Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 76812 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76812 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
She opens the door and yells his name. “Piero! Hey, can you come back here for a minute?" She twirls her hair seductively and shoves her breasts out to get his attention. What she doesn't know is that she doesn't have to even try, he's already completely enamored with her.
He walks back heavily, looking over his shoulder and from side to side, making sure no one knows he's coming back. She beckons for him to come into her bedroom.
When he enters, she shuts and locks the door behind her. Hands on her hips, all hint of flirtation gone, she skewers him with a look she likely inherited from her ruthless father. "Tell me everything."
He shakes his head. "I can't. Your father will…” He looks at me.
He doesn't want me to know what her father is capable of. But I already know. “Listen. Is it something serious?"
He doesn't answer but looks furtively at the door. "I don't care about me,” he says. "I don't care if I lose my job or worse. But I don't want you to get in trouble."
Shit. This is worse than I thought.
Elise isn’t even close to flirting anymore. She’s gone pale and looks as if she might pass out. She doesn’t have the strongest of constitutions. “What is it?” she asks.
“Elise.” His voice is choked, and I don't know why. Fear or something else? "I can't tell you. He'll kill me." He looks back at me, and she looks back at me as well.
"For the love of God, you guys, I know who you are. Stop pretending I'm an idiot."
"I don't think you're an idiot, but sometimes it's better that you don't know things,” Elise says.
“Exactly,” Piero says. “Which is why I’m not telling you shit.” He curses under his breath in Italian.
Elise draws in a breath. “If you tell me, they’ll never find out. I’ll make sure of it.”
He curses again. “You can’t promise that.”
She nods. “I won’t let them.”
Neither of us says anything for long moments. We know that she has no power in this. We both know that she is a mafia daughter, and her life has never been her own. We know that it's only a matter of time before her father intervenes and chooses her future.
Piero looks around again and shakes his head. “I can’t, Elise.”
She pleads with him silently, giving him a look I’m not sure anyone could resist. He runs a hand through his short black hair and curses under his breath. When he does, a sleeve of his shirt pulls up and I can see ink on his arm I didn’t notice before. If he’s her bodyguard, is he one of them, then?
“I’ll tell you,” he says in a choked whisper. “But you didn’t hear it from me. You never heard it from me, do you understand me?”
She nods. “Of course. Yes, of course.”
I’m standing beside her, my hands clenched in fists. My heartbeat races, fearing the absolute worst. I don’t know what happened or why, but I’m fucking scared.
“Your father made arrangements for marriage. You are supposed to marry one of the Rossi men. I don't know who. I know them, but I don't know who you're marrying, all I know is that it isn't Romeo because he got married last year."
"No," she whispers. “Piero… Tell me it isn't true."
In a bold move, he reaches for her and brings her closer to him. It's then I realize that the crush is mutual, but he doesn’t kiss or embrace her. He shakes her shoulders. "It is true. They want you to pack your bags and go home tonight. They're taking you back to Boston on a red-eye flight. You'll be married as soon as you get there. They’re wasting no time, not even planning a big wedding." His own voice chokes. "They'll kill me if they knew that I talked to you."
She looks at me in a panic, shaking her head. “What do I do?” she whispers. “What do I do?”
I turn to him. I feel as if I’m trapped in another time, when women weren’t allowed a say. "Have they ever seen her?"
He nods his head. “I’m sure they have. I have no doubt. I mean, I’m sure Romeo has because he was the one that arranged this and he’s the Rossi family Don. He wouldn’t blindly pick a woman that wasn’t…” his voice trails off and he looks at Elise. “Stunning.”
She blinks, and a tear rolls down her cheek.
“Oh my God, will you two stop being so dramatic,” I say, rolling my eyes. “We need a plan, none of this hand-to-brow dramatics.”
Elise looks at me in shock. Piero looks to her.
“Take her. Get her out of here.” I draw in a breath and release it slowly. “The man taking her home, the pilot, does he know why?”