Chapter 11

To sayI know little of freedom is an understatement. After my mother’s final husband’s demise, I was hardly away from her for more than a few hours.

But her shadow was nothing compared to the one my husband casts.

Though admittedly, his is far different, because where my mother was everywhere I went, Mateo is ever-present in my mind.

It’s been a week since I saw him last, but I still feel his presence everywhere. Asleep, as I shower, when I walk the dim corridors of the prison he’s keeping me in.

He’s in every shadow, around every corner, behind every door.

Sometimes, I think of him as I touch myself, mimicking his sinful caresses poorly.

Does he ever think of me? I doubt it.

And the thought of what could be preoccupying his mind drives me to madness.

To quell my chaos, I’ve taken to walking through the level I’m allowed to explore, hoping to come across something, anything, to make me forget my plight.

The chiming of bells catches my attention, and I look over to see that it’s already noon.

With every window boarded up in this godforsaken building, it’s easy to lose track of time. Sometimes, I’ll be wandering the halls only to find out it’s two in the morning.

As I make my way from the den to my room, Jade spots me and approaches.

“Mrs. Rossi would like to have lunch with you,” she says, her face a stoic mask of contempt.

“Mateo’s mother?”

“Who else?” Jade says, rolling her eyes.

She hardly said two words to me at my wedding, and I’m surprised she’d take any interest in me at all.

I follow Jade to the formal dining room, which could easily seat fifty people. Mateo’s mother turns from a portrait she’d been looking at just a few feet away, her lips curling into a smile.

She takes two steps forward and brings her hands up to draw my hair forward over my shoulders. “What a sight it would be to have a grandchild with bright red hair.”

“Not to disappoint you, but I don’t know if my genes stand a chance against Mateo’s dark locks.”

“There’s a rumor that I have a hint of Irish in me, but you’d never know it by looking at my family tree. I’m Bella, by the way, but feel free to call me mom.”

“It’s nice to see you again, Bella.”

“I’ll be back with lunch,” Jade says, donning her fakest of fake smiles.

As the click of her heels disappears down the hall, Bella says, “I had one like her too, though mine was rounder in the hips and couldn’t keep her tits in her shirt.”

I cock my head to the side, confused.

“You know why Mateo keeps her around, don’t you?”

“So I know my place?”

Bella nods curtly. “You’re smart.”

We sit at the table just as Jade rolls in the cart.

“I took the liberty of steeping a fertility tea,” she says, pouring me a cup.

Forcing a smile, I tell her, “Thank you.”

“How is that going?” Bella asks.

My mouth gapes open, because the question feels so invasive. Is she asking how often Mateo and I have sex? Or if I’m taking fertility medication?

Unfortunately, Jade has no qualms about answering for me.

“Her pregnancy tests have all come up negative, which isn’t shocking because despite the daily injections she gets, she fails to inspire Mateo.”

Bella cocks her head to the side. “Fails to inspire?”

“Your son can have any woman he wants. It is any wonder that he can hardly muster the drive to visit her,” Jade says as she sets up the three-tiered serving stand.

Offended, I rush out, “He can have any woman he wants, yet he chose me.”

“Because of limited time, pressure, and distinct qualifiers,” Jade says as she steps back from the table. “He can hardly bring himself to visit her bedchamber, and has so far only visited her twice, the first being her wedding night.”

Embarrassed, I look down at my lap, furious that she would humiliate me like this in front of my mother-in-law.

“Is this true?” Bella asks.

I swallow a thick lump in my throat. “As you know, your son is very busy?—”

Bella’s expression sours. “Not so busy that he should be so careless with his inheritance.”

Oh, great…

A smirk curls on Jade’s treacherous lips, and for one brief moment, I consider slapping it off. But the last thing I want is to look unstable in front of Mateos’ mother.

Rich, affluent people don’t resort to violence to resolve conflict, as words cut deeper than any blade.

Glaring at Jade, I say, “If I were you, I’d stop being so concerned with my bed.”

She chuckles sardonically. “And if I were you, I’d be very concerned with who’s in mine.”

In one motion, she grabs the cloth napkins in front of me and Bella, pulls them from the table, and places them onto our laps as they would do in high-end restaurants. “Enjoy.”

Competing with Jade was obviously a mistake, but there’s no rewinding the conversation. Not that Jade told Bella anything I didn’t already suspect.

Why wouldn’t Mateo take Jade too? She’s beautiful, and probably far more experienced than I am.

But all is not lost in the battle, as I still have the upper hand in the situation, because this isn’t about love or romance. It’s about making a baby. Something Mateo chose not to do with her.

But if that’s true, why am I suddenly so jealous?

We eat in silence, because all the oxygen seems to have been sucked from the room, and when we’ve finally finished our meal and all that’s left is me and Mateo’s mother, she speaks again, her words far more pointed this time around.

“What are you doing to seduce my son?”

“Seduce your son? I thought the inheritance was supposed to do that.”

She shakes her head from side to side and exhales a weary breath. “My son is too damn proud for his own good. If you were some hussy off the street, he’d be all over you. But you’re not, and the weight of his obligation makes him defiant.”

“Then how is any of this my fault?”

“What have you done to entice him?”

I exist. That’s the extent of my effort, because he’s never around.

“I’ll send over lingerie fit for a whore.”

“I don’t think that will work,” I tell her.

“I’ve seen your pictures. Your videos in yoga pants. I know exactly what you are and what you’re after, because I was you once.”

Oh, somehow I doubt that…

“If you’re so familiar with my situation, please tell me how to seduce a man who is never in my presence.”

“You make him think about you, day and night and all the time in between. His heart should all but stop around you, and every last fear should be because of you. Losing you, your affection, your interest, your beguiling presence. You must enchant him, body and soul, leaving no room for vixens like Jade to capture his attention.”

Looking down at my lap, I mull over her words, wondering if what she’s saying is even possible.

You see it all the time in movies, but that’s fiction. Mateo Rossi could have his choice of any woman he wanted, and the only reason he picked me was to have a baby.

Bella dabs her lips, sets her napkin down, and rises from her seat.

“Let me be blunt, dear Ivy. You have this one shot of capturing my son’s attention. One shot at making yourself. Of rising above the genetics your shitty trailer trash mom gave you with. Don’t. Fuck. This. Up.”

She storms off, leaving me utterly humiliated.

But perhaps this is the wake up call I so desperately need because she’s right. If Mateo doesn’t get me pregnant by the time his grandfather dies, he’ll cast me aside, leaving me nothing. I’ll no longer be as marketable to other targets, and freedom will be but a dream to me.

I have to make Mateo want me. Or at the very least, I need to get him to fuck me.