AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Well, I made a deal. Mutually beneficial. The girl was supposed to be the signature on the deal. The marriage I was telling you about.”
Billie gasps. “Christian! What did you do?”
I scowl at the pool. “Why do you think that I did something?”
“Because you don’t talk to me about your girl problems unless you did do something. What did you do?”
“Well, the wedding was supposed to be today, but they called me when I landed to back out of the deal. So, I kidnapped her and forced her to fulfill her end of the bargain. Not that she knew it was me she was supposed to be marrying.”
“You’re an asshole,” Billie says, amusement in her voice. “A massive asshole. Fucking criminals and their damn honor codes.”
I laugh and reach for my coffee. “You talk as if you aren’t a criminal as bad as the rest of us.”
“That’s not the point.” She sighs.
I can imagine the disapproving look she would be giving me if she was here right now.
“Look, I understand that you took her to make a point and ensure the safety of your people, but this is going to be hard for her. You need to go easy on her.”
“Maybe I should start calling Hadley for girl advice.”
“Screw you.” Billie laughs as something crashes in the background. “I have to get going. Some of the new capos have decided to fight over a girl and nobody else is here to kick their asses for it.”
“Look at you. I remember when you wanted to get out of the life.”
“Things change. People change. Soften yourself for this girl, Christian. She might be worth it if you’re going to have to spend a lot of time with her.”
The call ends, leaving me staring down at my mug of coffee, wondering if Billie is right.
I know I can’t be as hard with Zoe as I am with others.
She doesn’t know what she’s walked into yet, but I’m going to have to show her. And fast.
Zoe is going to need to know the dangers of this world and what happens if she disobeys me.
Which I’m sure will be a challenge all on its own if her smashing things last night is any indication of how our relationship is going to go.
It’s almost dinner time when Zoe finally makes her way out of her room.
She wraps her arms around herself as she stands beside the kitchen island and watches me dish out the crawfish boil I made for dinner. Her stomach growls as she sits on one of the stools.
“How are you feeling?” I push the bowl toward her, sticking a fork in it.
She grabs the fork and spears one of the chunks of potato.
“Is the cut bothering you at all? Did you remember to clean it?”
“I cleaned it,” she says, her voice monotone as she looks up at me. She bites her bottom lip for a moment, pushing food around her bowl.
“What’s bothering you, Zoe? You look like there’s something you want to say. When it is just the two of us here, you are free to say what you want.”
Her eyebrows furrow as I dig into my food. “Am I trapped here?”
“I would say so. That's usually what happens when you get kidnapped.”
“So, that means that you won’t let me go to my gig tonight? I’m supposed to be performing at the same bar I was last night.”
Her eyes are watery, but she doesn’t let a tear fall. Within a couple seconds, the wounded look in her eyes is gone.
