by Naomi West
A thump from the other side of the apartment made me freeze. I glanced at the alarm clock on the night stand. It had been only an hour and a half. If I’d made it over to the window, I would have been dead.
The bedroom door opened. Lorenzo entered and shut it behind him. As though I weighed nothing, he pulled my chair toward the bed so he could sit down and face me. He leaned forward. “I’m going to take off your gag, but you have to promise that you won’t scream. You do, and that’ll be it. You understand?”
I nodded feebly.
“Good.” He reached around the back of my head to undo the knot. His skin smelled of cologne, sweat, and gunpowder. “It looks as though you behaved yourself while I was gone. I shouldn’t be expecting the cops to come up the elevator anytime soon, should I?”
I wished that I could say yes, but of course that wasn’t true. I was all alone with a hitman. “No.”
He nodded. “Here’s the deal: If you want to live, then I’m going to need you to cooperate with me. I killed Calzoni and his men, but you should be dead, too. Those were my instructions. If anyone finds out that you’re alive, then you’ll have people after you both from my boss and whatever contingent of the Calzoni family might still be out there. They’ll kill me and they’ll kill you, too. Do you understand?”
I nodded, adrenaline and fear running through my body. “So, you didn’t tell your boss about me?”
“Damn me, no I didn’t,” he replied, his voice rough. “But having you around makes things very complicated. You’ve seen too much, and I can’t just let you go. No matter what you say or how many promises you make, that’s more of a risk than I’m willing to take right now. And that’s coming from someone who takes his chances on a daily basis.”
I was ready to promise him anything he wanted, even if he asked me to move to Canada. It would be better than dying, that much I knew. “But, really, I promise I won’t—”
“No!” He cut me off with his voice and a sharp gesture of his hand. “I don’t even want to hear it, because we’re not doing that. You aren’t leaving my side. I need you where I can keep my eye on you, which is why you’re going to pretend to be my girlfriend.”
My insides had been knotted up for hours, ever since Lorenzo had come into my life the night before. Now they turned to water. Just where was this insanity leading anyway? “What?”
Lorenzo stood up and began pacing again. He ran his hands through his thick, black hair, making it stand up in all directions. “It’s simple, really. I should have thought of it earlier. Neither Moretti nor anyone else in the family know about you. Sure, they could probably guess that there was some, um, entertainment last night, but they don’t know that it was specifically you. It could have been any other woman, and so the stripper who was at Calzoni’s club last night is dead. You, Alexis, are not that woman.”
I wasn’t quite following, but he was on a roll. I didn’t dare make him repeat himself. I knew what men were like when they got angry. Lorenzo gestured wildly, and I flinched. No matter how much I tried to put my past behind me, I could never quite stop myself from expecting the abuse all over again. When Dino had found me, I thought he was going to finally get me out of the rut I had been living in. It turned out that he was only another level of my own personal hell.
“Instead, you’re an old friend of mine whom I’ve just come across again,” he continued. We’ve rekindled our old flame, and I’m letting you stay with me until you get back on your feet. I haven’t figured out the backstory yet. Maybe you lost your job or you’re trying to get away from a rotten ex-boyfriend or something.”
“Yeah, that sounds about right.” I had moved to this town for just that purpose, so the façade wouldn’t be a hard one to keep. No matter how much we fought, Dino wouldn’t let me just walk away. Moving out and avoiding his phone calls hadn’t been enough, and I’d finally had to pack my bags and steal away into the night. Maybe that was why I hadn’t tried hard enough to get a new job. The night had been my friend, and I was safer if I went out after dark. But maybe not. There was no logic in my former relationship with Dino, and I couldn’t expect to find any anytime soon.
“Fine, we’ll use that.” He started pacing again, and I realized this was his habit when he was thinking. “And we have to come up with a new job for you. I can’t say that the guys would be upset if I was dating a dancer, but we can’t have any ties to you and Calzoni. Is there some other job you know a lot about? Something you’ve always wanted to do? We need to make it believable.”
I searched my mind, but it was mush. I’d been awake for far too long, and I’d never quite stopped being afraid of this man. Just because he seemed to want to keep me alive didn’t mean he wouldn’t change his mind. “Um, I was a secretary at an insurance office for a little while.” It hadn’t lasted long, but it was the only “real” job I’d had.
“Good. That’ll work.” Lorenzo rubbed his hands together as his plan developed. “So, that’s what you did before you moved here. You’re looking for a new job. Got all that?”
“Yeah, I guess so. But what do I do? How do I convince these people that I’m someone else?” As far as I knew, I’d never been involved with the mafia before. It was quite possible that a member or two had come into The Corral, but they had never made it known. “I’ve never done this kind of thing before.”
My captor stopped pacing and sat down in front of me once again. “Sure, you have. You act all the time.”
I eyed him sideways. “I was never even in a school play.”
He shook his head. “I mean as a stripper. You dance, but there’s more to it than that. When the men pay attention to you, you act like you’re interested in them, right? You make them feel like they’re only one pickup line away from taking you home.”
I looked down at my lap, suddenly ashamed. It was all true and I had known that, but it was completely different to hear a stranger say it out loud. “Yes, I suppose I do.”
“Hey.” He put a finger under my chin and tipped my face back up. His skin was hot against mine. It was the first time he had touched me without trying to detain me. “It’s not something to be ashamed of. It’s actually a very handy skill for you right now. You just have to pretend like I’m one of your customers. Make everyone think that we’re really together, and the rest of it will all fall into place.”
I took a deep breath to keep the tears that pricked at my eyes from spilling over. It was all so overwhelming. “Okay. Well, can I at least get something to eat first? Or take a shower?”
He smiled, and it sent a glint of amusement into his dark eyes. “Yes, but we’re not going over there today. We have some work to do first.”
Chapter Six
Lorenzo
I had managed to put off the celebratory dinner for an entire week, citing the fact that I was tired and I had some things to take care of. Matteo was far too understanding, and it only made me even more paranoid that he knew my secret. But I had held off long enough, and it was time to leave for the restaurant.
“Are you about ready?” I asked as I rapped my knuckles against the bedroom door. I’d been forced to give her my room, since the guest bedroom had my gun vault and numerous other weapons hidden in it. I’d put alarms on the window and the door, just in case, but I knew she wasn’t going anywhere. There was something about the way she looked at me that let me know she had surrendered to trusting me, at least for the time being. As for me, I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about what she must look like all alone in that big bed of mine.
“Pretty much.” She swung open the door. “I just don’t know if this outfit is right for me.” She stood uncertainly in the doorway in gray dress trousers that hugged her hips and flared out slightly above her black heels. Her cream-colored top and the short, teal blazer that she wore over the top of it were a nice effect.
“You seemed to like it just fine at the store.” I had hesitated on taking her out shopping, but she couldn’t wear pasties and glittery stripper shoes to a me
eting with Matteo. Everyone would know her secret—and mine—in an instant. I had considered just ordering some new clothing for her online, but I realized that taking her out in public would actually be a good idea. If anyone was watching us, they would see us out as a couple, with me buying anything she liked and taking her out to lunch. It was also a good test of her acting skills. If she treated me as her jailer at the department store, then there would be no way she would be able to handle dinner with the Morettis. To her credit, Alexis had passed with flying colors.
“It’s always different when you try it on at the store,” she insisted. “The lighting is different, and I was a little excited to get some new clothes.” Her cheeks flushed.
I looked at my watch to avoid looking at her face. “We need to get going soon.” She was hot, but when she stood there embarrassed over her outfit it made her adorable, too. I couldn’t think like that. I had to remember that I was acting, too, and that she wasn’t my girlfriend. But the things I would have done to her if she was …
“Maybe I just need that necklace.” She retreated from the doorway and stepped across the room to the dresser to fish through a small shopping bag. I admired her backside freely; Vettoria would no doubt congratulate me on such a catch. “There, is that better?” she asked when she turned back around. She had added a pendant necklace that hovered just above her cleavage.
“That’s fine. Let’s go.” I shooed her down the hallway.
Alexis picked up the small, black purse she had chosen at the store from the table in the hall and turned back to look at me. “I’m nervous about this. I don’t know if I can do it.”
“You can,” I corrected her. “And you will. It’s either that or die, so there’s not much choice in the matter. Besides, you did fine when we went shopping.”
“That was different,” she insisted. “Nobody was watching us.”
I didn’t bother telling her that it was quite possible that someone was. It wouldn’t have helped any. Instead, I guided her out the door and to the elevator. We didn’t speak as we descended toward the parking garage, where my Lexus was waiting for us. Keeping up appearances, I opened the door for her before I went around to get behind the wheel.
I had to admit that she looked amazing in that outfit. Sure, she was hot in her stripper clothes, but seeing her in normal attire made her a completely different person. Those pants hugged her hips in just the right way, and the shirt gave just the tiniest peek of her cleavage. It was enough to make me wish I could pull over and have my way with her. It had been so hard having her in my apartment for the past week, knowing that she was just on the other side of the wall, changing clothes or taking a shower. I wanted her, and I wondered if she wanted me too.
“Why didn’t you just shoot me?” Alexis blurted as I turned onto the highway, interrupting my fantasy. She sat hunched down in the seat, clutching her purse to her stomach. “It would have been easier.”
I looked at her for a moment before returning my gaze to the road in front of us. “Well, if you act like that when we get to the restaurant, you’ll get your wish and Matteo will have both of us dead in our spaghetti.” Why did she have to be so difficult? She only seemed interested in preserving her own skin about half the time. The rest was split between pouting over her situation or fussing over her clothes. Although, I had to admit, she was cute when she stuck her lips out a little.
“I’m serious. This is just ridiculous. Why go to such lengths to save my life? It doesn’t make any sense.” She wouldn’t look at me, staring out the passenger window instead.
What could I say? How could I possibly explain it when I didn’t quite understand myself? I ignored the question and steered the conversation toward more important matters. “You remember everything about our story, right?”
Alexis nodded, but didn’t answer, no doubt still thinking about her ridiculous question.
“We found each other again when we met up at the 57th Street Bar. You had just come into town to get away from your boyfriend, and you needed a place to stay. We easily slipped back into our old feelings for each other, and you moved in.” I had rehearsed it over and over in my head, worried that one of us would get it wrong. This had to go off without a hitch.
“Yes, I remember,” she snapped. “But have you thought about how you’re going to introduce him? Even if he does own the restaurant, I doubt he has a business card that says, ‘Matteo Moretti – Crime Boss.’ What’s the cover story there?”
“I have thought about that, actually.” There was no reason to doubt me, but I knew she was scared. Her blue eyes were just a little bit wider than usual and she fidgeted constantly with the strap of her purse. “Anytime Moretti is out in the public, he’s an investor. Since he really does invest a lot of money, it’s not much of a stretch.”
Alexis shook her head. “No, not at all. You’re just leaving out the part about him having people knocked off on a regular basis.”
“You aren’t making this any easier,” I argued. “Just play it cool and it will all be over with before you know it.” I pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant.
Chapter Seven
Alexis
My stomach lurched, and not from the movement of the car. It was a smooth ride, and Lorenzo was a good driver. But the idea of meeting the biggest crime boss in the city—especially now that Calzoni was gone—didn’t sit well on my stomach. The closest I ever should have been to this man was reading about him in a newspaper.
I straightened my outfit, trying not to let my hands shake. It was a shame that all these beautiful clothes had been bought with blood money. I’d never had a guy take me out to the stores like that before. Lorenzo had waited patiently while I picked out makeup and clothes, given me his opinion outside the fitting room, and never batted an eye at any of the purchases. He had been such a gentleman, and for a little while, I allowed myself to believe that he meant it.
But as we approached the restaurant, I instantly remembered that this was all just a hoax to save his ass. He hadn’t done the job he was supposed to do, and even though I had to be grateful for that in some fashion, I didn’t appreciate being his pawn. Lorenzo was a dangerous man, and he had put me in an even more dangerous spot.
“Have you ever eaten here before?” he whispered in my ear, gesturing toward the large sign that read, Jianna’s.
“I can’t say that I make it a habit to support the mafia with my eating habits,” I whispered back as I studied the place. The brick building had arched windows all along the front and warm lights shone out them. It looked expensive and inviting.
“You’ll love it,” he replied, ignoring my snide remark. He was good at ignoring me when it benefited him. “Jianna is an amazing cook, and she does almost all the food herself. Even the breadsticks are handmade. I highly recommend the shrimp alfredo.”
No matter how good all of that might have sounded on another day, I couldn’t fathom eating or even ordering. I knew about Moretti from the newspapers, and I didn’t like the idea of sitting down at a dining table with him. A flash of movement in the corner of my eye caught my attention, and I turned to look.
“What is it?” Lorenzo asked.
But I only saw the crowded downtown street, cars parked alongside the curb, and numerous pedestrians teeming on the sidewalk. Whatever it was, was now gone. “Nothing. Just seeing things. Let’s get this over with.”
The host didn’t even bother asking our names. He left his podium to escort us through the dining room to a private table in the back. It was separated from the rest of the place by a thick, red curtain, but I felt as though I was stepping into another world. We left behind the happy couples and young families who shared garlic bread at their tables and entered a scene that could have been decades old.
The head of the family sat at the head of the table. I knew instantly that it was him. I had seen his picture before, and everyone else seemed to be eager to serve him. He ruled the table with a gimlet eye and a small smile. The young man to his
right poured the wine, and a plump, dark-haired woman stood just over his shoulder and served up his salad. Several other men were seated around the table.
Lorenzo put his hand at the small of my back and guided me to a chair on the opposite side of the table from the mob boss. “Just relax,” he whispered in my ear. “It’ll be fine.”
I nodded, but I couldn’t quite believe him. How was I going to manage this? Surely these people were naturally suspicious. Didn’t they have to be, due to the business they were involved in? The man to Matteo’s right was already eyeing me closely.
“Sir, I’d like to introduce you to my girlfriend, Alexis,” Lorenzo said graciously. “Alexis, this is my boss, Matteo, and his wife, Jianna. Their son, Piero.” He gestured to the young man next to Matteo, who gave me the smallest smile before it was swept away once again by his scowl. My fake boyfriend then introduced the rest of the men around the table, but I couldn’t keep track of all the different names and faces.