Page 41 of Married to the Mafia Devil

“Fine. I spoke to your father but I didn’t hurt him before you ask. He told me Petrovitch was going to be at this event tonight. Looks like he played me and your father. Hoped I’d kill Vlad in front of everyone, make me look bad to the appropriations committee. He gets the deal. Would have worked if it wasn’t for you being there.”

“What would you have done if Petrovitch had showed up? Killed him in front of everyone?”

I shake my head. “If he was where I could see him, that meant his places were accessible. That meant the suitcase could be found.”

“So you planned to steal the file back while he was in your eye line?” Her eyes widen as something clicks in her head. “Did you send my dad to steal it back?” She gasps. “But if Petrovitch is at home, he could get killed. You need to warn him.”

“Did that as soon as I saw Vlad. And your father wanted to do it. To right the wrong he made when he moved the case.”

“You put my father in danger for your precious deal. Is that all that matters to you?”

“Not for the deal. To protect you. If he cracks that file, he runs this city. I’ll be firefighting day and night just to keep you alive. Get the file back and our problems are solved.”

“Then why not hire someone else to get it back?”

“Because I can’t trust anyone else. Your father has a vested interest and he knows what the case looks like.”

She frowns. “And you trust my father? You said he was nothing more than a drunk.”

“You believe in him. I wanted to try. My world, it’s built on certain realities. Realities I can’t change overnight. It’s dog eat dog.”

She shifts, turning to face me more directly. “But do you ever wonder if it could change. For something better, I mean?”

The question hangs heavy in the air. I’ve asked myself the same thing countless times since meeting her. “Every day,” I confess. “And every day, it’s a battle. You’ve seen me, the sides I’m not proud of. But I’m not willing to give up control, not entirely. It’s who I am, who I have to be.”

Her expression falters, a small frown creasing her forehead. “Even if it means losing me?”

It’s a direct hit, her words piercing the armor I wear so habitually. “I hope it doesn’t come to that,” I say quietly. “But I’m not lying to you. He wanted to help, for you.”

“And you let him? He could be dead right now.”

“It was a gamble and it failed, all right. I sent him a message as soon as I saw Vlad, called it off. I guessed what Petrovitch was doing. Didn’t work though. Vlad’s dead and no one can link his death to me. Your dad’s heading back home. Time for Plan B.”

She examines me like she’s never seen the real me before. “And that makes it all okay, does it?”

“I’m leaving for a few days,” I say, changing the subject slightly but knowing it’s all part of the same tangled web. “Business. When I get back, I want your decision. Whether you’re staying with me or not. This is me, this is who I am. Accept it or not, that’s up to you. Just know that everything I’ve done has been to protect you.”

“I’d rather you didn’t get into a fistfight in front of the whole of New York’s high society.”

“Oh, so I embarrass you, is that it?”

“That’s not what I said. You’re putting words in my mouth.”

“Not for much longer if you don’t want. When I get back, you tell me if we’re staying together or not.”

“You make it sound like you want it to end.”

Her words are a gut punch, hitting directly through all my barriers. Part of me does want it to end. I can’t change who I am. She clearly can’t handle that. Maybe it would be better if we parted. My control would swallow her sooner or later. Already her purity and innocence has been sullied by my actions.

She stands to leave the room, pausing at the doorway. “I hope you find what you’re looking for while you’re away,” she says, not turning around. “Because I’m not sure you’ll find it here.”

As she disappears from view, I’m left alone, the echo of her words filling the space. In the silence, I confront the possibility that my inability to change might cost me the very thing, the very person, I’ve come to value above all else.

It’s a stark realization, one that leaves me questioning if perhaps, in my insistence on remaining in control, I’ve already sealed both of our fates.

SEVENTEEN

Emma

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