He already knows.
Oh, dio sopra! That was why he’d looked at me. There’d been a split second, where the sharp eyes cut across the restaurant. He’d nodded to Amanda, then…the devil found me.
A thin layer of sweat had formed along my spine. I could feel it under my work uniform. My breath turned shallow now. Like it could not quite reach the bottom of my lungs. I shifted my weight slightly in the chair and crossed my ankles. Small movements. Normal movements.
“Why us?” I asked.
The question slipped out before I could stop it. My father’s jaw tightened. The don glanced at him. The Irish boss watched me with interest.
“You are a strong family,” the Irish boss said. “Respected. Strategic.”
“We are not rich,” I said. “Not like you.”
The room went very quiet.
Why the hell couldn’t I keep my stupid mouth shut? Hadn’t I learned enough lessons over the years? Biting my tongue should have been automatic at this point!
The look Papa gave me promised discipline for the outburst.
I felt exposed. My heartbeat spiked. The panic pressed harder now, climbing my throat, squeezing.
The Irish boss smiled faintly. He looked thoughtfully at me. He didn’t seem mean.
But the best demons hid it well.
“Money is not the only currency,” he drawled. “It’s the right thing for us to do.”
I swallowed. My mouth was dry.
“This alliance means protection,” the don said. “It means the famiglia is safe. Permanently.”
I nodded again. My hands turned numb. That frightened me more than the rest of it.
My father reached across the table and placed his hand over mine. Heavy. Hard. To the others, it probably seemed like a reassurance.
To me? A warning.
Papa’s tone was dry. “This is your duty.”
There it was. The word that ended conversations.
The only thing a daughter was good for in this world.
I forced myself to meet his eyes. For a second, it was all I could do to breathe. In. Out. In. Out. I imagined my body rooted to the floor.
It’s not forever.
It was just a small change in my plans.
“I understand,” I agreed, giving them the answer they wanted.
Papa drew back his hand, but his gaze narrowed. He would force me down that aisle one way or another.
I can do it.I could act like a bride if that was what it took to keep attention off me.
But…it was all happening too soon. My plans weren’t finalized. I didn’t have enough money saved up!
O, dio! What if I was stuck and couldn’t leave? If I couldn’t take the love of my life, my reason for existence, and leave? I would die alone!
