The Games Of The Heart

I feel the sunlight on my face, and I don't understand why because I am sure the curtains were closed last night before I went to bed. I hear footsteps around me, and I finally understand why my beautiful sleep was interrupted. I turn away from the sunlight and try to go back to sleep. That all goes out the window once I hear her voice.

"Honey, I know you are awake, so do yourself a favour and open your eyes," My Mom, Rosalia, says

"Good morning, mom," I say, peeling my eyes open and look into the same eyes like mine. They are as blue as the ocean, one of the prettiest eyes I have ever seen in my life. Her wavy pitch-black hair flows down to her waist against her beautiful tan skin. Her oval face holds a smile on those rosy lips of hers, which says she is happy to be disturbing me from my sleep. Like every little girl out there, I believe my mom is the most beautiful woman in the world, even though I am far from little. The only things I inherited from her are her beautiful eyes. I am the female version of my father.

"I can't say the same, dear; you need to get up and get ready. Our flight time has changed; we leave in an hour."

"An hour! Weren't we supposed to leave tonight? Why are we leaving so early all of a sudden?"

"Something came up, so we have to leave early. Your father will explain at breakfast, which you have 20 minutes to get ready for."

"Wow, mom, I haven't even finished packing."

"How are you not done packing? We have been talking about this trip for a week now."

"I planned to finish during the day since we were meant to leave at night."

"Sorry dear, get ready for breakfast. I will have someone help you finish packing."

"Alright," I say, getting up from the bed to walk to the bathroom.

I walk downstairs for breakfast after I finish freshen up. I walk outside to the pool area, where my whole family is seated. I join my father, mother and brother at the table.

"Good morning, everyone," I say, taking my seat.

"Good morning, dear," My dad, Leonardo, says while reading the newspapers. He is 6 feet tall, well-built for a man of his age, has dark brown hair like mine and grey eyes. I am not as tall as him; I am 5'6 feet.

"How was your night, little sis," My brother Santiago says while taking a bite of his French toast. He is 6 feet tall like my father, has a well-built body, dark brown hair. We both didn't take after my mom in hair. He has the same ocean blue eyes as mine.

"It was disturbed by our beautiful mother here."

"Sorry about that, dear, but we had to move the time of our flight to Italy," Dad says

"And why is that? I still had something I wished to do today before we leave" The whole family is travelling to Sicily. Dad has a business meeting over there and asked us if we would like to come along.

"My business partner asked me to come earlier than planned because he might not be available for the rest of the week."

"Oh, alright then."

We left for Sicily a few hours ago, and the plane is about to land. During the flight, I wrote new chapters for my new book. I am an author, but I studied business management in school with a minor in English literature. I have not published any works of mine, but I plan to someday. I am scared people might criticize my work more than they like it.

The last two days have been spent sleeping. The power of jet lag is not to be joked with. I hear a knock on my door, and I drag my lazy ass to open it. I open it to reveal mom at the door; I step aside for her to enter.

"Good morning, mom," I say, walking back to my bed.

"It is far from morning, young lady," Mom says and pulls the blinds. I shield my eyes with my hands from the sunlight but remove them once I realize it's dark outside.

"Oh my God, I slept through the day again."

"Yes, you did, and I need you to get the hang of your sleeping pattern."

"I will, mom."

"Good, and I wanted to ask you if you would like to come along with me tomorrow. I am visiting an old friend, and her daughter is also one of yours."

"You are visiting Mrs. Costanzo."

"Yes, and I felt you might want to see Aurora. I know it's been ages since you guys last saw each other"

"Yes, it's been ages since we last saw. What time are you leaving tomorrow?"

"11 a.m. Katherine and I plan to have brunch together, so make sure to skip breakfast like always."

"Don't worry, mom; I will."

The next day I wake up in the morning for the first time since we arrived. Mom and I are on our way to the Costanzo estate, and we should be arriving in a few minutes. I still remember the first time I met Aurora and her family. It was one of the most terrifying days of my life. If I remember correctly, I was a junior in high school around that time. Mom picked me up from school, and we went to the mall together. We had a lovely time shopping, and when we were about to enter the car and go home, everything went south. I was about to step into the car but stopped because I felt someone was following us. I looked around, but I could not see anyone, so I brushed it off. Little did I know those little seconds I spent looking around were what saved mom's and my life. The second the driver opened the door was the same time his life went up in flames. I was never more afraid for my life and mom's like I was that day, and you would think been born into the mafia world would prepare me for such moments, but it does not. The minute our car went up in flames was also when the glass windows around us all started breaking into pieces from the gunshots fired around us. The bodyguards were quick to action by firing back, but it did not stop my pounding heart that day. Mom and I ran back into the mall to get away from the shooting. She quickly called dad and asked me to hide in the bathroom of a store and handed me a gun in case I needed it, but I prayed I wouldn't. Coming from a mafia family does not mean I like the idea of killing someone, but I understand sometimes it's needed to be done to stay alive. Dad was quick to send reinforcement which made it possible for us to leave the mall alive that day, but it did not mean the fight was over. What caused the attack on mom and I's life was because another gang was angry at dad for stealing a client of theirs. They felt killing us was going to cause him far more pain than killing him. To keep us safe, dad sent mom and me to Italy. We stayed with Aurora and her family until dad made it safe for mom and me to come back to California.

I hear the driver talking to someone through his window and realize we have arrived at the Costanzo estate. The driver drives through the gate that leads to a magnificent home. He parks the car in the driveway and quickly comes around to open the door for mom and I. I step outside to be greeted by Mrs. Costanzo on the doorstep. Her face brightens up once she lays her eyes on mom and me. Their front lawn is adorned with beautiful red roses all around.

"It's so good to see you, Rosalia; it's been ages," Mrs. Costanzo says, pulling mom into a hug.

"It's good to see you too, Katherine. I have missed you," Mom says, hugging her back.

"I have missed you too, and how are you doing, dear," Mrs. Costanzo says, leading us into the house.

"I am fine, thank you for asking."

"That's good, dear and Rosalia. I can't wait to show you my new wine cellar; you are going to love the new bottles I have added to my collection."

"I can't wait to taste them," Mom says, smiling.

We walk into a majestic entryway with crystal chandeliers in the ceiling and two stairways with a black handrail. We walk towards the right into the living room. Like everything in this house, the living room is also a beauty. There is a golden chandelier that goes really well with the white and golden painting of the walls and ceiling. The chairs are traditional white sofas, and there is a golden glass centre table. I take my seat on a one armchair while mom and Mrs. Costanzo sit on a two-arm chair. I hear footsteps walking towards us, and I assume it's Aurora, but it's the maid with drinks for us. I decide to ask because I can't imagine sitting with these two women as they complain about their husbands and other topics I have no interest in.

"Mrs. Costanzo please, where is Aurora?"

"Oh, forgive me, dear, I totally forgot to tell you. She is training in the backyard. I didn't tell her you were coming to surprise her. Let me get someone to call her for you."

"There won't be any need for that. I rather surprise her when she least expects it"

"Alright then, and do you still remember your way to the backyard."

"Yes, I do," I say and get up from the sofa to walk outside.

I find my way outside with no difficulty. I find Aurora in hand-to-hand combat with a man, and I must say, I feel sorry for him. Aurora is finishing him off with punch after punch. The man blocks a few, but Aurora is still winning the fight, and to finish it off, she has him between her legs with him on the floor; he either taps out or chokes to death. I walk closer to them so she could see me, and I think I just saved that man's life because his ego was stopping him from tapping out. She releases her hold on the man and quickly stands up from the floor to pull me into a bone-crushing hug.

"What in God's name are you doing here," She says while crushing the life out of me with her hug. Aurora has blue eyes, brunette hair and is 5'7 feet tall, and a body that can put any man to his knees.

"My family and I are in Sicily for vacation, and I know you are very strong; please stop killing me."

"Oh my, I am sorry, I am just so excited to see you. Can you remember the last time we saw each other" She says, releasing me from the hug.

"I can't remember, but I am thrilled to see you too."

"I can't wait to hear about everything going on in your life; we have a lot of catching up to do."

"I know, and I can't wait to hear yours too, but you need to shower first."

"I know; give me a couple of seconds to put my guns away, then we can go inside together," Aurora says and walks back to where she was training.

She puts her guns in their case holders and asks the guys around to clean the place before they leave. Aurora's family is like mine. They are also a mafia family. That was one of the reasons it was so easy to become good friends with her. I didn't have to worry about her finding out my family's secret because it was not a secret to her. Our fathers are old-time friends but hardly see each other. That's why we are not really close.

Aurora and I walk back into the house while talking about everything that has happened in our lives these past years. After Aurora is done freshen up, we have brunch and continue catching up.

"So tell me, Andrea, any man in your life I should know about," Aurora says while enjoying her food.

"Unfortunately, there is none, but how about you."

"You won't believe it, but I am not dating anyone right now."

"Are you serious? What happened? The Aurora I know always had a boyfriend or had a thing with some guy."

"Let's just say I grew up and decided I wanted to experience real love and was tired of those men wasting my time."

"Good for you; I am happy you believe they were wasting your time and want to experience true love."

"Thank you, and I hope you started dating."

"Yes, I did, but so far, no guy has wowed me yet, so I am still searching."

"I know how you feel, and with time, we will find them."

A few days have gone by since I visited Aurora. My family and I are on our way to Mr. Costanzo's annual charity ball. I am wearing a blue A-line fraque and lace one-shoulder dress with black and white coloured embroideries and a slit. I matched it with a pair of diamond heart earrings, black heels and a clutch. The car comes to a halt, and we all step out of the car and walk into the hotel building where the ball is being held. If I remember well, this hotel is owned by Mr. Costanzo. I am walking hand in hand with Santiago as his date because one of his bimbos bailed on him.

We walk into a ballroom filled with elite people all dressed in the finest of designer clothing. Santiago and I walk around saying hi to a few familiar faces, primarily to him, though, until Aurora pulls me away.

"So are you having a nice time," Aurora asks while taking a sip of her wine

"If you refer to having a nice time as enjoying good wine in the company of people I don't know, then I am having a great time," I say with a fake chuckle and sarcasm dripping in my words

"I know this is not your ideal way of having a good time, but you have to try at least."

"I know, but enough about me; who is that guy over there who can't seem to take his eyes off you."

"If you are referring to the guy in a blue suit with a scar on his brow, then I rather have a mad man admire me tonight than him."

"Wow, do you mind me asking why the hostility towards him"

"He is known for abusing women; even though no one has been able to put him in jail, it does not mean they are all lying."

"That's awful, and one day he is going to pay for his crimes."

"I hope so, and I have been meaning to ask you. How long will you be staying in Sicily?"

"I don't know for sure but a month tops, and it all depends on when my dad will be done with his business affairs."

"Oh, alright, because I might be a little too busy this week to show you around the city."

"That's fine, and it's not like it's my first time here. I spent a year here the last time I was around. I still remember a few nice places."

"That's good, but I would really like to show you around the city myself again."

"I wouldn't mind, and I have been meaning to tell you, your combat skills have really improved over the years."

"You think so."

"Yes, I do."

"That's good because my trainer believes I still need to improve."

"He or she doesn't know what they are saying; you are great."

"Thank you, and why don't you join me for training tomorrow. You could improve your skills while you are in town. My trainer is the best you could ever find in the world."

"I don't think improving my combat skills speaks vacation."

"I know, but it might actually be fun training together."

"I don't know..........." I say, feeling lazy to train

"Please"

"Alright, I will join you tomorrow but not for the whole time I am around."

"Thank you; it would be nice to have another female training partner aside from my sister."

"Your welcome," I say while a female walks towards us, which happens to be Aurora's, Sister Melissa. She is the female version of her father, Lorenzo Costanzo. The same green eyes with pitch-black hair. She is almost as tall as Aurora, with a roaring height of 5'6 feet and a beautiful round face.

"Hi, Andrea, it's been ages since I last saw you. How are you doing" Melissa says

"I could say the same, and I am doing fine; how about you?"

"Never been better; I just got a new car," Melissa says excitedly

"Courtesy of been daddy's little girl," Aurora adds in

Melissa is the last child of the Costanzo family, and with that comes been spoilt a lot, but that's not the case for me. I guess maybe it's because we are only two, and she has three elder siblings.

"Whatever, Aurora, I came to tell you, moms, looking for you."

"Oh, alright, let her know I will be with her in a minute."

"Alright, bye, Andrea. See you another time," Melissa says and walks away

"Andrea, give me a few minutes; I will be back soon," Aurora says, standing up

"Alright, no problem. I will be at the bar when you get back. I want to get a refill of my drink," I say, also standing up

"Alright, I will meet you there when I get back," Aurora says, walking behind her sister

"Okay," I say, walking towards the bar

I get to the bar and order a drink while I wait for Aurora. A few minutes go by, and Aurora is still not back, so I decided to walk around. While walking, I use my phone to entertain myself by scrolling through Instagram. I wish I didn't because of what happens next. I bump into someone, which causes my whole drink to spill on the person. I quickly put my phone away and try to clean the mess I made.

"I am so sorry; I should have been looking at where I was going," I say, using my hands to clean his shirt, which I am sure cost more than my dress even though mine is very expensive.

"You think! And would you stop touching me" He says, removing my hands from his body, and I realize I was only making it worse with my horrible attempt at cleaning the stain with my hand.

I am looking through my clutch for tissue but stop once his voice sinks deep into my ears. I can't believe it's him; I don't know if I should be excited or sad to see him knowing our history. I thought he was in Spain, according to what Aurora told me a few days ago. I might be wrong, so I lift my eyes to look at the man that I ruined his shirt. I wish I didn't because the anger in those beautiful green eyes of his tells me he won't be so happy to know it's me who ruined his suit. He still looks as handsome as the day I last saw him. His pitch-black hair is styled to make him look professional and hot at the same time. His body is toned and ripped with muscles that even his suit can't hide. He still looks as handsome as ever. What should I expect? He is Stefano Costanzo, after all, one of the sexiest men to walk the earth.

"Stefano, I am so sorry I ruined your suit; if you want, I can have it dry cleaned for you," I say, still attempting to clean the stain.

"I said stop touching me, and why do you know my name," He says, and it feels like a punch was thrown at my heart.

"You don't know who I am," I say, shocked and hurt; he does not recognize or remember me.

"Why should I know who you are? Excuse me and thank you for ruining my shirt," He says and storms away before I can even say another word. I can't believe he can't remember who I am. I spent a whole year living in his parents' house.

The following day I was up early and on my way to the Costanzo estate. I am a little excited to be training with Aurora; it's been ages since we did. The car comes to a halt, which means I have arrived. I pay the taxi driver and walk into the estate. I walk inside towards the backyard, and I stop once I reach the training area.

"Andrea, I am so happy you could make it," Aurora says, walking up to me

"Me too; I can't wait to get started."

"We should start any second now,"

"Alright," I say, placing my gym bag on the floor as Stefano arrives. He walks towards where Aurora, me and a few others are standing, looking more ravishing than last night, even in gym clothes. I can even see his face a lot better today, thanks to the sunlight, and he looks even more handsome. His toned arms are showing off his tattoos that run all over his body.

"Aurora, you said you have a new partner today," Stefano says

"Yes, I do. Andrea is going to be my partner today."

"Alright, Aurora, you and your partner are up first."

"Ok, what would you like for us to do first," Aurora says, walking me with her to the centre of the field. We take our stand opposite of each other, waiting for Stefano to tell us what to do.

"Aurora attack, while your partner defends herself," Stefano says

"Alright, Andrea, I am sorry," Aurora says before throwing a punch my way. I block it and send one back at her, which she also blocks.

"Aurora's partner, I don't need you to attack back, only defend yourself," Stefano says in an annoyed tone.

"Ok," I am a little hurt he didn't say my name, which means he actually forgot who I am.

Aurora throws punch after punch with a few kicks. I try my best to defend myself, but I get a few hits.

"Stop!" Stefano says while we are fighting. "Aurora's partner, what in God's name are you doing. I asked you to defend yourself, not get yourself beaten up," Stefano says, annoyed.

"I was trying my best, sorry it wasn't good enough," I say, a little annoyed with his tone towards me because I know I was doing my best.

"I don't need sorry from you, just do what I ask. Defend yourself, not get yourself beaten up. Begin again"

"Ok," I say with a bit of determination to prove him wrong.

We don't even get to continue for more than two minutes before he stops us again. I wonder what his problem is this time.

"Oh My God! What is wrong with you? I simply asked you to do something, and you are doing the opposite. Aurora step aside; Aurora's partner attack me so that you can understand what I mean."

"Alright, and my name is Andrea," I say, getting annoyed with him not saying my name.

"I don't care whatever your name is, do what I asked"

I attack him a little harder than I am supposed to because I am pissed off with the way he is speaking to me. I send a punch to his left jaw; he blocks it. I use my other arm to hit his ribs, but he grabs my hand and spins me around. I fall down to the ground but get back up and swing my leg across his face to which he blocks with his arm. I use my knee to hit his rib, but he blocks it with his palms. I must say Stefano is an excellent fighter, but that does not mean I am a bad one. While he is blocking my knee to his ribs, I use my other leg to tackle him to the ground; luckily for me, it works, or so I thought. I miss my step causing me to fall with him. I land on top of him, and for a moment, I forget everyone around us and only stare into those beautiful green eyes of his. They are so beautiful I could stare at them all day, but that comes to a stop once he flips us over.

"Aurora, change your partner, fight with James," Stefano says while I lift myself off the ground. I am a little proud of myself for the way I fought him.

We continue training till early in the afternoon before we call it a day. Aurora and I are walking towards the house when I decide to ask her a question that was on my mind before we started training today.

"Aurora, why was your brother the one training us today."

"He is actually my trainer."

"Oh, Alright"

"Yeah, and I am so sorry for the way he behaved. I can't believe he refused to call you by your name."

"It's fine, it's not your fault, and your brother claims to not remember who I am."

"What do you mean?"

"Last night, we bumped into each other, and he said he does not recall who I am."

"Are you sure?" Aurora says with the same confused look I had yesterday when I found out he could not remember who I was

"Yes, I am."

"Wow, Stefano is truly something else because yeah, I know you might have changed a little, but you still look like your old self."

"I know, so I wonder why he does not seem to remember who I am."

"Maybe you just need to remind him that you were one of his fangirls, and that will do the trick," Aurora says, teasing me about the fact that I use to have a crush on Stefano.

"I would do no such thing."

"I'm just kidding, and don't worry about him."

"Yeah, I won't."

A few weeks have gone by since I last saw Aurora. This is my last week in Sicily before my family, and I fly back to Miami. She has been very busy with work. I am on my way to her office to pick her up for lunch. I arrive at her office building complex after a few minutes of driving. I step out of the car and walk inside. I speak to the receptionist on the ground floor, who directs me to Aurora's office on the 66th floor. I take the elevator to her floor and find her office with ease. I knock on the door and step inside once I hear her say, come in.

"Hi Aurora, how are you doing today," I say, walking inside her office

"I am doing good today, Andrea, and you," She says while she goes through some documents in front of her

"I am fine, and you seem to be busy."

"I am so sorry Andrea, I know I said we would go for lunch today, but something unexpected happened, and I am trying to fix it."

"It's fine, and is the problem anything I can help you with."

"Actually, you can, but it would be too much of me to ask."

"I am willing to help whatever it is."

"You are the best; please help me proofread these documents and type these emails. Stefano's secretary went into labour today, which is two weeks before her due date, so I have a lot on my plate before the replacement comes tomorrow," Aurora says, handing me two separate documents.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, and I hope the baby is fine."

"The baby is fine, and I should be the one apologizing. I am making you work during your vacation."

"It's fine, and I don't mind helping at all."

"Thank you so much, and I would have my secretary bring you a laptop."

"Alright"

It's been a few hours since I started helping Aurora and the pile of work she has on her plate is so much that I feel bad for her. I am done proofreading the documents she gave me, and I am on my way to Stefano's office to give them to him. I didn't know the paper I was working on were for him until I gave them back to aurora, and she asked me to help her take them to him. I arrive on his floor and step out of the elevator to walk to his office. I knock on his door, and after a husky voice says, come in, I turn the doorknob and step inside. I walk inside to find him busy with a call. I keep the documents on his table and turn around to walk out but stop when he asks me to stop and wait for him to finish his call. I take a seat in front of him while I admire him while he works. He looks a bit stressed, which I understand, but it does not make him look less attractive in my eyes. Once he drops from the call, he picks up the document and starts reading.

"Who proofread these documents?" He asks after going through the papers for a little while

"I did,"

"Take those papers in front of you, type them and have them ready for me in an hour."

"Excuse me," I say, a little confused as to why he is talking to me like I am his employee.

"Also, I like my coffee with cream and a teaspoon of sugar"

"Who do you think I am?"

"If you are not my new secretary, what are you doing proofreading my documents," Stefano says in an annoyed tone.

"I am not your new secretary. I am Andrea, your sister's friend," I say, starting to get pissed off at him for always not remembering who I am

"I know who you are, and I assumed you were my new secretary giving the fact that you were the one who proofread the papers."

"Oh," I say, a little surprised he said he knows who I am.

"Yes, now get out," He says, stunning me with his harsh tone and goes back to work.

"The least you could have said is thank you," I say before walking out.