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I don’t let myself be offended by the question. He isn’t asking me if I’mableto protect them, because he knows I can. He’s asking because he knows deep down he shouldn’t be able to trust me. I’m a mafia hitman. Yet, the tie between us is something neither of us can deny.
It’s beyond the physical attraction, or how good he feels in my arms. It’s the tension in the air when our hands touch, the crackle of energy that comes whenever we make eye contact. It’s the way that, even though we don’t know each other, I yearn to make him happy, to give him anything and everything in the world that he could ever need or want.
It’s me standing here, trusting him enough to know that he’ll grab Ani and comehome.
We discussed as much. After he revealed his true relationship with Ani, we came up with a plan. He’ll go in and pick her up from their home when his brother leaves. He says it’ll be easier to convince just his mother that his new boyfriend bought a weekend trip in the Adirondacks for him and Ani.
Then they’ll both come home with me. I’ll worry about how I can convince him it's best to stay for good once we’re back in the cabin. Right now, I just need to keep him happy and alive.
I nod. “No one will hurt you as long as I’m here to keep you safe.”
He presses his lips against mine. It’s a quick peck, but it says everything he’s not.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” I whisper.
“So I’ll go home after Val leaves her with my mom. And then we will just go back to the cabin. And when the threat is gone, we can come home, right?”
My throat tightens because I know I’ve made a promise I don’t intend to keep. I don’t want to give him back.Ever.Even after I handle the mess with the Bratva, and he’s safe. I’m too much of a selfish bastard to let that happen.
Still, I nod. “Yes,malysh. Let’s go get your daughter and bring her home.”
Seven
Noel
“You’re what?!” my mom asks, even though I know she heard me just fine the first time I told her.
I shove Ani’s clothes in a pink, sparkly overnight bag, taking care not to forget the items she absolutely has to have, like her unicorn sweatshirt and her light-up sneakers. Oh, and her ballerina tutu. She’ll cry if we leave it behind.
“Ani and I are going to stay with my boyfriend at his mountain cabin for the holidays, Ma,” I repeat, exasperated because the longer we’re here, the more danger we’re in. Collector made it very clear that we had to hurry, pack the essentials, and get going as quickly as possible before word spread that we’re here.
“You’re taking my Ani-Bear away for the holidays?” Her raw voice almost makes me cry. I’ve never spent a Christmas without my mother or my brother before, and since Dad died, we’ve all stuck together. “Can’t you just bring him to the house so he can meet the whole family?”
“No, Ma, I can’t.” I know she won’t drop this. My mom is stubborn and is used to getting her way because Val and I cater to her constantly. Thinking quickly, I try to come up with a reason why we need to have alone time.
“But—”
“Ma, you know I spend long days at the bakery, working hard to make sure it stays profitable. I barely have any time with my daughter, and I’ve never been able to take her on a vacation. I need some time to myself, away from the city. Away from work. I also want to see if Ani likes him because this is serious,” I lie to her. She doesn’t have to know this isn’t even a relationship.
I can always tell her later that we broke up.
“We’re really going to go to the mountains?!” Ani squeaks, handing me her Christmas pajamas and fuzzy socks. I thank her, making a mental note to grab my own matching pair and shove it in my bag before we leave.
“Yeah, my Smart Cookie. We’re gonna go sledding and sit in front of the fire to make s’mores. You’re going to love it!” Thank God Ani is only five so my false cheer easily has her excited for the vacation.
“I want to meet this boyfriend before you both go away with him,” my mom demands, shuffling around to find her coat. “Why can’t he pick you up here and introduce himself like a gentleman? I don’t like the sound of him.”
“Because the drive to the Catskills is going to take some time. We don’t want to hit traffic on the way,” I lie, leaving out that vicious mobsters are coming after us while we sit here and waste time talking.
A knock on the apartment door makes me flinch. My mom goes to answer it, and I quickly jump up from my crouch on the floor and rush to the door. I don’t think killers would knock first, but who the fuck knows? I knew nothing about organized crime until Collector barreled through my life and changed it forever.
I check the peephole and see him standing there, in a dark gray three-piece suit. His hair is combed back, and he checks his watch while he waits for me to open it. I let him in, locking the door behind me.
“Where is she?” He peers around the small apartment, frowning slightly. I’m sure he keeps a bigger apartment in a swankier part of the city if his cabin is anything to go by. “I couldn’t wait at the bakery anymore to meet her so I came to pick you up here.”
“Oh, look who decided to come around,” my mother says with an attitude, having no clue who she’s actually talking to. “So nice to meet Noel’s random boyfriend.”
