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She leans forward, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. “Tell me everything, Jess. Last time we talked, you were cooling your heels in his hotel. Why’d you sound so weird on the phone?”
I sigh, a part of me grateful for the chance to unload, another part terrified of where to start. “My house burned down last night,” I say. “While I was with him.”
“What? Your house burned down?”
“Mrs. Henderson tried to get me out but I wasn’t there. I was still at the hotel. She’s in hospital.”
“Oh, my God. Is she okay?”
“She’ll be home in a couple of days.”
“Good. Any idea how it happened?”
“Alessandro’s rival did it to hurt him. Guy named Garibaldi.”
“Not Angelo Garibaldi?”
“I assume so. Why? Do you know him?”
“He’s a mob boss. Real nasty piece of work by all accounts. She frowns, then her brows quirk upwards. “Hang on, you were with Alessandro, as in spent the night with him? As in you lost your V-card? You dirty girl. Welcome to the slut club. You’re going to love it. How was it? Was it good? Was he huge? Tell me he was huge.”
I nod, swallowing hard. “Yeah, it was good. Really good.” My cheeks flush with the admission.
Her expression softens, a mix of surprise and sisterly affection. “That’s great. How do you feel about it all?”
I pick at the edge of the table, my thoughts a whirlwind. “Everything’s so complicated. I’m scared, Em. Scared of how fast I’m falling for him, and all this shit that seems to follow him. It’s like the more I let him in, the more I lose myself in his world. And now, with this marriage proposal...”
Emma sits back, her eyes wide. “Wait, what? He proposed? As in marriage?”
A server approaches our booth with a tray laden with dishes. “Did you order before I got here?” I ask.
Emma shakes her head. “Uh, we didn’t order this,” she says, her voice laced with confusion as she looks up at the man, expecting perhaps a mix-up or an apology.
“No problem,” he replies, setting the tray down on the table next to ours. He spins back around, a gun in his hand, pointed straight at my head.
The air in the diner becomes thick, charged with a sudden tension that has my heart racing.
“Don’t scream,” he says, his voice calm as he takes a seat opposite us. The stark contrast between his words and the weapon in his hand sends a shiver down my spine.
He leans back, staring at me. “Stand up slowly,” he says, his eyes never leaving mine. “If you try anything, your friend gets hurt.”
I remember what Alessandro told me. Act confident, believe in my strength. I shake my head. “I told you, we’re not moving.”
The diner plunges into darkness. The lights all fail at once, the shutters slamming down in the same instant.
A hand falls over my mouth and I’m yanked to the floor. I’m about to scream when a voice whispers in my ear. “Don’t make a sound.” It’s Alessandro, his grip firm but not unkind. “This way. Keep quiet.”
“Where the fuck are you?” the man snaps, groping for the spot where I was a moment before. I hear him knocking the tray to the floor as he lunges for me in the dark.
“Where’s Emma?” I hiss, panic edging my voice as I fear for my friend’s safety.
“Ahead of you,” Alessandro assures as he pushes open the kitchen door, guiding me through.
“Wait here both of you,” he says, his face barely visible in the blue glow of the kitchen’s bug zapper.
“What the fuck is going on?” Emma asks as he disappears back through the door.
A moment later there’s a scream but it’s cut off as soon as it begins. “The silence is deafening. “You can come out now,” Alessandro calls as the lights flicker back on around us.
