Page 56 of Bound in Debt
Fuck me sideways. This asshole’s first job for me is risky as shit.
“Understood.”
As I crack the folder open, another suited goon approaches and leans close to whisper something in Angelo’s ear. Cracking the folder open, I ignore the hurried exchange. There’s a photo of a kid with sandy blond hair and a crooked grin. He looks to be in his mid-twenties, built lean. Ryan Mathers.
Got it.
I close the folder and don’t bother to ask permission before rising to leave since Angelo is still consumed by whatever matter was urgent enough to interrupt our meeting.
“In a rush, Mr. Moretti? Perhaps you’ve missed Mors and are ready to reunite with an old friend.”
“I have an appointment with my fiancée. She wants to discuss cake flavors.”
It’s another lie, but I can’t handle another fucking second entertaining this moron.
“Adorable,” he practically snickers, drawing my focus. I don’t like how I just felt the space shift. “Your betrothed seems to be in a rush, though. I’ve just been told she’s asking for help creating an identity. Any idea why she’d need a new passport and social security card? Have you scared your bride away so quickly?”
I keep my face relaxed, but I’m more than simply surprised. There’s no reason for Angelo to be lying, not when I’ve agreed to his terms.
My so-called partner is trying to make plans of her own.
“The request was denied,” Angelo informs me, his voice as bland as if we were discussing the weather. Suddenly his face hardens into a steely expression and I know he’s going to be watching my every move like a fucking hawk. “Why don’t you sit back down, Mr. Moretti? I don’t appreciate being made a fool of, especially not when I’ve been so generous with my patience.”
“Victoria is much like your own daughter, Mr. Lombardi,” I retort, returning to my chair while wanting nothing more than to chase the girl down and shake some sense into her. Her little idea just got us into a whole new level of shit and Angelo is not going to let this go. “She’s upset I haven’t gotten her a ring yet. She threatened to leave me. I guess she wanted to make her threat more believable.”
Angelo scoffs, clearly not buying the story. I wouldn’t buy it either. Luckily, Angelo doesn’t have proof that I’m lying. And there’s nothing saying he couldn’t let Victoria run away unharmed—nothing except that Liam and I have both told him she’s how we plan to get him his money.
He drums his fingers along the surface of the table. “I find out you’re searching for a way out, Mr. Moretti, and I’ll kill you and keep the girl for myself. Pretty faces are always valuable to the business, but I’ve been looking for a new mistress. One with a tight ass and tighter pussy.” He slowly lifts a brow. “You could always give her to me now. I’d be happy to adjust your debt accordingly.”
With the way I’m feeling about her latest stunt? It’s tempting.
Victoria is wild and stubborn. Beautiful and infuriating. Stuck between a rock and a hard place, she’s clearly desperate and unwilling to trust me completely. I can’t say I blame her. I wouldn’t trust me either. But her reckless gamble has only ensured that Angelo will be paying even more attention to every move I make until he’s got a cool six million in the bank.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
He bobs his head. “Keep in mind, also, that today was your deadline. And since I don’t have my money…” Angelo’s jaw clenches. “Thirty days,” he demands. “If I don’t have my six million in thirty days, I’m taking your wife and you’ll work for me until the debt is paid.”
I don’t want to ask my next question, but I need a sense of what I’m working with. I refuse to work for him for the rest of my life because I was too chicken-shit to settle our terms up front.
“What is she worth?”
Angelo’s expression softens a little as he leans forward. He’s clearly been fantasizing about Victoria for a while, which means either Liam has shown him pictures or Angelo’s had his people watching her since he learned her name. His eyes glimmer with lust and sinister hunger.
She’s not mine.
Not in the physical, legal, or emotional sense, but we’ll need to make moves towards at least one of those options in a matter of days…and I’m going to have to get her pregnant soon after.
There’s no way around it, not unless my contact comes through with two million dollars out of the blue or Angelo lets down his guard and gives me the perfect opportunity to take him out of the equation.
“How does three-quarters of a million sound to you?”
That would only leave me two hundred and fifty thousand short.
Rising from my chair, I rebutton my suit jacket and tower over the toady motherfucker.
We don’t have a deal.
Not unless Victoria keeps double-crossing me.
