I followed him into the locker room. Uncle Matteo was already there, which meant this was a Famiglia matter and not a simple family mess up, and when he didn’t greet me with his usual wink and smirk, I knew I was doomed. Dad motioned for one of his soldiers to give us privacy. The man didn’t hesitate.
I grabbed a fresh towel from the shelf against the wall and rubbed my bare chest.
“Antonaci called me today.”
Cressida’s last name was Antonaci and my only connection to him. I kept my face neutral. I wasn’t going to admit to anything, in case this was another matter after all.
Dad crossed his arms as he leaned against the lockers. The scowl he was giving me would have sent many into a nervous breakdown. Matteo gave me a look that suggested I should write down my last wish before he went over to a small mirror to check whether his hairstyle was okay. I almost rolled my eyes. I was vain to a certain degree, but Matteo always looked like he’d fallen out of an issue of the Vogue.
“He told me about you and Cressida.”
Fuck.
“There’s no Cressida and me,” I said immediately. It was the truth. Cressida and I were nothing. What had happened was over. It had hardly been anything worth mentioning to begin with.
“No?” Dad asked in a deadly voice. His body language suggested he had trouble staying where he was. “So you didn’t sleep with the girl?”
I didn’t say anything. Some of my decisions of the past had been unfortunate, driven by barely restrained anger. I could still feel it simmer under my skin dangerously.
Dad raised his eyebrows, not happy with my reply.
“A real gentleman never tells.”
Dad rammed his fist against the locker, his expression burning with rage. I tensed. The rattling of the locker could probably be heard down the street.
“I swear I’ll beat every goddamn word out of you if you don’t open your mouth now.”
“We had sex, a few times. End of story.”
Dad stalked toward me as if he had every intention of breaking my neck. I didn’t back away. I’d encountered Dad’s wrath before, though never quite as potent as right now, and was too hardened to be overly bothered by it. He grabbed my shoulders in a bruising grip, bringing us nose to nose. His hot breath hit me. “And you call yourself a gentleman?”
“It’s not like you didn’t fuck other women before you married Mom. You and Matteo fucked every woman that crossed your path from what I hear.”
“Careful,” Dad snarled, his fingers tightening even more.
Matteo clucked his tongue. “Your dad and I had enough blood left in our horny brains to pick only outsiders to fuck.”
Dad shoved me away and punched another locker, leaving a dent, before he faced Matteo. “I can’t even look at him. I really want to kill him.”
“I had sex with her, consensual. I didn’t push her to have sex, so stop overreacting.”
Dad was on me before I knew what was going on. I blamed my lowered guards around my family. With anyone else I wouldn’t have been caught off guard. He thrust me against the locker. The back of my head smashed against the metal, making my ears ring.
My muscles tautened, wanting to retribute like I was used to, but I forced down my body’s overwhelming need to act. This was my father and Capo.
Dad’s eyes looked unhinged. “If you’d raped her, we would have a very different conversation, son.”
I kept my mouth shut. My sister Marcella always accused me of being rash but I knew when to stay silent, at least sometimes.
“She’s an honorable Italian woman, the daughter of one of my Captains, and you fucking take her virginity.”
“Fucking indeed.” I countered. “Trust me, she didn’t act honorable at all. And the way she threw herself at me, I really wouldn’t call it taking. She practically begged me to relieve her of that burden.”
Dad glanced at Matteo, and motioned him to take his place. Matteo stepped forward and took Dad’s place who turned his back to me.
“Have you had too many hits to the head over the years, or are you playing dumb on purpose?” Matteo asked with a harsh smile.
Dad’s shoulder muscles flexed under his white T-shirt and his hands were balled into fists.
“Her family isn’t amused in the slightest. The girl definitely made it sound as if you promised her the world and she practically couldn’t say no.”
I narrowed my eyes. “That’s bullshit. I didn’t promise her anything.” She’d simpered about how she’d love to see me again and how our families would be so great together. I’d ignored her words and showed her how to suck dick properly so she’d shut the fuck up.