39. Epilogue

Six months later

My mother never responded that first time. It took six months for me to hear back from her. I knew where she was this whole time. Every restaurant she ate in, every hotel she stayed at, every man she went to bed with and every business deal she had with someone. As long as she was alive she would never stop going after my father. Any threat to my father was a threat to me. I needed her to come to me on her own. She needed to think she was still sitting in the winner"s seat. I slide into my car; the seats are warm from the hot sun coming through the window. It's the middle of summer and I hate how the humidity always leaves my clothes sticking to my body. My phone vibrates and it's a message from my mother.

Mother: I'm here. I can't wait to see you, mijo.

Me:I just pulled in.

I step out of the car, nodding at the black sedan parked across the road. Even from the distance I can see Gabriel's wicked smile. We are both aware of my mother's tricks and knew she wouldn't be coming alone but neither would I. I walk past one of my father's men pretending to read the paper on a bench outside the restaurant. Most of his men were new and I brought only the ones she wouldn't recognize.

Her smile is wide, and she looks the exact same from when I last saw her. She is wearing a red, subtle dress with a matching hat. There are a few men sitting behind her. I know right away that they are friends of hers, along with the man sitting alone in the corner of the restaurant. I've learned a lot from Gabriel and my father over the last six months. He"s a master when it comes to attention to detail and now I carry that trait. Taking the seat in front of her, I ignore her inviting arms. I didn't come here to hug the woman who tried to kill me. The arms I once sought out for comfort have become the last ones I'd ever go to.

"I'm glad you finally decided to meet me, Mother."

Her red lipstick stretches with her lips. "Yo también. It's been a long time. I've missed you."

I laugh. "How about you cut the bullshit and tell me why you finally agreed to meet me?"

Her lips form a straight line and she sits back in her chair, crossing her hands over the table. "I told you already, Mateo. I've missed you. Eso es todo. Can't a mother miss her own son?"

I nod. "I suppose she could, but you lost that title a long time ago."

"I didn't come here to fight, Mateo. I came here because I want to come home."

"Father would never take you back and you know it."

She shakes her head. "I'm not talking about your father. You are my home, Mateo. You always have been, mi amor."

My jaw tightens and I cringe at that name. "Don't call me that. You no longer have a place anywhere near me. You burned that bridge the moment you tried to marry me off to that monster, knowing exactly what he was. How do I know you won't try to kill me again?"

She holds her hands out in front of her. "I promise, Mateo. I'm done being that person. I've learned a lot over these last six months. All I want to do is be the mother that I always should have been. Now, will you please have tea and coffee with your mother?"

I nod. "Bueno. Let"s get this over with then."

My mother orders a chai latte and I order an espresso. The guy from behind the counter hands me the drinks, his stare lingering on me for too long. I take a seat at the table with the hot cups in my hands and when I glance back at the counter, he's gone.

My mother sips her tea. "I was thinking, I could come help you run the clubs left to you by Santiago. I know you've had your hands full lately having to take on so much responsibility suddenly. You were never that good with too much responsibility, were you, mijo?"

"I've been getting along just fine." I reassure her with a smile. I crack my knuckles, never letting my eyes leave hers. "I think that's a good idea though. Maybe you'd even be more suited to help running the whorehouses but I guess that would be hard to do when you're dead."

Her eyes widen and her gaze drops down to her drink. "Wait. You couldn't have. I..."

Her face pales and she reaches for her throat. Clutching her hands around it, her body convulses. The men behind her stand, reaching for their guns. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." I nod toward the window at the front of the shop where Gabriel and two of my father's men stand.

They sit back down, and I casually wipe my mouth with my napkin. I glance around and everyone else is too busy chatting and taking orders to notice us. I stand from my chair and push it in. "Goodbye, Mother. I'm really glad we got to do this one last time."

The smile remains on my face even after I walk out the door. As I glance back, I watch my mother's lifeless body fall to the floor and her men run her way in a panic. I slip into my car and drive off with no intention of ever coming back this way again. Gabriel drives closely behind me. I don't stop until I pull up in front of an empty, abandoned building. Rocks smash under my feet as I walk toward the front entrance, not looking back. It grows darker the further I walk inside. The air is still and smells of mildew and old building.

I tread lightly down the hallway, entering another room that appears to have been an office at one point. I peer out the window of the empty room, ignoring the graffiti covering the walls. I close my eyes and smile when I hear footsteps approaching behind me. Boots scrape against the floor. He is quiet when he wants to be but this time he wants to make sure I hear him coming. It's part of the thrill. Goosebumps spread along my skin when his warm breath touches the back of my neck. He shoves me against the window and my face presses to the cool glass. My pants are tugged roughly down my hips, so hard the front button pops. I yank off my shirt and let it fall near my feet. My breathing grows heavy, fogging up the window. In an attempt to grip it, I slide my hands down the slippery surface, creating long streaks with my fingers.

"Ready to make pretty noises for me, princesa?"

I nod. "Sí. Only you can help me forget about today."

"Hands above your head." I do as he says. His words send a rush of heat in my belly. I"m ready to feel that heat in other places. Rough rope ties around my wrists. The tighter it presses against my skin, the harder my dick is. He connects the other piece of thick rope, attaching it to a hook on the ceiling that wasn't there last time we were in the building. He shoves me hard against the window and my tip leaks against the glass. "So fucking sexy. Completely at my mercy."

I shudder when he runs his palms down my naked back. His fingers tease my crack and slip between my cheeks. He kicks my legs apart, putting almost too much space between my ankles. "Keep them apart."

His fingers trace my inner thighs and they quiver with each touch. He presses against my hole, forcing a whine from my lips. "I've been thinking about being here all day. Do you want my cock, sweetness?"

"Mmph" is all I can manage. He laughs.

"Soon. I need to kiss you first."

I attempt to spin my head around and he presses it back against the window. "Not there." He presses harder against my hole. "Here."

I tremble and he drops between my legs, burying his face between my cheeks. His tongue dives in, quick and desperate. He"s sucking and biting like a starved man and I"m whimpering, desperately wanting more. I push my ass back into his face and my knees nearly give out. The only thing holding me up is the rope I"m tied to. It pulls roughly against my wrists, the burn sending me closer to the edge. His hand moves to my cock, slipping something over it. When I look down, a slap comes to the right cheek of my ass. "Eyes straight ahead, princesa."

The glass is too foggy for me to see our reflection. I think next I will beg him to fuck me in a room full of mirrors. I would love to watch him driving into me with his large cock pumping in and out. His tongue short circuits my brain, making every coherent thought fade away. He pulls my cheeks further apart, fucking into me deeper, hitting each nerve ending. My body shakes and my dick wants to erupt but no orgasm ever comes. It's taken from me every time I begin to fall into bliss. I realize the asshole put a cock ring on me. His fingers stroke my length slowly and gently and the touch is almost too much. I want to come out of my skin.

His tongue slips out and his fingers push inside me covered in lube. It's cold and my ass clenches around his digits. "Oh...Gabriel."

I moan louder when he adds a second finger. "No one else could ever make me feel as good as you can."

"No, and no one will ever have the chance to try. If another man so much as looks at you the wrong way, I"ll rip their eyes from their sockets. You are mine and only mine."

I nod breathlessly.

"Let me hear you say it."

"Yours."

He replaces his fingers with his cock. He doesn't take his time and doesn't need to with all the extra prepping. His cock goes right in, slipping easily past my sphincter. "Oh, fuck."

He plunges hard and deep. My feet slip from the floor and I am hanging from the rope. He lifts my legs, holding them against his thighs. I bend my knees, pushing myself back. He fucks me harder, thrusting his hips against my ass, making loud slapping sounds. Sweat drips down and I whine in frustration as my cock continues to leak and my balls swell. "Please."

"Please what?"

"Need to come."

"Not until I'm done using you."

He moves in and out of me, chasing his own pleasure. With a low grunt, he pulls out to cover my ass in hot, thick ropes. He reaches around me, slipping off the ring and tossing it on the floor. I cry out when he shoves his cock back into me. My balls ache and when I come it's the sweetest pain mixed with pleasure. I'm weightless and floating. My body loses itself in ecstasy. I don't even remember him pulling me down or untying the rope from my wrists. I only remember the warmth of his arms wrapping around me, followed by his soft caresses. "That's it, Mateo. I got you."

Things sometimes got messy between us and there were many challenges, but no matter what, he always has me, and I always have him.

He presses kisses to the side of my head and carries me into the car completely naked. A large knitted blanket wraps around me and I cuddle up against the passenger door. "How do you feel, baby?"

"Perfect."

"That's because you are, in every single way."

Is this really love? I don"t know. Whatever flows between us is passionate, consuming, addicting and ours. Gabriel is both the worst and best thing I have never planned.