Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 75062 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 375(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75062 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 375(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
And that shiver made Massimo reach out, his big hand closing over the top of mine, giving it a reassuring squeeze.
“Don’t let your mind go there,” he urged, seeming to realize what he was doing, so he yanked his hand back. “It’s not going to happen,” he added. “Okay. I think we’ve been sitting together too long,” he said, glancing around. “Nine,” he added, giving me a nod as he got up.
“Nine,” I agreed.
“It’s all going to work out, Cammie,” he told me with so much conviction that I instantly wanted to believe him.
Was it probably a bit mental to put all your trust in the man who killed your boyfriend, and then sent your life into a downward spiral for years?
Yeah.
But he was all I had.
And something in me, as crazy as it sounded, told me that Massimo Grassi was one of the good guys.
That was extra insane since, you know, he literally killed people for a living. But I would bet good money on the fact that he never killed someone outside of the, you know, “business.” He dealt exclusively in criminals.
It was jaded of me, but sometimes you had to kind of accept that criminals killed other criminals. It was business to them.
And it seemed like Massimo was someone who chose to use guns for long-distance, impersonal kills. He didn’t want to make anyone suffer. He just wanted the job done.
Unlike Colin.
Colin wanted to see someone cry. He wanted to hear them scream and beg for mercy. And then he wanted to enjoy their reactions when they realized they weren’t going to get that from him.
Maybe, in the world of criminals, there were killers and there were murderers.
Massimo would be the former, Colin the latter.
“That looked intense,” the owner, Traveler, said, as she came to retrieve Massimo’s cup.
“I think he might just be an intense kind of guy.”
“Intense isn’t bad. Better than his brother. Who is a cocky prick,” she declared.
“Does they look alike?”
“Oh, absolutely. This one has the years that kind of make a dude hotter, but the younger one will look just like him in a few years. Do you want another coffee before you head back? I bet you’ll need one to work for that witch.”
“I, ah, yeah,” I agreed, even though I was pretty sure it would make me antsy.
I already felt like I was buzzing with the possibilities of a free life on my own terms, so what did it matter if I added some more caffeine onto that?
The rest of the day was a bit of blur. Handling customers, doing side work, getting belittled at by Rizzo. All of it was made easier by my preoccupied mind, running over the events at the coffee shop.
Why my stupid brain kept wanting to circle back to him complimenting me instead of the fact that he was going to call me and work out a plan to get me out of this situation, I had no idea.
“There’s your ride,” Rizzo said, throwing an arm out toward the door. “I’ll decide if you’re coming back tomorrow when I look over your side work.”
“Okay. Thanks for the opportunity, Mrs. Geseuli,” I said, offering her the best fake smile I could muster after a long day, and heading out toward the door where one of Colin’s guards were waiting beside their car.
“Get in,” one of them barked at me, and I barely manage to hold back an eye roll at his tone.
It never ceased to amaze me sometimes how they thought of themselves as so superior to me. Because I had no freedom. The difference was, to Colin, they were all disposable. I was something he wanted to hang onto. For selfish, wicked reasons, mind you, but it did sort of put me higher in his esteem than them.
“You reek of onions and vinegar,” the same guard said as the two of them climbed in front and we started to drive back toward Colin’s house.
“Yeah, because your cheap body spray is any better,” I grumbled.
As a rule, I didn’t start shit with the guards. Not because I thought they would really do anything to me, since Colin wouldn’t allow that, but because it would make them watch me closer, look for things they could report back to Colin about.
Now was really not the time to get more scrutiny.
But the words just popped out.
“Hear that?” he asked, talking to the other guard, but glaring at me through the rearview mirror. “One day out of her prison and she’s got a mouth on her. Wonder what the boss man is going to do with that mouth later,” he added, making a sick feeling move through my stomach.
Of course they all thought he used me that way. It didn’t make any sort of logical sense that Colin genuinely just forced me to have dinner with him every night.