Page 4 of Crowned By the Mafia Billionaires

CHAPTER 3

KNOX

“You know I can drive myself, right?”

I smile over at Audrey. “Yeah, I know you can.”

She rolls her eyes. “So then what are we doing here?”

I pull up to a stop sign and take the opportunity to look over at her. “Are you okay?”

She blurts out a laugh. “Well, let’s see. My little brother is hooked on drugs, my dad is literally losing his mind, and I just found out that he has a hit out on me. How do you think I am?”

I reach across the console and wrap my hand around hers. “That’s not going to happen, Audrey.”

She looks at my hand, and when she tenses, I pull it back.

The silence in the car lasts for all of five minutes, and then Audrey stuns me with her next question. “So, uh, what’s the deal with you and Bennett?”

I glance over at her. “What do you mean?”

She hesitates. “Well, you are close… you live together… and, well, …”

I keep driving and try to focus on the road in front of me. “What are you asking me, Audrey?”

“Are you and Bennett together?”

My eyes snap to hers, and then I stare back at the road. “Are you asking me if we’re gay?”

“Well… yeah.”

I finally pull into the parking lot for her apartment building and put the gear shift into park. Instead of getting out, I turn in my seat to face her. “We like women,” I tell her. It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell her we like a certain curvy blonde, but I leave that part out.

She nods. “Oh.” She tilts her head and watches me almost as if she’s trying to figure me out. She puts her hand on the door and is about to get out as Tony and John pull in beside us. I stop her by putting my hand on hers. “Wait. Let them check the apartment first. Then we’ll go in.”

She is frustrated and doesn’t try to hide it. She leans back in the seat and blows out a breath. “This is ridiculous, you know that, right?”

I remind myself to be patient with her. She’s spent most of her life under her father’s thumb, and when she finally got away, she thought she’d be free. Now with Knox and me trying to protect her, I know it probably feels like she’s just traded one set of rules for another. “We’re just wanting to make sure you’re safe.”

She closes her eyes and leans her head back on the seat. I stare up at her open apartment door, and my phone rings. I see John’s name on the caller ID and answer. “Yeah.”

“We got a problem, boss.”

Instantly alert, I look around the parking lot. “What is it?”

“The apartment is trashed.”

Shit. “Is anyone inside?”

“Nope. Long gone.”

I groan, and Audrey looks over at me. “What is it?”

Fuck. She’s not going to like this. “Hold tight. I’ll be right up,” I tell him.

She reaches for the door, and I stop her. “Your apartment is…”

I stop as her eyes get big. “My apartment is what?”