Chapter 47

Nico looses a long breath between his teeth and starts towards the door, turning towards me as he mouths “don’t say a damn thing.”

I shrug, helpless, glaring at him and hoping that he gets the message that I wasn’t planning to. God, why is he being so hard on me today? He’s acting like all of this is my fault when I didn’t do anything! I’ve just been sitting around doing Frankie’s makeup!

But there’s no time to be mad about it anymore once Nico opens the door and reveals Don Romano standing there, smirking as he looks around at the three of us, well aware that he’s surprised us and pleased to have done it.

“Where’s Christian?” he snaps.

“Um,” Nico says, turning towards the bedroom where Christian disappeared with Violetta.

Romano grunts in response, looking hard at the door of the master bedroom as he steps into the room and closes the door behind him. Frankie and I continue standing still as statues, waiting to be called upon and desperately hoping that we won’t be. “Is he busy?” Romano asks.

“I don’t really know,” Nico replies, clearly nervous, running a hand through his dark hair. “We just got here.”

“Good,” Romano says, slipping his hands into his pockets and turning his gaze to, of all people, me. “Keep him busy. I’m not here for him anyway.”

My eyes go wide and I feel my face go cold. What? Why…

“Hello, Iris,” Romano says, a wicked grin appearing at his face as he delights in my clear panic.

I stay perfectly silent, just staring, until Frankie gives me a hard nudge with his elbow. I stumble forward a step before I realize that Frankie’s telling me to talk.

“Um, hi,” I say, awkward as hell and hating myself for it. But I’m just terrified – this man, he’s completely unpredictable, and I have no idea what’s going to happen next.

The Don laughs at me, cold and low, shaking his head at my timidity, my fear. “You’re not in trouble, Iris. You don’t have to look at me like you’re worried I’m going to hit you.”

I do my best to stand a little straighter, to put a pleasant smile on my face – but honestly, I can’t help it. I am a little afraid he’s going to hit me. After the display of violence I saw him put on so casually the other day? I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to mentally unlink him from that act.

“Um,” I say, twisting my hands behind my back. “What can I do for you, sir?”

I pray, desperately, that it’s the right thing to say.

“Actually, Iris,” he says, stepping closer, his grin deepening. “I was impressed, the other day, by your display of loyalty to Christian. To our family.”

I tilt my head in surprise because…I mean, it wasn’t precisely a display of loyalty, was it? It was just that I’m not loyal to my ex. But the Don keeps taking, and I force myself to pay attention.

“So impressed,” Romano continues, “that I wondered if you’d be interested if I offered you…a job.”

My eyebrows shoot up to my hairline.

“A job?” I hear myself ask the question, though I have absolutely no memory of deciding to say anything at all.

“Sir,” Nico breaks in with a frown, stepping closer to me. “Christian’s given orders that Iris is to stay in the apartment.”

“Cristian’s orders are secondary to mine,” Romano murmurs, waving a hand at Nico and not taking his eyes off of me. “Iris is a valuable resource, isn’t she? A beautiful, clever, loyal girl. It would be a shame to let her rot away in this penthouse.”

My face stays frozen in shock, even as Romano’s words resonate with me. Because, I mean, even though I wouldn’t have described myself in such complimentary terms, his sentiments match my own: I want out of this apartment, if I can do so safely. Is this the way to do it?

Frankie moves closer to me, just incrementally, I think trying to give me a little warning, telling me in the only way he can to be very, very careful here.

“Um,” I say, flicking my eyes Frankie’s way, “thank you, sir, for the offer. But…I mean, I would have to ask Christian…”

“Cristian,” Romano booms out, laughing a little, shaking his head. “Each of you – so loyal to my boy. It’s a credit to him – it really is. But aren’t you even interested, Iris? To know what the job is?”

I swallow, hard. Because, I mean, I am interested to know what it is.

“Is it dangerous?” I breathe, anxious. “Like, do you want me to…”

“Join the mob?” he asks, raising an eyebrow. And then he bursts out laughing, though he’s the only one who sees the humor in it. He shifts his weight closer to me, conspiratorial now. “No, Iris, it’s nothing like that. It’s completely legit – nothing dirty, nothing sneaky, nothing dangerous. No, I want you to work at my cocktail bar – we have an opening, and I need someone both pretty and faithful to fill the spot. When I thought of it that way…well. You were the first one to come to mind.”

“A…a bar?” I ask, baffled. “I have no experience…”

“You’ve worked in service before,” he replies, his eyes flicking over me and reminding me with complete clarity that he knows all about my history in the strip club. “The details you’ll learn. But the basics – being pretty, being kind to patrons, convincing them to spend their money, maybe even spill their secrets?” He pauses now, grinning at me a little devilishly, “well, that’s how you made your money before, isn’t it?”

I hesitate, because – I mean – I made my money because I’m a dancer.

But he’s not wrong. I am actually really good with people – I know how to handle them.

And as I think that, I wonder, really, if this is something that I want.

God, am I actually considering this?

“What the hell is going on here?”

All four of our heads turn to see Christian standing at the door to his room, Violetta tucked behind him and peering around his side.

Romano smiles deviously at his son but then smiles his surprise as he peers around Christian’s arm.

“Is that little Violetta Lombardi?”

“It is!” Violetta calls, again loosing her tinkling laugh. Violetta moves eagerly around Christian and strides for Romano, her arms out. I watch in shock as she walks to Romano’s side and they wrap each other in a warm hug. “It’s so nice to see you, Mr. Romano!”

“It’s been years, young lady!” Romano laughs, and I’m shocked at the change in him because he seems, above all things right now, like…like a middle-aged dad greeting his son’s girlfriend. “How’s your dad?”

“Oh, you know dad,” Violetta says, grinning up at him with a shrug as she takes a step back, beaming. “He’s been asking for you – wants to send you some steaks! Apparently they’ve got a new batch from Japan that are absolutely top-notch.”

I stare between the two, completely baffled, wondering what…what the hell they’re talking about. And why they’re so calm.

Does she not know who this man is? Does she not see the violence pulsing under his skin?

Or is she just so used to it that…that this is familiar, even comforting to her?

God, who the hell is Violetta?

“You tell your dad to send me those steaks,” Romano says with a broad, friendly smile, “and I’ll cook ‘em up and he can come over and help me eat them. Okay?”

She laughs and agrees, all pleasant conversation, as Christian comes to her side and slips a proprietary hand around her waist. “Would you go look in the room for my phone, Vi?” he asks, “I must have dropped it.” He makes no effort at all to hide the fact that he’s sending her away so he can have a real conversation with his father.

“Sure,” she says, turning her beaming smile up at Christian before she flits eagerly back into the room, not asking any questions.

Probably, again, as the perfect mob wife would.

As she disappears, and I realize that I’m still here in this room, I understand again that…that I am not in any way Christian’s girlfriend. His girlfriend he sends away to protect her from the knowledge of this conversation.

But me? I’m still here. I’m in it. And Christian is not sending me away.

No, I’m not his girlfriend. I’m something else – a pawn in this game.

“Well?” Christian asks, turning his focus back on his father with a glare. “What the hell is going on?”

“I was just offering Iris a job,” Don Romano says, gesturing to me with a slow hand. “And if I’m not mistaken, she was just about to take it.”

Christian moves his eyes to me now, livid.