Make Me Moan, Daddy-Chapter 58

REINA

By the time my last class ended, I’d already spent half the lecture fidgeting with my pen, pretending to take notes while my mind was a mess of half-formed excuses.

I wasn’t even sure why I’d asked Tessa to come over. Maybe because the guilt was getting too loud. Maybe because I knew if I didn’t tell her soon, she’d find out some other way—and that would be worse.

Now that Tess and her friends already knew about Domenico, it was only right I tell her the truth. It won’t be okay for my best friend to learn the truth about my marriage from other people.

When I walked out of the building, Tessa was leaning against my car, sunglasses perched on her nose, chewing gum like she was in a music video. Her dark curls were tied up in a messy bun, and she waved when she saw me.

"There’s my scholar bestie!" she called. "Finally decided to walk out of that boring class?"

I rolled my eyes. "Get in the car."

She grinned and followed, sliding into the passenger seat of my car while I took the wheel.

The drive to my apartment—well, my so-called apartment—was painfully quiet, except for the sound of traffic and the faint hum of the radio. I could feel her gaze flicking over to me every few seconds.

"You’re acting weird," she said at one point. "What’s up?"

"Nothing," I lied, tightening my grip on the steering wheel. "Just tired."

"Mm-hm." She leaned back, smirking. "You were ’just tired’ when you came to school in a brand new car with a thousand-yard stare and a love bite on your neck."

I felt my stomach drop. "It wasn’t a love bite."

"Oh yeah?" she teased. "Then what was it.... mosquito bite of passion?"

I sighed and didn’t answer. That only made her laugh harder.

By the time we reached the gates of the building, Tessa was mid-rant about how the world was rigged against broke college students like us... until her voice died in her throat.

"Hold up," she said slowly, sitting upright as I stopped in front of the tall iron gates. "Reina. What the actual hell is this?"

I ignored the way her jaw dropped and pressed the remote button. The gates swung open silently, revealing the white building beyond it. Sunlight spilled across the glass panels, reflecting like mirrors, and the trimmed hedges glowed green under the late afternoon sky.

Tessa turned to me, eyes wide. "This is your apartment?"

I parked the car in the driveway and stepped out, trying not to look at her. "Yeah."

"Yeah?" she repeated, following me out. "Reina, this is not an apartment. This is a house that could fit, like, three of our lives inside! Is this a prank? You joined a cult, didn’t you? Blink twice if they’re watching."

I couldn’t help but laugh a little. "It’s just a house, Tess."

"’Just a house’?!" she shrieked, spinning in a circle. "Girl, the front porch has marble steps! There’s a chandelier hanging from your damn entryway! Do you know what my rent looks like? I live in a shoe box with a window smaller than my phone screen!"

I winced. "Can you keep your voice down, please?"

She gave me a look. "Reina. This place screams money. You took a break from school for financial reasons. You told me your aunt’s friend’s bar was barely keeping up. And now—" she gestured wildly at the building—"you’re suddenly owning a love child of a hotel and a palace. Explain."

I rubbed my arm nervously. "Can we go inside first? I’ll tell you everything."

"Fine." She crossed her arms but followed me in, muttering something about me being on a reality show.

Inside, the air was cool and smelled faintly of cedarwood. Calestino had been here earlier to restock the fridge, and the living room was spotless. I’d tried to keep things minimal, but even stripped of clutter, the place looked like something out of a lifestyle magazine.

Gosh! If I wasn’t already aware of how much the Gravano family worth, I wouldn’t have believed that this house was mine. So I wouldn’t blame Tess.

Tessa paused at the threshold, eyes sweeping the interior. "Oh my God," she breathed. "You have a kitchen island. You have a wine rack. You have—are those French doors?"

"Yes."

"Reina, I can see my reflection in your floor."

I laughed softly, even though my stomach was twisting itself into knots. I knew what was coming.

She dropped her bag on the couch and spun toward me. "Start talking."

I walked to the fridge, buying myself a few seconds, and grabbed two cans of soda. When I turned around, she was still standing with her hands on her hips.

"Okay," I said quietly. "But promise me you won’t freak out."

She snorted. "Honey, I’m already freaking out."

I took a deep breath. "Fine. You remember two years ago when I worked at Aunt Agnes’s bar?"

"Yeah. You said your Aunt is having some series and you’re working to support the family. I mean, you wouldn’t tell me what the problem was."

"Right." I twisted the tab on my drink. "That’s where I met Paolo."

Her brows furrowed. "Paolo...?"

She gave me the ’is that a new name for Gucci bags’ kind of look.

I rolled my eyes. "My husband."

Tessa froze, mid-sip, and then choked on her soda. "Your what?!"

I rushed to her side as she coughed. "Tessa, calm down—"

"Your husband?" she gasped, eyes bulging. "You—Reina, you’re married? Since when?!"

"For almost two years," I murmured. "Actually, our second anniversary is coming up soon."

"Two years?" Her voice went up an octave.

"You’ve been married for two years and you didn’t tell me? Oh my God, I’m going to throw this soda at you."

"I couldn’t," I said quickly. "It’s... complicated."

"Complicated?" she repeated, pacing now. "You disappear for a semester, come back living like a Kardashian, and it’s complicated? What kind of sugar daddy situation are you in?"

I bit my lip, silent.

Her eyes widened. "Oh my God. You do have a sugar daddy as well." she gasped. "What the fuck are you up to, baby?"

"I don’t," I said sharply. "Paolo is my husband."

Tessa blinked at me, then blinked again. "And how old is this Paolo person?"

"Twenty six."

"Twenty..." she stopped herself. "Okay. So your husband is in his twenties. You met him at a bar. And now you own a house that looks like the Monopoly prize property. Reina, this man is either a millionaire, a criminal, or both."

I hesitated.

Her jaw dropped. "He’s both?!"

"No! I mean—he’s not just that," I said helplessly. "He’s... good. He’s kind. He helped me. My aunt was drowning in debt, Tess. She almost went to jail. Paolo paid it off. He made sure my cousin got his surgery last year, as well. He’s—he’s done a lot for me."

She threw her hands up in the air, her nose flaring. "I swear to God, if you don’t start talking and tell me every fucking thing, I’m going to shove this can down my throat and kill myself."