CHAPTER 60: 60-HE WANTS TO BE INTIMATE WITH ME

Iris:

"Is the seat biting you, or do you have a problem with your ass?" I teased.

He burst out laughing, and suddenly it felt so easy to talk to him.

"Actually," he began, awkwardly scratching the back of his neck, "I was just fighting myself not to ask you a question."

"What question?" I asked, resting my hands in my lap, watching him with curiosity.

"You’re such an intelligent, well-put-together, decent woman. What made you go after a man like Luca? I mean, no disrespect, and I’m definitely not saying this because I’m jealous, which I am—but..." He paused, making me laugh at how he contradicted himself. "It’s just odd. He doesn’t seem like someone who could qualify to be your boyfriend."

He mumbled the last part, sneaking a glance at me to see if I was offended.

Little did he know, I would’ve never picked someone like Luca either.

"I guess it’s just that the heart wants what it wants." That was the best excuse I could come up with.

After a while, when he dropped me off, I insisted that he come inside.

But deep down, I didn’t really want him to, not with my mother around.

I didn’t want her dirty eyes on him, trying to pull him into her world or involve him in this mess.

Once he left, I walked back inside and noticed that Kash’s car was already in the driveway.

I was furious.

But then again, if that was his way of moving on from me, then good for him because there had never been anything between us to begin with.

When I stormed into the house, I should have known another mess would be waiting for me.

"So? You’re back?" my mother hissed, looking far from happy. "Did Kash drop you off?" she added.

"Of course he did," Luca said, making me realize he was sitting on the couch too.

"No! He didn’t," I responded to the agitated two.

As I started to walk past the couch, I finally noticed Luca.

He was leaning against the couch, looking exhausted, and that’s why I hadn’t seen him from behind.

Still, the bruises on his face were hard to miss.

"What the hell happened out there?" I asked.

"Well, I asked him too, and he wouldn’t tell me anything," my mother said.

"What happened–" Luca muttered, "was that her psycho ex-husband drove me down the hill after smashing into my car a few times." He grunted, clearly ashamed of losing to Kash.

My mother stared at him for a moment before bursting into laughter. Luca and I both turned to her, too tired to even react.

"Well, you shouldn’t have provoked him. He’s an alpha king, and you’re just—well—- Luca," I commented.

The moment I spoke those words, I saw him tilt his head from side to side in a slow, threatening way.

"Am I lying, though?" I repeated, walking away.

The kids were napping, so I didn’t have to worry about them for now.

But I stopped in my tracks when I heard Luca speak to my mother.

"You find this funny? That’s great. You’ll wear the same expression the day you find out the two of them made amends and decided to kick you out of the picture."

As soon as he said that, my mother grunted, and even I turned around.

It was irritating how she had dragged him into this when he had no part in it. None at all.

Her eyes shifted to me, a silent threat she tried to send my way.

I briskly went back to the living room.

Seeing me come made Luca smirk, of course he still thought like a child.

For him, taking revenge and upsetting the others would make up for the loss.

"You don’t have to fill her ears with poison. This is not your matter. Stay out of it," I warned, pointing my finger at Luca.

He raised his eyebrows, stared at my finger, then faced my mother.

"If you want me to continue with this plan, which I’m already part of, I have a few demands," he declared, sitting with his legs apart, looking very confident.

"What demands?" my mother asked, her tone changing as she realized he was gaining confidence.

My pointing finger curled into a fist. I watched him with a mix of shock and disbelief.

"I’m moving into her bedroom with her," he said plainly. "And I want her to treat me with respect and to respond to my affection in public. If I’m going to play a game, I want it to look real. I don’t want to be the man she disrespects."

Luca laid out his demands, and my jaw dropped. I turned to my mother quickly.

"You know he’ll piss off Kash so much that he’ll refuse to help you," I warned, trying to push her against him.

But she seemed to trust him more than she trusted me.

"Come on, Iris, you think Kash won’t find answers for his son just because he’s jealous of Luca? I don’t think that’s how it works. He loves his son. I’ve seen it in his eyes," my mother said coldly. "As for you, Luca is right. He’ll be staying in your bedroom from now on. And if you disagree with us, I’ll be ready to give your son another dose—a reminder to you."

That was the moment I lunged at her, snatched the wine glass from her hand, and swung it at Luca’s head.

He dodged just in time, and the glass hit the floor, shattering.

"Well, I think I should really make a call," my mother muttered, rising from the couch and locking eyes with me.

She reached for her phone, but I grabbed it from her hand.

For a second, confusion struck me when she let it go too easily.

Then both Luca and my mother started laughing loudly.

I froze, wondering what the hell they had done. Why weren’t they scared that I’d stopped her from calling?

Then my daughter screamed.

My heart sank as I realized that somehow, even without touching her phone, my mother’s message had been delivered.