Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 68628 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 343(@200wpm)___ 275(@250wpm)___ 229(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68628 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 343(@200wpm)___ 275(@250wpm)___ 229(@300wpm)
It's gotta be Adriano coming after me. Maybe I can reason my way out of this. Maybe I can tell him that I know Sergio and Eden.
Or maybe he's one of those guys who would rather do what he wants and ask forgiveness rather than permission. Because it is Adriano, and he has his gun out, pointing it straight at me.
"Get in!” someone shouts behind me. I look over my shoulder to find a young woman driving a beat-up Mazda opening the passenger door for me. Not just unlocking it but practically throwing herself up over the console and opening it for me. I'm not stupid so I get in, slam the door behind me, and she takes off.
My heart beats so quickly I can hardly think for several minutes. Finally, when my breathing steadies I ask her, “Is he still following? Oh my God. We have to drive faster.”
I half expect gunshots to ring out. Is he going to try to shoot her tires or something? But no. I glance in the rearview mirror to see Adriano standing casually on the street corner, his hands in his pockets. No gun in sight. He's staring at the car and as we leave him behind, he takes out a phone and puts it up to his ear.
I turn to see my savior, a slight woman with crazy purple hair pinned up on the top of her head.
"I know the look of a woman in peril!” she says with a frown. "I don't need to know details."
People say that women can be catty. People say that women are competitive. But this woman right here is the perfect example of a woman who's got other women’s backs, even though we don't know each other's names.
"Thank you."
She navigates the traffic with ease, leaning on her horn when pedestrians try to take their lives into their own hands by jaywalking, and within minutes the angry man who was stalking after me is nowhere to be seen.
"Where to?" she inquires, the only question she’s asked me thus far. I'm so grateful I could kiss her.
I take in a deep breath and look out the window, debating with myself. My best friend in the whole world may not be the best choice to go to right now because the man who's following me works for her husband. But Eden has the best head on her shoulders of anyone I have ever met in my life, so the answer is easy. "I need to go to the North Shore. Can you help me?"
Thirty minutes later, not because we're that close, but because this purple-haired woman drives like a bat out of hell, we pull up to The Castle, the Rossi family estate where Sergio and Eden live. They might be preoccupied with the baby or sleeping, or any number of things.
I draw in a breath. Imposing and beautiful, like a statue carved from stone, it stands against the night sky like a beacon, the windows twinkling with lights.
"Holy shit! Now I kind of wish I was asking some questions because I'm wondering if I can come over for Thanksgiving dinner."
I laugh. “They probably wouldn’t even notice a few more guests.”
She grins before she says, “Good luck.”
I open my purse to take out some money. Not that I have much, but she just drove me all the way here. If I wasn't afraid that I'd have been chased, I would've gone somewhere else. Maybe I would've taken the train or a cab or an Uber or something, but at least I made it here in one piece.
"Don't you dare even think of paying me,” she says. "My name is Regina, and I have a feeling we'll meet up again someday." I get out of the car and when I turn to leave, she's already halfway down the road. “Okay, Regina,” I whisper to myself. I’ll pay it forward somehow.
I square my shoulders and look up at the castle where Eden and Sergio reside.
A year ago, my best friend Eden escaped the clutches of a cult and ended up falling in love with one of Boston's most dangerous men. You would think that was unusual and a little unexpected, especially if you knew that Eden looks like a model for an Amish catalog. But when you see Eden and Sergio together, you quickly realize they are a match made in heaven, as if created for each other. I don't believe in soulmates, but if I did, Eden and Sergio would be in the dictionary next to the definition.
That's kind of a problem right now, though, because it's almost impossible to talk to Eden without Sergio finding out.
Maybe I want him to find out. Since I’m Eden’s best friend, he's not gonna let one of his guys kill me…is he? The reality is I have no idea what Sergio Montavio is capable of.