Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 76934 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76934 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
“Fine. What else?”
“No headphones. I want you aware of your surroundings.”
“Anything else?”
“Home for dinner.”
“What time is dinner?”
“Seven?”
“You think Char’s gonna wait until seven?” The smirk he shot me reminded me of why it was worth it to put up with all the moody bullshit. There were still moments where I saw the real personality beneath it all.
“Probably not without dragging me to get a ‘sweet treat’ this afternoon.”
“Pro tip,” he said, getting up and sliding his feet into his shoes, “find a sweet treat place close to a bookstore. Or she’s gonna drag you all over the city.”
“You’re not wrong,” I agreed. “Phone charged?” I asked as he picked it up.
“Eighty-seven.”
“Alright. Don’t go flashing this around,” I told him as I pulled a wad of cash out of my pocket.
There was a gut-punch sensation at handing it over.
The cash was dwindling down.
But I had money coming. It wouldn’t be the kind of money that came from working my own jobs, but it would be steady, something I could rely on while I got back on my feet. And once I started making connections again, I could get in on everyone else’s jobs, getting a slice of those profits.
If I hustled hard during school hours, I could be feeling a lot more comfortable in three months. By then, the money for the house would be in, too. Things would be easier. There was no reason to panic about the cash flowing out.
“I get you’re probably gonna buy some stupid shit, but get some clothes too.”
He nodded as he shoved the cash into his wallet.
“What’s for dinner?”
“You and your sister can fight it out. I don’t care. But I’m not cooking.”
“Haven’t tried the pizza yet.”
“Which is a fucking sin. That shit in our old town can barely be called pizza.”
“She’s gonna want chicken nuggets.”
“They’ll have them,” I said, following him out into the hall.
“Where are you going?” Charlotte asked when her brother went to the door alone.
“Shopping.”
“I want to go shopping.”
Liam’s shoulders slumped. Because if she asked, he wouldn’t deny her. But he clearly wanted to go explore alone.
“I’ll take you,” I told her.
“Can we go to the bookstore too? I need the next one in this series.” She waved the giant book she was only halfway through in the air.
“Sure.”
“And get donuts?”
Liam shot me a smirk.
I returned it.
And it was right then that I was sure it was all going to be okay.
Of course, that was before I met Alara.
CHAPTER FOUR
Alara
The guy’s brows shot up, surprised either by my question or my tone.
“Christopher,” he said.
“Well, Chrissy, see, unfortunately for you, I’m not an idiot.”
That got his brows pinching.
I was having all sorts of impacts on those brows.
They were good ones too. Kind of stern and broody-looking.
“Excuse me?”
“See, here’s the thing. My sister is Ezmeray, Chrissy. Do you mind if I call you Chrissy? Good,” I said before he could respond. “And because of that, I know that you’re not the bagman.”
“Ezmeray,” he repeated.
“You don’t know Ezmeray?” I asked, letting out a chirp of a laugh. “Dude. If you’re going to impersonate the mob, maybe do some research on them first, y’know? This is just… lazy.”
“I’m not impersonating anyone.”
“And yet you don’t know the wife of the Costa Family’s most ruthless enforcer?”
“Brio? You’re Brio’s sister-in-law?”
Alright.
That was probably a lucky guess.
Who didn’t know who Brio was?
I mean, he’d once answered the door when I showed up with blood literally squishing inside his shoes. The guy was a psycho. In a lovable way. If that made any sense. He loved my sister. And their family. And animals. He just really liked hurting bad people. As someone with a vengeful side, I related.
“Yep. Which is why I also know that Brio is cousins with Lorenzo, whose right-hand man is Emilio, whose sister is Isabella, whose husband is Primo, whose—”
“Primo. Primo Esposito?”
“My guy, you’ve gotta try a little harder to act like you actually know these people. Primo kidnapped Isabella and forced her into marriage to create a truce. But the two ended up falling in love. Same kind of thing with Lore and Renzo.”
“Little Lore?” Christopher asked, looking suddenly stricken. “And fucking Renzo Lombardi? That bastard?”
Huh.
He seemed personally invested enough to give me pause.
“I mean, Lore isn’t so little anymore. And Renzo didn’t kidnap her; she volunteered. So there’s that.”
“Where were her brothers? Where the fuck was Nico?”
Hm.
Okay.
He was starting to make a decent argument for being connected to the Costas.
“Well, Cesare is married to Mere. And Nico is married to Blair—”
“His best friend’s wife?”
“Chrissy, my friend, where exactly have you been? The moon?”
“Might as well have been,” he mumbled under his breath.
“Alright. Let me just…” I said, putting my gun down on the counter.
His gaze lasered in on it, then stiffened as he immediately clocked the guys in the back, still looking shady as hell.