Page 40 of The Boss

“Whatever you told him got him to listen,” he says.

“Uhh, listen to what?” I reply.

“He’s not going to take calls from the Russos or Lorenzo alone unless they call him and no one’s around,” Ryan replies.

“Really?” My shock is evident in my voice.

“Yeah,” he huffs out a laugh. “Clearly, you two dating gets him to remember there’s more than just him around here.”

“Thank God you’re here,” Drew calls out, walking down the stairs holding his laptop open. “He’s going a million miles a minute up there, and I can barely understand what he’s saying. Can you please calm him down?”

I swallow. I didn’t think what I said was going to hit, but I guess it did.

“Okay, I’ll go talk to him.”

I walk up the stairs and hear both Drew and Ryan leave out the front door.

Gino’s office door is open, and as I walk in, I see him almost exactly as I did earlier, intently staring at something on his desk.

“Hey, Ryan and Drew told me you let them listen in on a call you had?” I say.

He looks up, staring at me with those green eyes, and a smile crosses his face.

“Yeah, you were right. Most of you may not have signed up for this, but you’re here, so I should be getting help on all of this,” he replies.

It took months, but he’s finally listening. And the Gino Esposito I know and love is back at just the right time.

October 15th

Unknown

The fact that you’re not responding tells me all I need to know; you don’t care about your friend.

October 20th

Unknown

I know you’ll find him eventually; just keep digging in the right places.

November2nd

Unknown

Ignoring me is really pissing me off.

EIGHTEEN

GINO

NOVEMBER

I’ve asked everyone I can think of for help. I’ve asked old contacts of my father, his friends, my friends, and we are no closer to finding Mateo. It’s been months, and I don’t know what to do anymore. It’s November, and he’s been missing for over six months. I've tried everything I can think of without going over there myself.

My sister is almost through her pregnancy, and my goal was to get Mateo home before she gives birth. She’s still texting him every day, and the only reason I know is because she’s told Juliet and Alonso about it. And I haven’t turned it on because I don’t want Mateo to miss a single thing she’s sent him. I know it’s one of the few ways she’s been dealing with this. She believes his phone is with him, and he just can’t respond.

But I know better; his phone is still in my office, turned off in a drawer. Only Gabe, Juliet, and Alonso know I’ve kept it. I think everyone else is none the wiser.

I know my lying and secrets are catching up to me. I’m fully expecting that when Mateo gets back, I’ll probably be punched in the face at least five times for the secrets and lies I told Vanessa regarding his kidnapping. He’s more loyal to her than to me, and we’ve known each other our whole lives. That’s what I get for letting their arranged marriage happen.