Paying Off Her Dad's Best Friend

by Alyse Zaftig

  Iacopo doesn’t say anything. I regret talking about my mom. Besides the money, she’s sort of out of the picture. I think about Lucia being raised by a psycho bitch mother and never having Iacopo’s influence. I still remember what it was like to have Uncle Iacopo around when I was a little kid. He’s amazing with children. Ariana’s totally insane.

  “When is the next time you get to have Lucia?”

  “Next weekend.” His eyes are haunted.

  “Is it even safe for her to live with her mother?”

  “You don’t know the story.” Iacopo shook his head. “We married because it was the best thing for our families. We didn’t like each other. She’s always thought that she was too good for me.”

  “But you had a baby.”

  “Because she insisted. Her father was putting a lot of pressure on her to have an heir.”

  “But you have Lucia.”

  “We weren’t going to go through all that a second time. It was difficult enough to have one baby.”

  “Why did you divorce when you had the kid?”

  “Because Ariana hated living with me. She didn’t like my ‘rutting,’ as she called it. She couldn’t think about enduring more of it.”

  Iacopo stops.

  “There’s more to the story, isn’t there?”

  “She’s addicted to cocaine.”

  “Didn’t that hurt the baby?”

  He laughs. There’s zero humor in it. “I kept her away from cocaine while she was pregnant. She wasn’t happy about it.”

  “What happened after Lucia was born?”

  “She refused to breastfeed. She wanted cocaine more than a healthy daughter.”

  I’m trying to wrap my head around someone who loves white powder more than her actual baby. Lucia is really cute. I can’t really understand how anyone could choose cocaine over Lucia.

  “The struggle over keeping her clean was part of the reason why we split. She said that I didn’t have any authority over her.”

  “If her dad was so enthusiastic about you getting married, why would he let her divorce you?”

  “He died the week before Lucia was born.”

  The skin around Iacopo’s eyes is tight.

  “You think it was someone in your family, don’t you? You think that they wanted to take over her side of things once her father was gone. They were going to use your heir. But Lucia is a girl.”

  “Ariana knew what it was like to be married off against her will. She wanted to prevent that for Lucia.”

  “But you’d never do that to your own daughter…right?”

  Iacopo just looks at me. “You have to do what’s right for the family.”

  It’s so foreign to me to think of arranged marriages. Power marriages, I guess. It’s as if we’re back in the Middle Ages and Princess Ariana was forced to marry Prince Iacopo for no other reason than to join their families.

  “What was the noise I heard?”

  “There’s an SUV trying to ram the gate in.”

  “Most SUVs could probably break gates.”

  “Not my gate. It’s reinforced steel. It’s what they use for military compounds. You’re safer here than anywhere else.”

  “She’s not that great at strategy, is she? Because there are better ways to kill you than ramming your gate.”

  “It’s a diversion. She’s probably sending someone around the back.”

  “Ariana has to be working with someone.”

  Iacopo looks at me as if he’s seeing me for the first time. “My father’s second-in-command, Mateo. He knows this place like the back of his hand. He thinks that he should’ve been the don when my dad died.”

  “But that’s crazy. It’s the Genovese family.”

  “He’s a cousin or something. It’s a lot of degrees removed.”

  “You’re the heir. Your father’s heir.”

  “I don’t have any male children, just Lucia. He has three boys.”

  “How would that even work? Ariana wants to take over everything. Mateo wants to take over the Genovese branch.”

  “Enemy of my enemy is my friend. They’d probably stab each other in the back at the end. Ariana doesn’t think ahead.”

  Our conversation is interrupted by an explosion.

  “Fuck,” Iacopo curses. “Stay inside the house.”

  I watch as he begins to run to the back house, where the sound came from. I know that his security team is on it, but I don’t know what to do with myself. I’m confused about what’s going on and there’s nothing really for me to do. Sorting through all of his stuff is just busywork. But I guess that’s what I get to focus on. If Ariana tries to burn down the house while I’m in here, there’s not much for me to do. I don’t know how to steal a car. Even if I did, I’d run into his security team. They’re everywhere.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Fire

  Iacopo

  My men are in a formation that we’ve practiced dozens of times. Problem is, Mateo knows how we operate.

  “Keep your eyes open,” I bark. They are waiting for whatever is coming. They have guns in their hands. The safeties are off.

  “Incoming,” one of my men shouts. There’s a ball of flame heading straight for the house. We watch as it crashes into a second-story window.

  Then I hear a scream.

  Kelly’s inside. That window is the second-floor sitting room where she’s been working.

  I’m running inside of a burning house. There’s no way that we can keep this away from the fire service. I have to get Kelly out.

  I’m running up the stairs. Kelly’s stumbling around in a smoky hallway.

  “Kelly!”

  I pull her away from the fire. She’s coughing really hard. If I’d thought about it, I would’ve brought in some kind of mask. I take off my shirt, tear it into two pieces, and put one piece over her face. She gets the idea and holds it over her nose and mouth. I cover my nose and mouth, too. It’s hard to see in here.

  There’s a lot of smoke. I think that there’s only fire in one room. I’m yanking her down the stairs right now. When she stumbles, I throw her over my shoulder in a fireman’s carry. She’s coughing really hard, despite the makeshift mask.

  Then we’re coming outside into the fresh, clean air. I can hear the wail of sirens.

  I put her down on the grass outside.

  “Kelly.”

  She’s coughing uncontrollably, tears streaming down her face. I can’t believe that I put in her in danger. She’s far too young to die. Ariana doesn’t care about the death toll as she takes over our operations.

  I realize in this moment that Kelly is Ariana’s opposite. Kelly would never try to take over my organization.

  “I’m sorry,” I whisper so quietly that I don’t think she can hear it. A little louder, I say, “We’ll get you to the hospital as soon as we can.”

  Then the sirens are louder than ever. A fire truck and ambulance are rolling up. The firemen are running like crazy.

  “Is there anybody in there?”

  “Nobody.”

  The firemen are pulling the firehose out. I’m sitting on the ground next to Kelly as I watch them put out the fire.

  Then I see the police car. I jump to my feet.

  “What the fuck are the pigs doing here?”

  “They come out for every fire call. Could be arson.” Kelly’s voice is very thin and weak. I think that the smoke damaged her voice.

  I don’t recognize the men coming out of the police cruiser. A chill runs down my spine. These men don’t look like policemen. They’re feds.

  “Iacopo Genovese?”

  They have on FBI windbreakers.

  “How can I help you?” I say as if my house isn’t literally burning beside me.

  “We’re worried about the fire in your house. Might be arson. Mind if we take a look around?”

  “You guys don’t look like arson investigators.”

  “We have a diverse skill set.”

  I realize what Ar
iana did. She doesn’t mind taking down the Genovese family by putting me in jail. Now that they can get into my house, she thinks that they can access my records.

  I’m not an idiot. They’re not at home.

  “You’re welcome to look at whatever you’d like.” Everything is in an underground warehouse a few miles away from here. I don’t take my work home.

  They walk away. Kelly is still quietly coughing next to me.

  “Are you going to jail?”

  “Not today, sweetheart.”

  An EMT is walking over to us.

  “She was the only one in the house when the fire started.”

  Kelly starts coughing again.

  “Can you walk?”

  Kelly nods, even though her eyes are watering.

  The EMT guides her into the ambulance. She puts an oxygen mask over Kelly’s nose and mouth. I follow. I don’t want to get in her way, but I’m going with them to the hospital.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Hospital

  Kelly

  The sirens are incredibly loud as they take me to the hospital. Iacopo has his hand in mine. I close my eyes.

  “Just breathe.” I don’t know if the EMT is talking to me or Iacopo. His grip is really tight, but I find it reassuring.

  Traveling at top speed in an ambulance gets us to the hospital in record time. Then we’re rolling into the emergency ward.

  “Smoke inhalation,” the EMT spits as I’m taken out of the ambulance.

  Iacopo is behind the EMT and the nurses who are looking at me.

  There’s a crazy flurry of activity. I didn’t realize that smoke inhalation was life-threatening, because they’re acting as if I’m on the verge of death.

  It must be Iacopo. I can’t even keep track of everything going on, but I can see him behind all the medical professionals. There’s soot on him, but nobody has even tried to force him to clean up or get checked for smoke inhalation. I feel reassured with him there.

  Then the medical professionals seem to be done, because they leave me in the bed with an oxygen mask over my face. I can’t talk like this.

  Iacopo takes my hand.

  “I’m sorry,” he says, squeezing my hand gently. “You shouldn’t have been there. What’s going on between Ariana and me…it has nothing to do with you.” His jaw clenches. “And you should go home.”

  I try to pull my oxygen mask off so I can talk, but he keeps my mask on.

  So all I can do is look at him. I can see the fear on his face. It’s naked. I think that he’s thinking about what it would’ve been like if I died.

  What about my dad’s debt? He’s acting like I wasn’t there for a reason. Or maybe he thinks that inhaling some smoke is enough to pay it off.

  But I’m exhausted. I wonder if they’ve given me an anesthetic. I can feel myself drifting off. Iacopo’s hand is still in mine as I fall asleep.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Nonna’s Ring

  Iacopo

  Seeing her soot-streaked face hurts. Ariana went too far. I will make sure that Ariana doesn’t get the chance to do this again. I don’t care about my own safety. Everyone dies. But she had no reason to attack Kelly. I know that the fire was laser-targeted to fuck with me.

  She can’t imagine what I’m going to do next. There’s no way that she knows that she made me realize how important Kelly is to me.

  The idea of Kelly dying in a fire hurts me. I know that we’ve been together for a matter of days, but I’ve known her for her entire life. She’s so different from Ariana that I know what I want now, while I have a moment of clarity. The bottom line is that Kelly is someone who means the world to me.

  I let go of her hand and go outside. One of my men is sitting on a chair, taking a good look at everyone around.

  “I need to go to the bank.”

  “Of course, sir.”

  I walk downstairs. By the time that I’m there, there’s a car waiting for me.

  It might seem strange that I’ve kept my valuables in a bank, but they don’t have any paperwork. They just have some heirlooms, nothing to do with the business.

  When I get there, the branch manager comes out. We don’t use the bank for anything illegal. My accounts here are related to our legal businesses.

  “Hello, Mr. Genovese. What a pleasure to see you.”

  He doesn’t say anything about the soot on my clothes.

  “Hello, Mark. I’m here to take a look at my safety deposit box.”

  “Of course,” he says smoothly. “Give me a minute to get my key. You have yours?”

  “Yes.”

  Mark goes to his office and pulls out a key from a drawer. I know that normally, he wouldn’t need to do this. But I’m a big customer.

  He takes me into the room and unlocks my box with his key. I turn my key.

  “Just put it back when you’re ready. Take your time, sir.” He walks out.

  I swallow hard when I’m alone in the room with my safety deposit box. I open it.

  There’s a small black box inside. I open it.

  Even in the dim light of this secure room, Nonna’s ring sparkles. The diamond isn’t big. I close my eyes and think about my young childhood. I can smell my nonna’s lemony scent when I see this ring. It was always on her hand, even after my grandfather passed. In this ring, I hold hundreds of memories of sunny afternoons spent baking cookies and hearing her stories.

  Taking this ring out is a big step. I hope it’s the right choice. Something inside of me says that Nonna would’ve loved Kelly.

  And that decides everything. I put the ring box in my pocket, close the box, and slide it back into its place.

  The ring feels heavy in my pocket. It’s a small box, but it means so much. The decision to marry Kelly is a crossroad in my life. It’s a momentous occasion. I take a moment to gather my thoughts and slow down my heart rate, then I walk out.

  “Thank you,” I tell the manager who is hovering outside of the room.

  “My pleasure.” Her heels click as she walks me to the door. “Have a pleasant day, now.”

  “You, too.”

  I haven’t decided how I’m going to propose to her yet. Public or private? Hearts and flowers or naked? So many choices.

  I haven’t had sex with her yet. In my heart, I know what I was waiting for. For our first time, I wanted my ring to be on her finger.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Proposal

  Kelly

  I wake up when I hear someone cursing.

  “Motherfucker!”

  I open my eyes. The mask is still on my face. I can see Iacopo standing next to me.

  When he sees me looking at him, he explains, “Stubbed my toe.”

  I point at my mask. This time, he lets me take it off.

  “You’re not coughing anymore.”

  “I wasn’t in there for that long.” My voice is still raspy.

  Iacopo kneels down next to my bed.

  “I want to ask you something.”

  “Go for it.” He’s down on one knee as if he’s going to propose to some lucky lady.

  “You almost died today.”

  “I did not,” I protest. But he just shakes his head.

  “It made me realize how I’d feel if you died.”

  “How would you feel?”

  “Like all the sunlight was gone. Like my world would be eternal night.”

  We haven’t really even been involved.

  “That’s fast. I don’t know if I’m ready for this.”

  “I’ve never been more ready. You know that I used to be married. I already have a kid, Lucia.”

  “And I love her.”

  “And I’d like for you to be part of my family.”

  “I’m already sort of part of your family.”

  “No, Kelly.” He’s reaching into his jacket pocket.

  My entire world stops when I see the ring box in his hand.

  “Nope. Nope. Stop.” I put the oxygen mask on, because I feel like all the air
has been sucked out of the room.

  “Listen to me. You’ve always been part of the family. I knew that Ariana could’ve ended what we have before it even started.”

  I yank my mask off. “I just moved in with you a few days ago! And now you have a ring!”

  “It’s my grandmother’s ring.”

  “Even worse.” I shake my head. “I can’t accept it.”

  “I want everyone to know that you belong to me. I want Ariana to know that she can’t hurt you again.”

  I can’t talk. I can’t deny that hearing him talk about belonging to him isn’t turning me on a little.

  But how can I agree? A few days ago, he was threatening my dad’s life. Now he wants to marry me.

  And then he’s pulling the ring out of the box and putting it on my finger. I try to move and take it off.

  “Listen to me. You will be safer with this ring on your finger than you’d be without it.”

  “I can’t. Don’t ask me to do this, Iacopo.” My childhood fairytale prince is here in the hospital with me, but he’s in the Mafia and he threatened my dad to make me move in with him. I don’t know how to make my mental images of him match up.

  “Wear it. We don’t have to set a date. Just consider it protection.”

  “You think that she’s going to come for you again? Won’t she be even more motivated if she knows that I mean something to you?”

  “I think that she already knew.”

  A female doctor walks into my room.

  “Are you ready to be discharged?”

  “Are you joking? She just got here.” Iacopo explodes, walking towards the doctor. “She needs to stay overnight at least.”

  “There’s no reason for us to keep her.” Apparently the doctor can’t be bullied by Iacopo. “You can bring her back if she gets worse, but we don’t have enough beds.”