Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 108119 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 541(@200wpm)___ 432(@250wpm)___ 360(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108119 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 541(@200wpm)___ 432(@250wpm)___ 360(@300wpm)
And the rest was history.
You’d think I’d be used to stress.
But this was next level stress.
I would be walking into the most dangerous house I’d ever been in. This was worse than my brother, this was worse than my father. Worse than facing the barrel of a gun.
This would be torture if they discovered me.
And Andrei just wanted me to do what? Look pretty on his arm and try not to hurl on the dinner rolls?
I imagined that everyone was armed.
I took another faltering step in the unfamiliar heels as Andrei wrapped an arm around me. He felt warm, his breathing was even, calm. And he looked almost annoyed that I wasn’t walking fast enough.
Annoyed that I was petrified.
Then again, now that I knew more of who he was, I figured, I should be just as scared of him as I was the rest of the Italians.
Because he was their friend, wasn’t he?
Which meant I was his enemy too.
My stomach sank as we approached the large immaculate house, with its water fountain in the middle of the driveway and its gorgeous brick stature.
Two men were standing in front of the door.
One looked angry at me for existing, while the other looked curious.
The one with the angry look gave Andrei a long stare and sighed. “They let you out tonight?”
“Cute, Vic, you kill any puppies today? Strangle them?”
The guy named Vic looked like he was ready to smile, but then he muttered. “Pain in my ass, every day of my life… damn babysitting duty.”
“The door.” Andrei winked at him. “You should probably open it for us.”
“How’s the finger healing up? Hmm Andrei?” This time he did grin as he opened the door. “What has it been? Ten months? A year?”
Andrei stiffened. “Remember, tit for tat. One day when you’re sleeping on the job, I’m going to take your pinky.”
Vic barked out a laugh. “Just make the cut straight so I can sew it back on, crazy bastard.”
“Swear.” Andrei put his free hand on his heart as he pulled me through the door.
What sort of people joked about stuff like that without breaking out the guns and getting into fights? In my own family joking like this only got you a black eye but these guys? They laughed! It was so unexpected I couldn’t stop staring at Vic or at Andrei and the exchange between them.
To be honest, I wasn’t expecting a dungeon per say, but I was expecting a lot of men sitting around staring at their guns, talking about their hatred for my family or the impending war between all of us.
Instead, the first thing that happened was an adorable little toddler ran up to me and hugged my legs. “Pretty dress!”
Stunned, I just stood there and then she looked up at me with these beautiful crystal blue eyes and repeated it again. “Pretty dress.”
“Thank you.” I smiled down at her. “I like your doll. What’s her name?”
Andrei didn’t leave my side, but I suddenly felt eyes on me.
Slowly I looked up, and anyone might think I’d just waltzed in there and announced I had a bomb strapped to my chest.
The guy from earlier, the one who wanted me dead, Chase, had an apron on and had stopped stirring what looked like sauce in the kitchen, his smile extremely amused while a woman who looked pregnant stood next to him a similar look on her face.
And then slowly I exhaled as I looked around the room while the little girl still clung to me like I was a Barbie doll.
I recognized all their faces.
Including their wives.
They were the monsters I had begged to save me.
The monsters that never came.
The ones I prayed would destroy us all so it would stop.
So he would stop visiting me in my room.
So the pain would stop.
Nixon Abandonato approached then, all six feet two inches of him, muscles on top of muscles, enough ink down his arms and legs to make a person dizzy, lethal, beautiful, dangerous.
He bent down and picked up the little girl.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and nestled her head beneath his chin. “Daddy, don’t you like her dress?”
Daddy?
This beautiful little creature was his daughter?
I felt suddenly dizzy as Nixon tilted his head to the side, his eyes narrowing. “Yes, it’s a beautiful dress, one you won’t be wearing until you’re thirty, all right Serena?”
“Yes, Daddy.” She beamed, apparently unaware that a tight cocktail dress wouldn’t be in her future for a very long time, or, if the look on his face was anything to go by… ever.
“Wow.” A voice came from the right, and there he was stomping into the kitchen looking every inch the rumored Italian Godfather, only young, so young and attractive it almost felt like a sick joke. “When I said to bring a girl… I didn’t think you’d take me seriously.”