"Yes, baby," Adrian urged gently.

Matteo leaned down, pressing a soft, lingering kiss to Adrian’s lips before pulling back just enough to look him in the eye.

"The honest answer is... I don’t know. I’ve tried to quit more times than I can count, and every time I thought I had it under control, I ended up going back to it. So I can’t promise you that I’ll never touch it again. I don’t want to lie to you."

Adrian’s heart sank slightly, but he didn’t look away. Instead, he asked gently, "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Matteo’s shook his head. "Baby, having you here with me already means more than you realize."

His fingers drifted through Adrian’s hair.

"I want to stop. I really do. And I’m trying. But it’s not easy to end something I’ve relied on for so long, and I don’t want you to think this is your responsibility to carry. Baby, this is a battle I have to fight myself."

"No, baby, talk to me," Adrian insisted.

He lifted his head from Matteo’s chest and cupped his face, making sure Matteo looked at him.

"I’m willing to do whatever it takes. Let me help you. Let me fight this with you." 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

His thumb brushed gently across Matteo’s cheek.

"If we need a doctor, therapy, rehab, or anything else, we’ll figure it out together. I need you to stop because I hate drugs, Matteo. After everything that happened, I know what they can do to a person’s body. I know how awful they can make someone feel."

He swallowed. "I don’t want that for you anymore. I don’t want that for anyone I care about."

Matteo looked at Adrian, deeply moved by his fierce devotion. "I will try. Honestly, I haven’t taken anything for weeks now. I’m hoping I can keep going from here."

"You have to try," Adrian said softly. "And if it ever gets hard, we’ll fight it together. You’re not alone in this anymore, okay?"

Matteo looked down at him, a genuine sense of relief washing over his face.

He nodded softly. "Alright, baby."

With the heavy atmosphere lifted, Adrian smiled, deliberately changing the subject.

He tilted his head and looked up at Matteo with fond, admiring eyes.

"You know, it feels really nice being loved by you," he said softly. "To everyone else, you’re intimidating. You’re powerful, rich, handsome, and probably one of the scariest people in the room. But with me? You’re completely different."

His fingers traced lightly across Matteo’s chest.

"You worry about me. You protect me. You want me by your side all the time, and you’re so loyal that sometimes it’s actually ridiculous."

Adrian laughed softly.

"It feels good knowing someone loves me that much."

Matteo looked down at Adrian, a flattered smirk tugging at his lips.

He rested his head against Matteo’s chest. "Sometimes it’s hard to believe a mafia boss can be this soft. Everyone sees this cold, dangerous man, but I get to see this side of you. And honestly? I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Please don’t ever stop loving me."

"Never, baby," Matteo murmured, wrapping his arms securely around Adrian. "You’re the reason I want to be a better man. There is no way I will ever stop loving you, unless one day you decide you don’t want me anymore."

"That day will never come," Adrian said, tightening his embrace against Matteo’s chest.

"I will give you the world," Matteo whispered into his hair, holding him tight. "I love you so much, Adrian."

Adrian smiled against his chest. "I love you more, big baby Matteo."

Matteo chuckled, a playful glint returning to his eyes.

"Alright, alright. That’s enough of the compliments. It seems my cock has finally worked its magic."

Adrian lifted his head, lightly tapping Matteo’s chest with a smile. "What do you mean by magic?"

Matteo smiled back. "It means you’ve finally got some of your strength and energy back. I’ve been waiting for you to recover so we could have a proper conversation about Kevin and Kelly and what you want me to do with them."

He shook his head slightly. "I’m still surprised I never realized those two idiots were brothers."

Adrian slowly pushed himself up from Matteo’s chest and stepped out of bed. Matteo sat up, his eyes tracking Adrian’s naked body as Adrian began pacing the room, fully focused on the business at hand.

"The main reason it was so hard to find out is that Kevin was born and raised overseas," Adrian explained.

"At first, I couldn’t understand how nobody discovered it sooner," Adrian said. "But when Kevin kidnapped me, he told me himself that he and Kelly share the same mother but have different fathers."

He paused before continuing.

"Kevin was raised overseas by his grandmother, and he doesn’t use his father’s surname. Instead, he uses his grandmother’s middle name as his last name."

"Wow. So that’s how we missed the truth about him," Matteo murmured, nodding to himself.

"But I always knew Kevin was planning something. I just thought whatever grudge he had was against me. It never crossed my mind that he would target you instead."

"Yes, that’s why it was so difficult to find any useful information about him," Adrian said.

He paused, looking thoughtful.

"As for Kelly, I don’t really have anything left to settle with him."

His gaze dropped for a moment.

"And Kevin... I’ve decided to forgive him too."

Matteo raised an eyebrow, a skeptical smile forming on his lips. "You forgive him? But..."

Adrian smiled back, a sharp, knowing look in his eye. "You already know me too well. We really should be husbands."

Matteo’s gaze slid down Adrian’s frame. "Soon, baby. So tell me, what is your ’but’?"

"I have forgiven him," Adrian said, turning to face Matteo. For a moment, his expression was calm.

Then his eyes hardened.

"But that doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten."

He folded his arms across his chest.

"I want you to get me the exact drugs he used on me. There were five in total, four that affected my body and one that left me unable to move."

His gaze locked onto Matteo’s.

"Get me eight doses of the first one and two of the second."

Matteo’s eyes widened slightly in dark amusement. "Is that all?"

"And get me three of your strongest men," Adrian added coldly. "I want them to sleep with him without mercy. I want him to understand exactly what it feels like to be powerless. By the time they’re done with him, I want him to spend a long time regretting every choice that brought him here."

Matteo let out a low chuckle, shaking his head in disbelief. "Wow. My baby really does have a soft heart."

Adrian smiled and made his way back to the bed. "Is it too much?"

"I was actually expecting more," Matteo admitted. "But this isn’t bad. Letting him feel every single piece of pain you went through is actually a great punishment. Though, we could have just killed him, which would have been—"

Adrian leaned closer, placing a single finger over Matteo’s lips to cut him off. "Shh. I don’t want your hands covered in blood anymore, so don’t even think of completing that statement."

Matteo kissed the tip of Adrian’s finger before it pulled away. "Okay, baby. Let’s go back to the main estate tomorrow so we can get it done."

"No, baby," Adrian murmured. "This place feels quiet and secluded. I know Tony is competent enough to handle the job perfectly. What if he takes care of it there and sends us the video?"

Adrian crawled back onto the bed and settled on top of Matteo’s legs, wrapping his arms around Matteo’s neck.

"Here, we have total privacy. I still want you to fucked me in the living room, the dining room, on the staircase, in the kitchen, and by the pool. You can tell your workers to keep their distance. It’s so peaceful here, unlike your main estate, where there are too many people around for me to live out that fantasy."

Matteo pulled Adrian’s naked body flush against his own. His voice dropped to a low growl. "Are you really that obsessed with my cock?"

Adrian didn’t hesitate for a second. "Yes. Because it tastes so good."

Matteo smiled and carefully eased Adrian off his lap before climbing out of bed. Once he was on his feet, he bent down, scooped Adrian into his broad arms, and held him close.

"Alright. Come on, let’s go to the bathroom to shower so we can have another round."

Adrian rested his head against Matteo’s shoulder as he was carried. "I’m warning you, I won’t be moving a single muscle to do anything for the rest of the day or tomorrow."

"Don’t worry," Matteo promised, carrying him into the bathroom and stepping straight under the warm spray of the shower. "I will do everything for you."

True to his word, Matteo took care of him throughout the rest of the day.

As the days turned into weeks, the fragile version of Adrian gradually disappeared.

Once he fully regained his strength, he slipped right back into his old habits, becoming an unapologetic spoiled brat.

His sharp tongue became even sharper than before, and his endless demands kept everyone around him busy. Somehow, instead of being annoyed, Matteo seemed to love him even more for it.

With Adrian finally back to his old self, one of the first serious conversations they had was about security...