CHAPTER 28: THE EXCEPTION

HAVEN'S POV

I gave Allessio a look when I saw that he's trying to fight his smile while buttoning the black dress shirt he had on before the fight that he now made me wear. He also adjusted the long sleeves that were covering my hands.

The dress I was wearing isn't usable right now since it got drenched with water when Allessio decided moments ago that it's a great idea to multitask between taking a shower and fucking me. I already don't have an underwear, and he made sure that I also don't have a dress.

"You're enjoying this too much," I grumbled.

His eyes traveled up and down my body, and his lips tipped up. His polo shirt is so big on me that it's longer than the dress I originally wore. "It feels like I really won tonight."

My nipples hardening didn't escape his notice because his grin grew broader. I just thanked my luck that the material of his polo shirt wasn't thin, so it wasn't too noticeable. Sadiyang kabisado niya nga lang ang buong katawan ako. How could he not when he spend a lot of time exploring it?

I look at him through narrowed eyes. "Did you plan this? You even have your things waiting for you."

He left me earlier in the shower stall and stepped out for a moment. He didn't have a towel, but of course, Allessio being Allessio, his nakedness didn't bother him one bit. He wasn't gone long, and when he returned, he had a towel wrapped around the lower half of his body and a gym bag containing his things.

I doubt he had it lying around here. The shower room seems to be for all the fighter so it wasn't private. The lockers aren't here either, so they don't have a place to leave their things.

Instead of answering me, he just smiled and reached for my hand. He's wearing the same pants he had on earlier, but since I'm wearing his polo, he put on a black tank instead.

With one hand holding mine, he pushes the door open with the other. My cheeks instantly flushed when I realized how quickly he got his things.

There was a line outside with a couple of Idalion fighters who all seemed to be in need of a shower. They could have entered the shower room at any moment, but all of Allessio's men are barricading the door, blocking everyone from entering.

From their shit eating grins, I have no doubt that they knew what happened in the shower room. It doesn't take a genius to understand what has been going on inside. Not when I'm wearing what clearly looks like a man's shirt and my hair is wet from a shower I just shared with Allessio.

I could feel my face flaming. "You're dead," I hissed at Allessio quietly.

"It's really not good to threaten a capo, gattina."

I widened my eyes at him when he smacked my behind which only made him smile more. He leaned down and kissed my temple, then whispered in my ear. "Especially when that capo knows you don't have anything underneath his shirt that you're wearing right now, and you're about to be confined in a small space that will remind him that he had you spread there not long ago."

My eyes lingered down the front of his pants, and my lips parted. "You're insatiable. We just had... and earlier we also..."

"Haven't I told you before? I'm always half-hard when you're around." He raised our intertwined hands, and heat sparked through me when he teasingly bit my finger. "I will never stop wanting you, so get used to it fast."

I tried to appear annoyed even though certain parts of me that are well acquainted with how he shows he wants me feel the opposite. "Bossy much?"

"You like that I am."

I couldn't respond to him, not only because I knew he was right, but also because we were greeted by people congratulating him on his victory. They look like they are all eager to suck up to him. Men who wanted to curry favor with him and women who blatantly want to suggest a different kind of favor.

I don't care much about the men, but I can't say the same about the women. As if reading my mind, Allessio wraps an arm around my waist to pull me close until I'm plastered to his side.

"Move or I'll move all of you myself," he growled.

His stance and his hold on me were like a statement. He's making it clear to everyone who I am in his life.

Allessio let me enter the car first when it stopped in front of us as soon as we got out the establishment. Adriano exited the vehicle, and Lorenzo took his place on the driver side while Fierro went to the passenger seat.

When the car sped away from the warehouse, I turned to Allessio. "You just broke those women's hearts."

"As long as I don't break yours, gattina."

I WAS RUSHING towards Allessio's office while holding a small piece of paper in my hand. I almost collided with Fierro who was walking out of the room.

He steadied me with his firm grip for a moment, withdrawing it quickly once he was sure I was upright. "Careful." He glanced at the door that wasn't fully closed yet, and opened it wide. "Your bride is here, Boss!"

When he turned to me again, a playful smile was playing at the corners of his mouth. "What's your favorite cake?"

This again? He's always asking me slumbook-like questions. "Umm... I'm not sure if you have it here, but I like dulce de leche."

"What's your favorite cuisine?"

"I like Italian, Mexican, and Asian."

"What do you prefer? Indoor or outdoor—"

"Do you want to get choked again, Mancini?" Allessio's glowering form filled the doorway. He has one hand leaning on the door frame while throwing daggers at the other man.

Fierro grinned, but he stepped back. "So kinky. Tame it down a little or Haven might get jealous of me." The man winked at me, clearly immune to the murderous look Allessio is giving him. "Don't worry, Mrs. Cascella. I only date people who are single, available, and don't have something dangling between their legs."

Fierro only laughed when Allessio bombed him with strings of Italian. I'm pretty sure all the words contained threats and expletives.

When Allessio and I were left alone, I raised an eyebrow at him. As if he had an off switch, his eyes immediately softened at me.

"Come here, gattina."

I stepped closer, but he was faster. He pulled me against him, my back pressed against the door frame. One arm was wrapped around my waist while the other rested against the door.

"Play nice to your friends..." I glide my hand up his chest, moving it to his shoulder. "...Daddy."

"I'm not a nice person."

"You seem pretty nice to me."

He held my chin with his fingers and planted a soft kiss on my lips. "That's because you're the exception."

I melted with his words, and it was not lost on him because he gave me another chaste kiss. Before we ended up doing things that will require close doors, I placed my hand on his chest to create a bit of distance between our bodies.

I beam at him excitedly. "Guess what?"

"What, baby?" he asked, tucking my hair behind my ear.

I waved the paper I'm holding in front of his face. "My lessons ended, and I got my certification of completion!"

His eyes were intense on me, but I could see warmth in them. "That's great, gattina. I always knew you had it in you."

I blinked. "Really?"

"Remember the night I took you from the grocery store?"

My lips tip up from the corners. "How could I forget?"

"Most people will beg with everything they have for their lives to be spared. But you didn't. I asked you about it, and you said that there's no use to do so. The look you had at that time was one of those that had already given up. As if you were standing in front of a rifle, and you just closed your eyes, waiting for everything to end. As if you're about to drown but you didn't want to try fighting the currents anymore."

I swallowed hard, remembering exactly what I was thinking that night. In fact, Allessio was spot on.

I was so tired then of trying to stay above the water that I just wanted to stop struggling. I remember thinking that maybe it wouldn't be so hard if I should just let myself drown.

Knowing where my mind went, Allessio touched my lips with his thumb to get my attention back. "I told you that the lessons are for you. I wanted you to learn how to take care of yourself. Do you know why?"

"So I wouldn't go back to being a brat?" I joked.

"No. I wanted you to learn all that so that you could see how to work hard on something that is worth all the effort. Which is you, baby." He playfully brushed the tip of his nose with mine. "You wanted to give up, and I wanted you to do the opposite. Your parents are dumb asses who thought money could solve everything. Money might buy comfort, but it doesn't make us feel cared for. Not really. Not in the way we need it."

He was right, of course. That was the way it was for me before. I showered myself with things that have a lot of worth in value but lack true significance.

"When you know how to take care of yourself, even if the rest of the world disappears, you have someone that cares for you, and that is yourself, gattina."

My eyes watered, and I pressed my lips together, trying my best not to let the tears fall. "You said you're not nice, and yet you're here being nice."

"Like I've said, you're the exception."

I wrapped my arms around his waist, burying my face in his wide chest. For a moment, we just stayed there like that. Allessio didn't complain as if he knew that's what I needed.

When I think I have a handle on my emotions better, I look up at him. "I still don't know how to cook, though."

"I'll teach you."

I pursed my lips. "You're always busy."

"Does my baby feel neglected?" I shrieked when he suddenly lifted me that I had no choice but to hook my legs around his waist. "Daddy will make sure to fix that."

He carried me as he walked out of the office and went straight upstairs. I thought we were going to his room, but instead, he went straight to the one I occupy. A room I only sometimes get to use when he's not home since when he's around, it's impossible for us to sleep separately.

Allessio gently threw me on the bed. "You should move your things to my room."

"With all the things you bought for me, I doubt my wardrobe will fit in yours."

His huge built tower over as he put his hands on each of my sides so he wouldn't crush me.

"I'll have someone come and renovate." He grinned at the surprise on my face. "If you think that a mere wardrobe can keep me from what I want, you need to think again."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever."

A squeal escaped from me when he flipped me around so that I'm lying on my stomach. I bit my lower lip when I felt him placed a kiss on my neck. His lips traveled down my back, which is bare from the halter top I'm wearing, and he kept going and going.

I was writhing underneath him when he stopped what he's doing. "Go get dressed. We're going out to celebrate."

"B-But—" I yelped when I felt a stinging pain on my behind, and I look back at him in disbelief. "Did you just bit my...?"

He shot me a grin. "Oh yes, I did. And I plan to do it again later, gattina."