Total pages in book: 149
Estimated words: 141255 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 706(@200wpm)___ 565(@250wpm)___ 471(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 141255 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 706(@200wpm)___ 565(@250wpm)___ 471(@300wpm)
I texted Stan and told him to call me from a secure line the next day at 9:am to find out about provisions made for her.
He called me back a few hours after that to say that Pop had listed himself for her and since Tommy and I were his heirs it’d default to Tommy if something happened to me.
Stan asked me about the upcoming partner summit, and I told him I’d get back to him in a few days with an update about whether or not Tommy and I would attend. He said he’d attend for us if we couldn’t make it. Then he and I discussed some of the business he was working on dealing with for us.
Stan was proving himself to be valuable, at least. We needed to keep him busy and on our payroll so that he’d be loyal. At least I hoped he would be. I had to play my hand close to the vest in case he wasn’t. I considered asking him about Lisa and why he’d never said anything about the fact that she’d come from Kruna but decided to talk that over with my brother first, to ensure he and I were on the same page about how to play that. If Stan couldn’t be trusted I didn’t want him to know I had suspicions. Maybe Stan didn’t even know. Pop never let anyone in the world have all of his truth. You got bits and pieces, no matter how close to him you thought you were.
Things were shaping up all right with a few other areas, but Tommy would help when he arrived and that’d make things a little easier on me. He was arriving the next day. Lisa would be spending time with Angel in the afternoon and then we were all having dinner at Luciana’s and Ed’s after Tommy and Tia arrived. After dinner, Tommy and I could sit down and strategize about Kruna and a few other matters.
Lisa arrived just before noon. She came in with food from the restaurant for them for lunch.
Angel was sitting on a sofa when I answered the door and Leese and I hugged and then she went right to Angel and opened her arms while I put the food on the island.
Angel stood stiffly and let Lisa embrace her. She looked to me with her lip trembling. She held it together.
“You okay, baby?” I leaned over and put my arm around her shoulder as Lisa let go of her.
She nodded.
“I’m going to the office and then I’ll be back to pick you up later for dinner at my sister’s. Okay?”
She nodded and put her arms around me and sank in. I kissed her.
Lisa gave me a smile and I left the two of them alone.
Lisa and I sat quietly for a few minutes after Dare left.
“Wanna grab food?” she finally said. “I’m just so starving all the time, so I brought salads in case you’re watching what you eat but I also brought stuffed cannelloni and bruschetta for me and for you, too, in case you’re not.”
“Mm,” I said, “I’ve eaten non-stop since I got here. No salad for me, thanks.”
She gave me a knowing smile. “Food back there was not good. I was a glutton my first few months out.”
I pushed the pang away at the mention of there. “I don’t even want to step on the scale. I’m afraid of what I’ll see.”
She nodded. “Throw that fucker off the balcony. You owe it to yourself to never step on a scale again.”
I smiled big at her. The morning ritual with Cleo at Kruna included weighing us as well as inspecting for adequate grooming and hygiene.
“I, unfortunately, have an OB/GYN who wants me on the scale at every appointment.”
“At least you’ll get something awesome out of the deal at the end,” I said.
She put her hand to her belly and she beamed with joy. “Yeah.”
We walked to the island and unpacked the food.
We ate quietly but there wasn’t any real awkwardness. Afterwards, she said, “I am here if you ever want to talk. I don’t know if I’d have any real words of wisdom for you but if you have questions or want to talk about anything, I’m here. I was there nearly six years and I’ve been out over two so if I can help, let me know. Even if you just wanna talk, vent, whatever.”
“Same,” I said.
She broke into tears.
I panicked a little and then rounded the island to go to her and put my arm around her. She put her head on my shoulder and started sobbing.
“I’m su-supposed to be here h-helping you,” she sniffled.
I patted her back gently, not sure how to reply.
“I’ve had a really good life since getting out. Tom was amazing to me. I loved my life with him so much. I’m so glad that I get to have a piece of him, you know? This baby? I can’t wait to be a mother and have someone to really love. And it’s so hard because I miss him and what we had but no one wants to talk about him because of some of the things he did. But I was his and he treated me like gold.”