[BL] The Mafia Boss Wants My Body-Chapter 20: The Beginning of Obsession

Mark watched his brother’s back as he walked away.

Then he spoke calmly.

"Just remember one thing, Teo."

Matteo paused at the door.

"I warned you."

Without another word, he opened the door and stepped outside.

Meanwhile, Adrian remained in Matteo’s room.

A maid knocked softly a few minutes later before entering. She bowed politely.

"Sir, the boss asked me to check if you would like something to eat."

Adrian didn’t even look at her.

"I’m fine," he said coldly.

The maid hesitated for a moment before nodding politely and leaving the room.

After leaving Mark’s room, Matteo assumed Adrian had already eaten. He headed to the dining room to deal with his own meal and clear his head.

Before the food was even served, Tony stepped into the room, his expression already set in business mode.

"The auction date that was postponed is back on for tomorrow night," Tony said, leaning against the edge of the table. "We have to be there. The collectors are already moving, and the high-value pieces will go fast. The Marcones need to make an appearance."

"I’ll be there," Matteo replied curtly. "Double the security detail. I don’t want any surprises."

Tony gave a brief nod.

Soon the servants finished setting the table.

Matteo looked toward Selena.

"Has Adrian been served?"

Selena bowed her head slightly. "We went to his room, sir, but he said he wanted nothing. I didn’t want to press him, so I left."

Matteo’s expression hardened. "I see."

He gestured to the bodyguard standing near the stairs.

"Go upstairs. Tell him I want him downstairs. Now."

A few minutes later, the guard knocked on the bedroom door before stepping inside.

"The boss says you should come downstairs for dinner."

Adrian didn’t even react.

He looked the guard straight in the eye, completely unafraid.

"Tell your boss he shouldn’t order me around," Adrian said coldly. "I’m not his child, and I’m definitely not one of his men."

Then he turned his back on the guard, making it clear the conversation was over.

When the guard returned to the dining room and repeated Adrian’s words, a heavy silence settled over the table.

Matteo’s eyes darkened.

He pushed his chair back, preparing to stand.

Tony scoffed, staring at him in disbelief.

"You care about him that much?" Tony said. "You’re really going to skip your own meal for a brat?"

Matteo’s gaze lifted slowly. "I’m not skipping anything," he said, his voice dropping into a dangerous, low tone. "I’m going upstairs to bring him down myself."

He paused before adding, "he’s going to eat. Whether he likes it or not."

Tony stared at him as if he had heard him wrong. "What the fuck is so special about him, Mat? Since when do you chase people who tell you no?"

Matteo didn’t answer.

He didn’t have an answer that Tony would understand.

Instead, he turned and walked out of the dining room, heading straight for the stairs. His footsteps were heavy and deliberate as he went to confront the one man stubborn enough to starve himself just to prove a point.

When he pushed the door open, he found Adrian sitting on the bed, his posture rigid as if he had been bracing for a fight. But instead of the explosion Adrian expected, Matteo’s energy shifted.

Matteo crossed the room and, without a word, let out a weary sigh, dropping his weight onto the bed beside Adrian. He leaned over, resting his heavy head right in Adrian’s lap.

Adrian stiffened, a startled, breathless laugh escaping him. "What are you doing?"

Matteo didn’t say anything at first. He simply lay there, his head resting in Adrian’s lap, his eyes fixed on him.

Adrian frowned slightly, confused by the sudden shift.

"What are you doing?" he asked again.

"You didn’t eat," Matteo said calmly.

Adrian shrugged a little. "I told the maid I wasn’t hungry."

Matteo’s voice came softer this time, slightly muffled where his cheek pressed against Adrian’s thigh.

"Why won’t you eat?" he murmured. "You don’t have to starve yourself just because you’re stuck here. I know this wasn’t your plan. You thought you’d be in your own home tonight."

The sudden shift in Matteo, from the cold, commanding boss to this unexpectedly quiet, almost vulnerable man, caught Adrian off guard. The fire in his defiance wavered, losing some of its edge.

"I’m not eating," he muttered, though the sharpness in his voice had faded. "I’m not hungry."

Matteo shifted, looking up at him with a rare, quiet exhaustion. "I understand, Adrian. But you still have to eat."

"Please," Matteo said softly. It wasn’t a command; it was a request, something Adrian hadn’t heard from him before. "Eat something. For me."

Adrian looked away, chewing his lip. "Even if I wanted to, I’m not going downstairs. I don’t want to sit at that table. I’d rather stay up here."

Matteo sat up, a small nod of agreement. "Fine. I’ll have the maids bring everything up. We’ll eat here. Together."

Downstairs, Tony watched in stunned silence as Selena began clearing the untouched plates from the dining table, arranging them neatly onto silver serving trays.

"What are you doing?" Tony asked, his brows knitting together. "Matteo is supposed to come back and finish his meal."

"No, sir," Selena replied calmly, not lifting her gaze from her task. "The boss asked me to take the food upstairs to his room."

Tony blinked, completely thrown off.

"...He what?"

Selena continued packing as if nothing was unusual.

"He asked that it be served in the bedroom."

Tony let out a quiet scoff, running a hand over his face.

"Did I hear that right?" he muttered under his breath. "Matteo... asked for food to be taken upstairs?"

Tony leaned back in his chair, completely baffled. What was Matteo thinking?

This wasn’t just a game anymore.

In all the years he had known him, he had never seen Matteo act like this, never this gentle, never this accommodating. Matteo didn’t serve people. He was the one people served.

Tony shook his head slowly, a darker thought creeping into his mind.

What kind of game is he playing this time?

Upstairs, the meal passed in near silence.

They sat across from each other at the small, elegant table by the window, the room brightly lit. Neither of them spoke. They simply ate in silence, the soft clink of cutlery the only sound between them.

After they finished, the plates were cleared, leaving behind a heavy, reflective silence that settled over the room.

"How have you been coping?" Matteo asked suddenly, his eyes fixed on Adrian. "Since you lost them. Your family."

Adrian leaned back, his gaze drifting to the dark window. "It hasn’t been easy. It took me a long time to even find my feet again. To feel like I could breathe without it hurting." He let out a dry, hollow laugh. "And now... I’m just getting into more trouble. Mostly with you."

A ghost of a smile touched Matteo’s lips, a real, genuine curve that wasn’t a smirk or a tease.

Adrian blinked, leaning in slightly. "Oh. So you actually know how to smile? I thought you only knew how to look smug or menacing."

"It’s not proper for a man in my position to go around smiling unnecessarily," Matteo replied, his expression smoothing back into his professional mask. "I’m not crazy."

"Who made that rule?" Adrian challenged.

He held Matteo’s gaze, his voice steady.

"You made yourself the king, the boss... the devil, because you enjoy being feared. No one told you that you couldn’t be happy. No one said you couldn’t smile when you wanted to."

He paused, then added quietly,

"You’re the one who chose this."

As Adrian spoke, Matteo didn’t interrupt.

His gaze stayed fixed on Adrian’s face... then slowly dropped to his lips, as if he wasn’t hearing the words anymore, only watching him.

When Adrian finished, the silence stretched for a moment.

Then Matteo spoke.

"Has anyone ever told you this?"

He lifted his eyes, looking straight into Adrian’s.

Adrian frowned slightly and rolled his eyes. "What?"

Matteo didn’t look away.

"You’re... beautiful," he said quietly. "The cutest man I’ve ever seen."

Adrian blinked, caught off guard for a second before his expression hardened.

"Men aren’t ’beautiful’ or ’cute,’" Adrian said flatly.

Matteo’s voice softened, but his gaze didn’t waver. "But you are."

A small pause.

"I’m not joking."

Adrian exhaled quietly and asked, "Since when did you learn how to talk like this?"

Matteo’s lips curved faintly into a rare, hidden smile.

"I learned it tonight."

Adrian studied him for a moment, something unreadable flickering in his eyes.

"It suits you," he said quietly. "You should talk like that more often."

Matteo tilted his head slightly, leaning forward as he looked at Adrian. "Will you come around more often if I do?"

Adrian’s expression hardened, the brief softness disappearing from his face.

"After I leave this house tomorrow morning... don’t come looking for me again," he said quietly. "Stop following me. Just stop."