Shattered Scars

08

Matteo's POV:

I said it.

I said the words that I thought I'd never have the guts to say first, and I wish I could say that they slipped out, but I was fully aware when I said them.

I'm still laying on his chest, nervously watching him process the words I just said. If he doesn't say them back, a part of me will die and I'll probably never get over the fact that I brought this on myself.

Oh, goddess, am I overthinking this? He's been silent for about eight seconds, but that's enough time for him to process that, right?

I bet he doesn't love me, why would I say that?!

How could he get over how I acted for the last month?

"I love you, too, Matteo," Emil says, making me freeze. "Relax, baby, I love you, too."

He said my full name. He's serious and he loves me, too.

Oh, goddess, he loves me!

"You're serious?" I ask stupidly, before slamming my hand over my mouth. "I'm sorry, that was a stupid thing to ask and I don't want you to feel as though you have to say it back and-"

My Alpha cuts me off with a deep kiss. "Relax, my angel," he whispers, running his hands over my back and keeping me calm. "I love you. I would not say something like that unless I was serious, and I have never been so sure of anything in my life."

I feel like crying, and I think Emil knows that, because he hugs me tightly and starts to cuddle me. He kisses my face all over, whispering sweet words into my ear in English, German, and Italian, since there's different terms of endearment in every language.

"Come along, let's get something to eat and then we will go on our walk," Emil says, making me sigh in annoyance. "Baby boy, let's drop the attitude. I don't like brats."

I huff. "But we just did a workout," I whine, pouting and crossing my arms so I'm not hugging him anymore. "I don't want to go out."

"Baby boy, you know I will protect you. If anyone stares, we will walk the other way. We cannot stay cooped up in here forever, and your scars will not define you."

I'm still pouting, even though I have no reason to. I did promise to do this and I trust that he knows what's best for me, but I want to curl up with him and ignore the existence of the rest of the world for today.

"I'm fully confident," I lie. "I just want to stay here."

My ass burns as Emil lands a harsh slap to it and makes me squeak. I barely get time to recover when he smacks my other cheek.

"Don't lie to me," he growls, kneading my ass cheeks. "Or you can wear jeans without underwear and feel where I slapped you when we walk. Do you trust me to take care of you?"

I nod. "Yes."

"Yes who?"

I feel my cheeks heat up. "Yes, daddy," I murmur peeking up at him and seeing a smug look on his face.

"Good, now up! Go put on some walking clothes!"

I walk slowly until I catch his raised eyebrow and hurry up a bit to look through my drawer and find some comfortable clothes to walk in. When I find something I want to go out wearing, I see that Emil is already dressed in pants and a turtleneck sweater that makes him look way too hot.

Goddess, this man loves me.

How did that happen?!

I get changed and then meet him in the kitchen, where his chef is already working on a meal for us. I've no clue when Emil contacted him to cook for us, but my stomach is growling when I sit at the counter.