Page 8 of Crowned By the Mafia Billionaires

That calms me some, but it still pains me to know that Victor is disturbing her peace. The rest of the ride to my house is silent. I glance in the rearview mirror at Knox, and I can see my thoughts mirrored in his. He’s not happy about this either.

I carry the bag that we were able to save some of her toiletries in, and she’s still carrying her backpack.

I show her around the house, and when I show her to her room, she walks in and looks around. “Thanks. I, uh, will be out of your hair as soon as possible.”

“You can stay here forever.”

Her forehead creases in confusion. I know it’s a weird thought, but it’s one both Knox and I have been thinking. We want her here, and we don’t want her to leave.

She clenches her fist and rocks back and forth. “I, uh, well, as soon as I get a job, I can get out of your hair.”

Knox moves closer to her. “Seriously, you can stay here for as long as you want. We want you here.”

She blinks, looking between us, and then she nods, but before she can speak again, Knox tells her, “What kind of job are you interested in?”

She wraps her arms around her chest. “One that pays.”

I see the desperation on her face, and I’m not having it. “Don’t worry about money. I’ll give you⁠—”

She cuts me off, holding her hands up in front of her. “No, I’m not taking your money. I can work; I just can’t find someone to hire me. Everyone in town knows who my father is, and since I’m on the outs with him, they don’t want the drama that comes with it.”

I point to my chest. “Work for us.”

Her mouth falls open, and then she quickly closes it. She shakes her head. “You want me to work for you? In one of the Kingston companies?”

I nod, and she shakes her head. “I’m not working at the strip club, Bennett. I’m desperate, but that’s not my thing.”

Aghast, I stare at her in surprise. “You think I’d have you work in a strip club? That would never happen. Never.”

There’s no hiding the hurt from my voice. Knox steps forward. “Audrey, I’m sure what Bennett was thinking was in an office somewhere. Or what do you like to do?”

She glares at me as she answers Knox. She seriously thinks I’d put her in a strip club? She doesn’t know me at all. And here I thought I was making progress.

Audrey pops a shoulder. “Well, my degree is in marketing.”

I cross my arms over my chest. “Great. We need a marketer.”

Her forehead creases. “You need a marketer?”

I nod. “Do you know how many businesses the Kingstons have? Yes, we need someone to coordinate the marketing.”

Her eyes widen. “For all your businesses?”

I shrug. “Yeah, whatever you think. I’ll put together a profile for each business, and you can create a plan for each of them. Where do you want your office to be?”

She doesn’t try to hide her surprise. “Office?”

I nod. “Yeah, we can put you in the same building as my office, or⁠—”

She cuts me off. “I don’t need an office. I can work from anywhere.”

Knox looks at me. “Maybe until this is handled, we should have her work in one of the vacant offices in our building. That way we can keep her safe too.”

Knox and I go back and forth, deciding which office when Audrey waves her hand. “Hello. I’m right here. Do I have a say in any of this?”

I nod. “Yes, and as long as whatever you say is something you can do and we can keep you safe, then the answer is yes.”

She blurts out, “You can’t just give me a job because I need one.”