by J. L. Drake
Sweetheart? What decade is this? And why do I like him calling me that? What is wrong with me?
I wouldn’t call myself a feminist or anything. I liked a man who opened an occasional door for me and picked up the tab after a nice meal. Lord knew, I wished Kevin had done more of those things when we were together rather than acting like a self-absorbed asshole.
I lowered my lashes and tugged on the hem of my skirt. My nerves were fraught, and I couldn’t speak, so I stared unblinking for a prolonged beat. “How does pretending I’m your fiancée do anything?”
“That’s the way things work in my world. As long as you’re my fiancée, no one will touch you. When things calm down, we can both get back to our lives, and this will all be forgotten.”
I bit my lower lip to stop myself from crying. “I don’t get it. Why are you doing this? Why do you care what happens to me?”
Exhaling, he scrubbed his hand down his face. His eyes darkened like a storm was brewing inside of him, but the emotion disappeared nearly as quickly as it materialized. “Because you’re important to my sister.”
I picked at tiny threads in my skirt, trying to comprehend everything that had happened. “What are we going to tell Carmela?”
He loosened his tie and opened the top two buttons on his shirt. Reaching out, he gently brushed his fingertips along my cheek. “That it was love at first sight or that we’ve been seeing each other secretly for a while.”
My face heated. “She won’t believe us.”
He managed a faint smile that failed to reach his eyes. I couldn’t get a good read on this man. “It’s your job to make her believe, sweetheart.”
“Fine. I’ll do my best.” I squared my shoulders, desperately trying to suppress the dread and hopelessness raging through me. I needed to find a way out of this mess.
He tossed my purse in my lap. “Let’s get out of here. We’ll be lucky to catch Carmela while she’s still awake if we wait much longer.”
I rose to my feet, fleetingly wishing I had the power to transport myself back in time to the moment before I injured my ankle. I would have marched off the stage before I jumped, I would have broken up with Kevin, and I would have stayed far away from Gianluca Trassato. Too bad wishing and hoping were useless.
I followed Gian out of the building, feeling more alone than ever.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Gian
Evie stared at the door to the apartment she shared with my sister, her eyes shuttered and her mouth pinched.
I threaded my fingers between hers and tilted my head toward the door. “Do you have keys?”
She dropped her head and swayed into me. For a split second, I thought her knees would buckle under the weight of what we needed to do. I coiled my arm around her waist, drinking in the sweet scent of her strawberry-colored hair. Having her in my life and home would be a disaster, but I had made my choice, and I wouldn’t back down after I gave my word. She needed my protection.
She cleared her throat and wiggled out of my hold, her sharp elbow wedging beneath my ribs like a dagger.
“Don’t touch me.” Her hand dove into a tiny clutch purse, and she pulled out a keychain with a lone key dangling from a pair of gold ballet slippers.
“Get over yourself. You were about to fall.”
Her eyes hardened. “I was not.” Her shoulders snapped back, and like magic, the hesitation and powerlessness rolling off her disappeared.
I snatched the key out of her hand and unlocked and opened the door in a matter of seconds. Evie stepped in front of me, her head held high and her hands wrapped around her purse like it was a shield.
Carmela sat on the sofa, fiddling with her iPod. She caught my gaze, and her brows snapped together. “Hey, guys.” She slipped off her headphones and rested them around her neck. “What’s going on? Did you give Evie a ride?”
I glanced at Evie. She stood frozen, her muscles tensed, and her eyes wide like she didn’t know what to say. “Um,” she muttered. What was her problem? Either she sure was a piss poor actress or Carmela had lied to me.
I settled into the gray and white chevron patterned club chair. “Listen, Evie is going to move into my place.”
My sister shook her head slowly like she didn’t understand what I had said. “You mean at the apartment above your bar? I thought Evie decided she didn’t want to work there.”
I rubbed my hand over my lips. As much as I hated lying to my sister, I didn’t have a choice. While our dad always did his best to protect her from the ugly side of being affiliated with the Trassato Crime Family, and I intended to do the same, that didn’t mean she was in the dark. She’d seen enough over the years to know our family was about more than love, loyalty, and tradition. And if she didn’t get the full picture as a kid, she sure as hell understood when her fiancé was rushed to the hospital with four bullet holes in his chest after a shootout with the DiTonnos.
“No. She’s going to move into my home with me.”
“What?” She jumped to her feet with her hands curled into tight balls next to her black lounge pants. “Why the hell would she do that?”
“Carmela,” Evie said, her hand dropping onto the top of my shoulder. “Gian and I…” She paused, visibly swallowed, and plastered a megawatt smile on her face. “We’re dating.”
Carmela’s attention locked on me like a sharp shooter. “Dating? You broke up with the art douche last week, and my brother doesn’t date. He…he…” she flicked her wrist in my direction, “has meaningless flings that last hours, not days or months.”
Coming to my feet, I slipped an arm around Evie’s waist, acutely aware of the way her body stiffened under my hand. Carmela needed to shut the hell up so Evie didn’t end up more suspicious of my motives and me than she already was. I needed her compliant and trusting if our ruse had any chance of succeeding.
“That stopped the minute I met Evie,” I said.
Carmela’s eyebrows shot up. “Are you seriously trying to convince me you are a changed man as of…” she glanced at the clock on the wall above her long rectangular fireplace with zen-like black rocks lining the bottom “…three hours ago?”
Evie leaned her head against my shoulder, strands of her silken hair tangling in my whiskers. “Carmela, we met a few months ago. We were friendly in the beginning, but it recently evolved into more.”
“Wait. I don’t get it.” Carmela frowned. “Why didn’t you mention you knew my brother?”
I squeezed Evie’s waist, signaling her to let me answer. “I asked her not to. I know how protective you are of your friends, and I thought it’d be better to keep it quiet until her ex was out of the picture and she was ready to commit to a real relationship. We both knew we couldn’t keep you in the dark much longer when you asked me to hire her.”
“Are you serious, Evie?” Carmela asked, her voice climbing higher with every syllable. “You just got out of one fucked up relationship, and now you’re moving in with my brother? My fucking brother? Do you realize how crazy this sounds?” She pinched the bridge of her nose. “Tell me you guys are only messing with me because this is absolutely insane.”
I kissed the side of Evie’s head. “Go get your things. Let me talk to my sister alone.”
She leaned into me, her lips brushing against the rim of my ear. “I can’t stand you. You know that, right?”
Ice seeped deep inside of my core, and my fingers dug into her waist. Even though this arrangement was a necessary hoax, she needed to remember her place. “You only wish you did, sweetheart, but don’t worry. I won’t hold it against you.”
Evie’s heels clacked over the honeyed hardwood floors, and a door slammed. I had saved her ass for reasons that were becoming increasingly unclear. She was going to fuck this up if she didn’t reel in her emotions. Part of me wanted to follow her down the hall and rip into her for being ungrateful. If she barged in on any other capo, she’d be at the bottom of the Hudson River by now.
“Gian—” Carmela wagged a red-tip
ped finger at me “—tell me the truth. What’s really going on?”
“There’s nothing to share.”
“You seriously want me to accept the fairytale you’ve tried to spin? I know you, and I know Evie. I don’t believe for one second that you’ve changed your ways or that she would jump into another relationship. She planned to marry that pathetic excuse for a man until a week ago because she thought she loved him. She would never be interested in someone like you. Don’t take this the wrong way, but you aren’t boyfriend material, and up until right now, you’ve never pretended to be.”
I shrugged, ignoring her attempt to bait me. “Maybe you don’t know either of us as well as you thought.”
She shoved her hair away from her face. “She doesn’t keep secrets.”
I glanced down the hall. What was taking her so long? “Everyone has secrets.”
She sucked her lower lip into her mouth and grasped my hand. “Please don’t push this relationship. Evie doesn’t need someone in her life who thinks being faithful is optional.”
I hesitated, a toxic cocktail of guilt, anger, and regret sloshing around in my gut. “Trust me. I won’t hurt her. I asked her to marry me.”
She gasped. “What?”
I tugged on the collar of my shirt. Why the fuck did it suddenly feel like it was a hundred degrees in here? “We’re engaged.”
She studied me like she had suddenly acquired a superpower designed to ferret out lies. After a beat, her shoulders sagged, and she leaned against the flared arm of the sofa. “Please tell me this is a joke.”
“It’s not.” I shifted my feet. “I wanted her to know I was serious about her, and I am. This is what I want, what we both want. Don’t worry, though. We’re not rushing to set a wedding date or anything. We’ll take our time.”
“You’re not going to back off no matter what I say. Are you?”
I didn’t respond for a split second, the echo of her frustration and defeat swirling around us. “No, and I’d appreciate if you didn’t meddle in our relationship. We’ve got enough to work through without adding your opinions into the mix.”
She squeezed her eyes closed. “Fine, I’ll reserve judgment for now, but if I suspect you of cheating on her or playing games with her, all bets are off.”
“Thanks.” I kissed the top of her head.
“Is everything okay?” Evie said, pausing at the end of the hallway, a suitcase in one hand and an oversized purse in the other.
“Yeah.” Carmela crossed the room and wrapped her arms around Evie. “Let me know if you need anything.”
“I’ll be okay. Don’t worry about me.”
I collected the suitcase from Evie’s hand. “Did you get everything?”
“I think so.” She made eye contact with my sister. “Thanks for everything, Carmela. The apartment, the pep talks, your advice. Everything. So much.”
“Of course.” My sister looked like she was going to cry. We needed to get the hell out of here because I wasn’t entirely sure Evie wouldn’t blurt out the truth if pushed.
I laced my fingers through Evie’s and led her out of the apartment. The minute the door closed behind us, Evie yanked her hand from mine and wiped it on her skirt.
“Do you think she believed us?” she asked.
I took a deep breath. “For your sake, I hope so.”
CHAPTER NINE
Evangeline
Footsteps echoed on the hardwood floors.
Clack.
Shuffle.
Tap.
I looked up from the half-eaten food, my hungry gaze landing on Gian. I shamelessly drank in the angles of his face, so bronzed in comparison to his white collared shirt.
A week.
Seven Days.
One hundred sixty-eight hours.
That’s how long had passed since I made a deal with Gianluca Trassato.
For the most part, we communicated on an as-needed basis, and we barely spent any time in each other’s presence. All told, I’d only seen Gian four times, this moment included. I was starting to think he didn’t come home most nights, which should have made me happy, except it didn’t. I was lonely. My life had imploded, and I didn’t have anyone to confide in anymore.
“Oh. I didn’t know you were here,” I said around a mouthful of food. “Lucky me,” I mumbled under my breath.
He paused, his spine snapping straight. His dark stare raked up my seated form, finally settling on the wall above my head. “I came home to change.” He tugged his shirtsleeves, and the light glinted off his mother of pearl cufflinks.
“Fabulous.” I dragged my fork through my rice, now less appealing than it was seconds ago. “Well, now you can be on your way.”
Five fluid strides and he bridged the distance between us. “What’s wrong with you?”
I raised my brows, a closed-lipped smirk on my face. “Nothing. I’m perfect. My life has never been better. I must admit I underestimated the appeal of being under house arrest. It certainly has it charms.”
He leaned his hip against the kitchen counter and folded his arms across his chest. The way his well-honed muscles pulled and stretched the fabric of his suit didn’t escape my attention. In fact, I was pretty sure a demon butterfly took flight inside my stomach every time I looked at him. Dammit. I hated him. I hated this whole situation. He was bad for me. Sadly, certain turncoat parts of my body apparently failed to receive the message.
“I haven’t stopped you from doing anything.”
I tossed my fork on the countertop. It slid across the slick surface and tumbled to the floor with a loud clank. “You have someone following me.” I waved my hand cheekily. “Why don’t you strap a tracking bracelet around my ankle and get over it?”
Gian had Tony follow me everywhere like a living, breathing fucking shadow. It wouldn’t have been so bad if he talked to me, but conversations with him were nonexistent. He didn’t resemble the guy I met the night this whole thing started. He rarely made eye contact, evidently preferring to pretend I didn’t exist. I couldn’t blame him. He was only following his boss’ lead.
Gian rubbed his fingers over his lips. Those same lips that were perpetually lifted at the corners like he was the keeper of all my dirty secrets, amusement shining in his amber-colored eyes. “You know, now that you mention it, that’s not such a bad idea.”
I yanked on the soft fabric of my favorite pair of boyfriend jeans and kicked out my leg. “Go ahead. You might as well.”
His fingertips brushed over my ankle, and a jolt of uninvited heat surged through me. I jerked my leg away from him, and he sighed.
“This isn’t a game, Evie. I’m doing this for you.”
“Yeah, whatever. Just go.”
He stared at me for a prolonged beat then closed his eyes, his nostrils flaring. “Are you going anywhere tonight?”
“Nope. If you haven’t noticed, I don’t have much of a life anymore.”
His jaw fixed in a stubborn line. “You go to physical therapy and train every day. You don’t have any expenses. I feed you. I house you. You don’t have to work. Sounds ideal if you ask me. What more do you need?”
I threw up my hands. “I don’t know. Maybe some human interaction. Maybe some freedom. Both of those would be a good start.”
“I can’t talk about this right now. I have a meeting at the club.”
“Of course you do.”
He raked his hands through his wavy hair, his eyes flashing with annoyance. “I’ll get Tony. He’ll be here all night if you need anything.”
I didn’t answer him. There wasn’t anything to say. Living here was like living with ghosts. Tony rarely talked to me. Gian avoided me. I was sick of it. I was sick of everything. Everyone. I had spent the last year being Kevin’s puppet, feigning interest in his art world, ready to sacrifice my dreams on the altar of marital bliss. Though Gian made the pretense of giving me the means to achieve my goals, I didn’t have anything else. No life, no love, no friends. And for the life of me, I didn�
��t know which was worse. Self-pity swelled inside my chest, which only made me more frustrated with myself.
He headed to the door without giving me another look, much less another thought.
I flinched when the door slammed. A couple of minutes later, Tony entered the house and sat in a chair inside the front door.
Everything inside of me ached with sorrow, regret, and a hundred things I couldn’t name, and I didn’t have anyone to blame except myself.
I tossed my half-eaten box of Chinese takeout into the trash and tucked my purse under my arm. “I’ll be back in a couple of hours.” Tony stood up, and I waved him away. “You don’t need to come with me.”
Tony’s hand curled around my shoulder. “You can’t go anywhere alone. Gian won’t like it.”
I whirled around and cocked one eyebrow. “I don’t care what Gian does or doesn’t like. I don’t work for him. He doesn’t need to keep tabs on me.”
I was suffocating on my loneliness. A few more days of this and I’d start talking to random people on the street or myself. I’d walked away from Kevin’s cheating ass, and nothing had improved. Now, I’d become Gian’s pseudo fiancée, which in his world was code for prisoner. I couldn’t eat, breathe, or sleep without an escort.
Tony sucked in his lips, making his beak-like nose more prominent. “You told him you were in for the night.”
I shrugged. “So? What’s your point? It’s not like he’s rushing home to hang out with me.”
“He’s busy,” he growled.
“Whatever. If it’s a problem, call Gian and tell him I’m going out again.”
His eyes narrowed. “Even if he agrees, you still can’t go anywhere by yourself.”
“Right. I forgot. I’m a prisoner.” I rolled my eyes. “Why don’t you call your boss while I go to the bathroom and get ready?”
Not waiting for a response, I rushed to the bathroom and locked the door behind me.