new team, we should get those piercings we wanted."

Cattleya stretches her neck, giving me better access, and I continue kissing her until I reach her shoulders. She releases a moan that tells me everything I need to know about what she thinks about my idea.

"I've done some research, and there are a couple of places we can check out and ask for a consultation." She removes her shirt and immediately goes for mine, my girl has a one-track mind. I'm not mad about it, not even a little bit.

"Sounds good, but first we need to bless this place." And that's exactly what we do. I lift her up, and her legs wrap around my waist. I walk us slowly to the kitchen where I place her on top of the counter, and she jumps up.

"What's wrong?" I ask, worried I missed her cues .

"Nothing, it's just this marble is too cold against my thighs."

"Oh that's not a problem, babe. I'll be warming you up in no time." I wink at her with my signature smirk that I know drives her wild. As if I had planned it, she throws her arms up in the air and hoots and hollers for me. I make a show of taking off my jeans ever so slowly, and when I'm left only wearing my boxers, I can see her swallowing.

"What is it, mi ángel ?" I say as I cup my junk over my boxers. Cattleya fans herself with her hand and passes her tongue across her lips.

"Oh nothing, just that your precious cock is peeking out of your boxers, and I can't wait to have it inside me." And that's my girl, needy and panting just for me.

"So what you're saying is that you want it fast and hard?" She huffs in frustration as she rolls her eyes.

"Umm, yeah. We have all the time in the world for more." I throw my head back in laughter and the movement causes my dick to slip a little bit more out of my boxers.

"Ugh, Mati. You're killing me, bae. Please, come here." She takes matters into her own hands as she slides her thong to the side and starts playing with her clit. I'm usually a very patient man, but whenever she plays with herself, I lose all control. In one stride, I close the distance between us and lower my boxers just enough to let my cock out. Then, I place one hand on her back, holding her in place. With my other hand, I guide my cock inside the sweetest place it's ever been. It takes way less time than it should have for the both of us to scream our release but as Cattleya said, we have all the time in the world to do it over and over again.

After getting us cleaned up, I help her down from the counter, and we quickly feed Tinta to avoid the stink eye he would have given us all night had we not. Cattleya orders food, and then I feast on her as my dessert. We spend all night making each other come.

"There's nothing better than being entangled with you, mi ángel ," I say as I kiss her.

When I let her come up for air, she says, "For eternity and even after that."