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Jo sighed. “Liam is possessive and Jaime is my friend. I don’t think they’ll stop fighting until Jaime starts dating or something. I kinda hoped once I got pregnant that he’d chill a little but if anything, it’s made it worse. He even glares at Marcus if he gets too close to me now.”
Jaime’s name pulled my focus back onto the women. I didn’t feel guilty eavesdropping since they decided to crash my holiday plans, cracking open the closet door so I could hear them better.
“Okay so did Jaime hug you or something?”
Jo snorted. “No. He bought me these.” She pulled out a little tin of candies from her purse. “Apparently they help with morning sickness. It was sweet and Liam got pissed about it. Big baby.”
Pulling on my stockings, I pursed my lips. I could see Liam’s side of it. In the mafia world, faithfulness wasn’t a guarantee and Jaime is seriously good looking. If he was doting on Jo, it’d probably make me uncomfortable too. Being friendly is one thing but being too friendly is a red flag. I didn’t know much about Jo or how she and Liam met but if it was arranged then the possessiveness was in no way surprising. Mafia bosses saw their women as property and didn't like to share their toys. It’s why I had no interest in marrying into the mafia. I’m not an object.
Dressing like I normally would at work, pencil skirt and button up blouse, I emerged from my closet and headed to the en suite bathroom. My hair is bone straight and wouldn’t hold a curl for the life of me so I ran a brush through it and pulled it back into a tight bun that was more appropriate. I put in my contacts, kept my makeup light, and used a straightener on my bangs to keep them in line before spinning around to leave, almost bumping into Jo behind me. I yelped, jumping back.
“Mrs. Connor, what–”
She made a face. “Ew. My mother-in-law is Mrs. O’Connor and a real piece of work. My name is Jo. You know this isn’t a work thing. You don’t have to dress like you’re going into the office.”
I resisted the urge to scowl at her. “It’s my boss’s home with his family. It’s a work event that I’m being manhandled into. I’m not changing so if my outfit is a problem then I guess I can just stay here.”
A slow grin passed over her face. “That’s cute but it’s not gonna work on me. We’re all going. Come on, I want to see the look on Jaime’s face when you show up. He looked like someone kicked his puppy when he was talking about you refusing to show up.”
She grabbed my wrist, tugging me along behind her. I’d protest if I wasn’t so stuck on what she said. Why would Jaime be upset that I wasn’t coming? I didn’t say I’d be there. We’re not friends either. I don’t know why he’d be so disappointed about it. Or why it seemed to warm my insides that he cared.
Jo only let me stop long enough to snag my purse and jacket before dragging me out of the condo and out to the waiting SUV. A tall serious looking man in a suit was waiting and held the door open for us as we arrived.
Jo beamed at him. “Thanks James. Is Elizabeth going to be there tonight?”
He shook his head. “No, it’s too many people for her. I’m only staying long enough to grab her some food before I head home.”
She pouted at him. “It’s just family.”
When James raised an eyebrow at her, she sighed. “Yeah, alright. I wouldn’t want to stress her out.”
I frowned. “Why does she get to skip but I don’t?” I didn’t know who they were referring to but I needed to figure out some sort of excuse to get out of this in the future. In no way was I going to be telling Jaime or anyone else that I wouldn’t be going home for Christmas either if I could help it.
Jo scooted over to make room for me and I ended up stuck in the middle seat between her and the redheaded woman. I couldn’t remember either of the other wives’ names and it was frustrating to say the very least. I’m usually really good with names but I didn’t think I’d be interacting with the wives much so I didn’t bother to store that information away.
“Elizabeth gets an excuse because she’s extremely introverted. She’ll come to events if it’s just us three and our guys but any more and it’s too much for her. She’ll force it if I really need her there but today includes Liam’s mother and I don’t want her around that woman. She’s an ass.”
James snorted from the front seat as he pulled away from the curb and Jo stuck her tongue out at him when he looked at her in the rearview mirror.
“Does Liam know how you talk about his mother behind her back?” he asked.
She chuckled. “Liam is part of it. He doesn’t like how she treats me. At least I’m nice enough to keep my mouth shut when she’s around. He’s outright told her to stop acting like a bitch when she was being cruel while we were planning the wedding. He got one hell of a blowjob for that one.”
I whipped my head to face her, my mouth hanging open. Mafia wives don’t talk like that. Who the hell is this woman?
The redhead next to me snickered. “You’re shocking the lawyer with your mouth, Jo.”
Jo just grinned. “Like you’re any better, Gabi. I know all about you and Dmitriy and your little sexcapades.”
Mateo’s wife turned around to face us from the front seat. “The difference between us and her is that she isn’t part of the MWC. She’s Liam’s employee and you’re supposed to be representing your family.”
Jo rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I call bullshit. It’s a holiday and she’s a lawyer, she knows how to keep a secret. Besides, with the way Jaime’s been drooling after her, she may just end up being our next member.”
“Wait, hold on. What?”
ChapterEighteen
This wasthe first time in a really long time that a conversation has mostly gone over my head. That was frustrating enough on its own but then they made it sound like Jaime has a thing for me and that wouldn’t fly. I don’t date my client’s employees. And I had no idea what the MWC was.
