7. Matteo

7

MATTEO

F or a small little thing, Luxtyn sure has some power behind her jabs. Or maybe it's because she caught me off guard, but either way, my ribs are still feeling the aftermath of her bony elbow.

Luxtyn Stockwell isn't anything like I expected. Mancini gave us a copy of her photo ID so Enzo could intercept her at the airport after we had our tech guy hack into the rideshare app and cancel her ride, but that picture doesn't do her justice.

She's beautiful, with her nearly jet-black hair that contrasts with her porcelain complexion, looking like it hasn't seen the light of day.

Her eyes, though. Her eyes are dark brown, nearly black, similar to mine. Her high cheekbones and full lips fill out her face, and the lack of makeup gives her a young vibrancy.

Having lived in the city my entire life, I'm used to women dressed to the nines with their hair and makeup done twenty-four seven. Luxtyn's minimalist look is. . . refreshing.

Now, her attitude. Her attitude is something I could do without. Add in the theatrics, and there's the reason for the throbbing pain in my head. Yes, Enzo and I kidnapped her, but fuck. If I was going to kill her, I would've done it already.

At least the girl isn't completely naive.

It's reassuring that her guard immediately went up with us, and that her fight-or-flight response is more on the fight side. Luxtyn didn't grow up in this world, and being the wife to the don of one of New York's largest crime syndicates is no place for a dumb, naive little girl.

Luckily for me, the remainder of the car ride is quiet. Luxtyn hasn't said a word, which I didn't think would be possible for her. If I had to guess, I'd say her sudden compliance has something to do with what I said about her mom while her tight little ass was perched on my lap.

I didn't think Mancini's plan for me to wed Luxtyn would work, at least not willingly by her, but I've quickly learned I can use her mom as a form of leverage. They must be close if she's willing to let herself get "kidnapped."

Luxtyn continues staring out the window as Enzo parks the SUV in my private parking garage beneath my forty-two floor residential building. My penthouse takes up the top two floors of this building while the remaining residences are occupied by people of all trades, including many whom work for me.

"The door's unlocked for you now," I say while I open mine, but before I get out of the car, I glance at her over my shoulder, and our gazes meet. "And don't try running. You're in a closed-off parking garage, one you need more than a key to get out of, so don't try anything stupid. I'm really not in the mood."

She mutters something under her breath that sounds an awful lot like "dick" as I climb out of the SUV, and the corners of my mouth rise at the brazenness of it. Enzo smirks while waiting to shut the door behind me .

"What?" I snap, pasting a scowl back on my face.

He gives me a cocky shrug. "Oh, nothing." I know he wants to say something, but I'm not in the mood to decipher the meaning behind his smug attitude. He shoves my door shut before adding, "Don't think I don't see what's going on here."

"I thought you said it was nothing? Nothing means you have no opinion on anything, Enzo."

Luxtyn climbs out as I make it around the SUV. I brace myself for her to start running, but she surprises me and does the opposite. After shutting the door, she stands there and stares at me. Unmoving. Not even blinking, which leaves me feeling uneasy. This is a stark shift from the girl who threw her body over mine in a failed attempt to get her bag back.

Ignoring her, I turn around and lead the way to the private elevator that goes directly to the penthouse. But before I make it three steps, a sharp pain on the lower side of my back erupts. "What the fuck?" I shout.

My words bounce off the concrete walls as I whip around in time to see Luxtyn attempt to jump on me while screaming, "Tell me what you know about my mom, you asshole!"

Enzo pulls her arms behind her back and snakes his through them, holding her in place. My gaze is pulled to the floor where a fucking pocketknife with a shiny coat of blood is now lying on the ground between us.

Did she just fucking stab me?

"Tell me what you know!" she yells again.

I eye her up and down and take in her heaving, perky-as-hell breasts as she attempts to break free from Enzo.

The fact this woman stabbed me in the back and I'm still checking her out tells me there's something seriously fucking wrong with me. I barely pay attention to the females that throw themselves at me every night at the club, yet here I am checking out one who tried to fucking kill me. With my back turned, nonetheless. Fucking ridiculous.

After picking up the pocketknife off the ground, I inspect the thick red liquid that now coats the tip of the blade. Enzo's bark of laughter draws my attention back to him and the new thorn in my side. Or should I say my back.

Yeah, keep laughing, douche.

I shoot him a glare before drawing it to Luxtyn. She has a gleam in her eye and her chin raised high, looking like she enjoyed stabbing me a little too much.

I wipe the front and back of the blade on the sleeve of my charcoal-gray Armani suit jacket, which must now be thrown out, thanks to the outrageously bold move on Luxtyn's part.

"This was one of my favorite suits, Little Lux. What're you going to do about that?"

"I don't really care, and stop calling me that." She seethes. "Tell me what you know about my mom, or you can just go fuck yourself."

"You really think stabbing and cussing out the people who kidnapped you and hold the fate of your mother's life in their hands is a smart idea?" I might be falsely leading her to believe I have her mother, but I don't really fucking care. I'm not above using her mother against her. Not when it comes to getting what I want. What I need. And she is what I need to take down the Silvestris.

The fire burning behind her eyes extinguishes as the presumed threat of harming her mother lingers in the air between us. Her shoulders drop as Enzo continues to keep a firm grasp on her.

"Are you calm now?" I ask.

"You're not going to hurt her, are you?" While I should probably feel bad for making her think I have her mother, I don't. I don't know where she is. Hell, I don't even have confirmation that she's alive, but I need Luxtyn to chill the fuck out.

"If you keep making stupid decisions like stabbing me, there's no telling what will happen to your mother." I ignore my brother's disapproving gaze as I spin on my heel, making my way back toward the private elevator.

She might think I have her mother locked up in some grungy basement, and that's fine. That was my intention. The only problem is, why's there a little voice in the back of my head that disagrees with what I'm doing?