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“Greek version of it. They don’t call it a mafia, that’s an Italian thing. They’re just the Kazan family, and Evander sits at the head of it. Wow, I seriously can’t believe you don’t know this.”
I shove myself to my feet, heart racing. I pace back and forth, mind doing a million miles an hour as I look back on all our interactions, and suddenly it’s so obvious.
“This can’t be real,” I say softly, more to myself than anyone else, but it all makes sense.
Evander’s that kind of guy. Sharp, intense, demanding, dangerous. I’ve met men like him before, I wasmarriedto a man like that, and I should’ve seen it.
But I was blinded by the glamour and the excitement and the heady newness of starting my life over.
And by my overwhelming desperation.
No wonder he thinks he can protect me.
The guy’s got dozens of hired thugs that do his bidding.
“I let a freaking Greek mobster go down on me,” I hiss at Ophelia and she cracks up, head thrown back.
“Yeah, you did,” she says, grinning massively. “I really thought you knew and just—I don’t know, didn’t care? But Evander’s a big deal, hon. The biggest of the big deals, at least in this city.”
I groan and pull at my hair. I ruined abusiness dealwith the dockworkers’ union. I threw money at him. I slept with him, and put my life in his hands, and holy shit, I should be so freaking dead right now.
How can I be this stupid?
“I should go into hiding or something,” I say and sit back down next to Ophelia, feeling jittery and scared.
“Why? He likes you. Yeah, I know, he’s a big terrifying mob boss, but still.”
“Sorry, are you encouraging my freaky weird relationship with Evander right now?”
Ophelia shrugs. “Ever since he started coming here, Dad says business has never been better. All the Greek guys want to do whatever the boss does, you know? Follow him around and gain his favor? Which means we’re busier than ever.”
I give her a flat stare. “Wow, that’s brutal. You want me to get involved with Evander because it helps your dad’s business.”
“Hey, what can I say? I’m a practical girl.”
I lean my head back against the brick wall and sigh. “You and your family have been so good to me. I don’t want to make any trouble for you guys, you know, if things go bad with me and him.”
Ophelia clucks her tongue. “If Evander Kazan’s petty enough to punish us for whatever goes down between you two, then fuck him, we didn’t need him anyway.”
“I don’t know how you can be so flippant about all this.”
“I grew up around these guys. I guess it’s just not a huge deal. Although, please, I am literally begging you, lock the door next time.”
I put my face in my hands. I’m about to start laughing, or maybe start crying, because I am the most braindead girl in the entire world, when my phone buzzes in the big pocket of my uniform. I take it out and it’s my landlady, Hermia, calling.
“Gotta take this,” I say, and Ophelia waves me on. I stand and walk a few feet away. “Hello? Hermia?”
“Honey, Camille, you’re safe.” She sounds breathless and afraid, and my feet go cold like I’m standing in ice.
“What’s going on?” I ask. “Is everyone okay?”
“Sweetie, there was a man. I didn’t know what he was doing until—” She clears her throat. “You need to come back here. Your apartment is a mess, and I’m afraid he’s looking for you.”
My fingers go numb and the phone slips from my grip and clatters to the ground.
It’s him.
He found me.
