Page 9 of Crowned By the Mafia Billionaires

I shrug. “Yes, I can.”

She puts her hands on her hips. “Oh yeah? And what do you think your dad is going to have to say about a Sterling working for him?”

I hesitate for just a second. “I’ll work it out.”

She throws her hands up and starts pacing back and forth. “Really? See. This is the last thing I wanted. I don’t want to come between you and your family.”

“You won’t,” I assure her.

She looks at Knox as if she expects him to be on her side. “Tell him. Tell him that I can’t just come to work for the Kingstons.”

Knox lifts his shoulders in a shrug. “Why not? I mean, if it’s up to Bennett and me, you’re going to be here for a while, so it makes sense.” He takes a step toward her. “And we could use your help. We need someone to do marketing for the diner, the salon, the general store—hell, all of it needs help.”

She looks between Knox and me. “You two have an answer for everything, don’t you?”

Knox grins. “Usually.”

She rolls her eyes, but some of the tension leaves her shoulders. “Fine. I’ll do it.”

I breathe easier. “You’ll take the job?”

“Yes, but I’m working for my money. I don’t want you to just make up some kind of position where I sit around and do nothing.”

I almost laugh. She has no idea how badly our businesses need help. “Trust me; you’ll earn every penny.”

Knox claps his hands together. “Well, that’s settled. You have a place to live and a job. I’m going to go get your car and bring it here.”

He walks toward Audrey and wraps his arms around her for a tight hug. She leans into him, and something inside me settles.

Knox nods at me on the way out of the room. “Be back.”

He gives me a look, and I know exactly what he’s saying to me. Don’t spook her. I resist rolling my eyes and give him a quick nod.

As soon as he’s gone, I walk over to Audrey. “Well…”

She smiles at me. “You’re feeling pretty good about yourself, aren’t you?”

I tilt my head. “What do you mean?”

“You wanted me here, and now I’m here.” She shakes her head. “You’re used to getting your way, aren’t you?”

There’s no reason to deny it. “Yeah, I usually get my way.”

I take a step toward her, and when she doesn’t tense, I take another. I don’t stop until we’re standing toe to toe.

She tilts her head back to look up at me. “What are you doing?”

I put my hands at her waist. “Well, Knox got his hug. I was hoping for one too.”

“Oh,” she says and then nods. “Okay.”

I slide my hands around her back and pull her flush against me. The soft warmth of her against my body feels better than I could have ever dreamed about. She sighs and melts into me, and I hold her tighter.

When she pulls back, I don’t let her go far. I’m staring into her eyes, and they widen when she realizes what I’m about to do.

I brush a hair off her brow. “I want to kiss you, Audrey.”

Her eyebrows lift, and she wets her lips.