Total pages in book: 53
Estimated words: 49562 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 248(@200wpm)___ 198(@250wpm)___ 165(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 49562 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 248(@200wpm)___ 198(@250wpm)___ 165(@300wpm)
“Phew, I had been holding it in since Rose was trying to get the damn key in the lock.” The relief looked real on Gia’s face in the mirror. “I thought Adalyn would be the first to go with how much soda she drank.”
Chloe couldn’t help but laugh. “Adalyn has a bladder of steel. She’ll probably make it until the end of the next movie.”
The threw their paper towels away and walked out of the restroom in a hurry to get back.
Focused solely on what part of the movie she was missing, she automatically took a step toward the theater door. At the same time, it finally registered in her brain that Amo wasn’t standing where they had left him. Then her arm was grabbed.
Startled at the sudden touch, her eyes flew to the side, completely dismayed at who was holding her arm, but she didn’t immediately pull away. “What are—”
“Lucca sent me after you. We need to go. There’s been an emergency.”
Gia was just as startled as she was. Grabbing Chloe’s other arm, she held her firmly in place at the urgent demand. “Do you know who he is?”
She could barely think as her heart pounded out of her chest. “Y-yes, he’s …”
Lucca headed to talk with Sal when …
“Lucca.”
Turning at his name, Lucca saw an apologetic Enzo taking off his hat.
“I wanted to apologize for yesterday. I shouldn’t have shown up like that.” Nervously spinning the hat, he appeared sincere. “I should have respected you and your fiancée’s privacy. It won’t happen again.”
Lucca nodded his head warily with slight suspicion, giving him a direct warning. “I hope not.”
“It won’t.” An anxious laugh escaped Enzo’s throat before he cleared it. “I hope I didn’t frighten your fiancée by showing up unannounced like that.”
Lucca’s jaw tightened.
“Where … is she, by the way?” he asked, glancing around the room. “I don’t see any of the girls here celebrating, actually.”
“Girls’ night,” he said through gritted teeth before he forced himself to relax. It took all of Lucca’s strength to keep up the charade. Each of them who knew the plan was to spread the same lie about the girls’ whereabouts in hopes to snare their trap. “Having a movie night in Nero’s penthouse.”
“Well, I hope they have a wonderful time.” Placing his hat back on his head, he gave him a goodbye wave with it before he did. “Great party.”
As he watched the back of what he believed now to be One-Shot walk away, he didn’t let him out of his sight as Sal approached him, coming to see him instead.
“Everything all right?”
“For now. Just don’t let anyone out of your sight …”
Brringg.
He pulled his phone out of his suit pocket, but he only looked down quickly enough to see the little black heart Chloe had sent him before his eyes went back up, realizing he had already lost Enzo’s ugly hat.
“Where’d he go?” Lucca gripped the phone, holding on to the fact that Chloe was safe and no one he didn’t trust knew her location. “Where the fuck did he go?”
“Lucca!”
Searching the crowd for the person who boomed out his name, his eyes landed on Dom’s hazel ones, finding the source.
This time, the Luciano mob boss only needed to mouth the words, “Someone got out.”
The grip he had on her tightened as he pulled her. “We need to go.”
Chloe fought against both of their holds, and neither eased their grasp on her, but Chloe had made a promise to Lucca that she wasn’t going anywhere without Amo or Vincent, even if it was one of their father’s.
“Where’s Amo?”
“He’s helping Vincent get the rest of your friends out the other exit.”
The grip on her arm turned rougher, forcing her to take a step away from the theater doors … But Gia jerked her back.
“Who is he?”
Chloe couldn’t believe what was happening as she looked at the older Caruso member who held her in a tight vice. He was supposed to be a long-time family friend of Lucca’s, but something screamed at her that something wasn’t right. “H-he’s—”
“Hurry up … there’s no time,” she was cut off.
The strength he was exerting on her arm really hurt now, making it even more difficult to pull away.
That’s it!
“Well, we’re going to make time.” Chloe refused to be budged despite the fiery pain. “I promised Lucca I wouldn’t leave your son. Gia and I will go back into the theater and go out the way they went.”
Vile practically spewed out of his mouth that she’d dare question him. “You stupid bitch …”
Chloe froze at the hateful way he’d spoken to her. Despite the pain that was slowly turning into numbness, she began to struggle against his restraining hold.
Horror filled her when his other hand went to his side to pull a gun out, but all she could think about was her new friend, whom she had just put in this horrible situation.