Page 21 of Wife Number One

My lip curled, and I strode past the man without acknowledging him.

“Chaos, come on. I just want two minutes of your time.”

I glanced over at Luca, a man I barely knew, but what I did know was enough that I didn’t want to know any more. “Got places to be.”

“Your job at the diner?”

I didn’t answer. I didn’t want to tell him yes. I hated that he knew where I worked. But of course he did.

Luca Guerra knew fucking everything and everyone.

He didn’t move out of my way, so I brushed past him, forcing him back, refusing to budge just because he was one of the biggest crime lords Saint View had ever seen. Though I’d never seen the man get his hands dirty. Oh no, he had idiots like me to do that for him.

He’d had idiots like me. I was out. I didn’t work for him or for Caleb or for any of his other minions anymore.

Luca put his hands into the pockets of his expensive suit pants. I’d bet they could have paid my rent for a year. Fucking rich people.

“Do you actually like that grubby shithole you serve food out of?” he called.

I pulled my keys from my pockets. “Anything is better than my previous job,” I called back. “Last boss was a real fucking asshole. Maybe you’ve met him?”

Luca chuckled deeply. “Do you mean me or Caleb?”

“Why not both?” I threw back, hitting the beeper on my keys to unlock my truck doors and cursing the fact this damn apartment building only had street parking. If it were in a nicer neighborhood, I could have avoided this entire conversation with an underground garage. “Plenty to hate about both of you.”

Luca followed me down the road. “I’m insulted you’d put me in the same league as Caleb.”

Oh, that was rich. “Why? Aren’t you the one who had him finding women for you to sell?”

Luca shrugged. “Aren’t you the one who held them against their will for him?”

My fingers curled around the keys so hard I was sure it would leave imprints. “I didn’t have a choice. He blackmailed me.”

Luca tutted under his breath. “Well, if that’s true, then I’m sorry. If I’d known…”

If he’d known he wouldn’t have done shit, and we both knew it.

I turned to glare at him. “I’ve already had a fucking shittastic day, and you showing up here out of the blue sure isn’t fucking helping. So just cut to the chase, Guerra. What the fuck do you want?”

“I would like to offer you a job. Isn’t that great?”

I stared at him. “Are you fucking serious?”

He dropped the fake positivity. “Deadly.”

I shook my head, completely astonished by the balls on him. I stepped in close so we were nose to nose. I wasn’t some dumb kid anymore. I wasn’t scared. And I wasn’t falling for his smooth talk. “Hear me when I say, Guerra, I would rather hack my own dick off with a rusty blade than ever work for you again. Now leave me the hell alone and let me get to work. My boss will be pissed if I’m late.”

Luca nodded knowingly. “Simon is a cunt, isn’t he?”

I paused with my door on the handle. “You really did your homework on this one, huh?”

Luca grinned. “Always do. Want to hear what else I know?”

“Not even a little bit.”

Luca went on like I hadn’t spoken. “I know you’re way too good a chef to be working at his shithole.”

I froze.

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