Page 36 of Ruthless Mafia Daddy

“Ciao, Zia.” I prop my phone between my chin and shoulder.

“You sound out of breath.” Sharp and cold as always. I roll my eyes and shuffle across my living area to perch on my window seat.

“I was just cleaning my bathroom.” I lean back against the wall and let my gaze drift upwards to look at the clear blue sky to try and ground myself. Speaking to my aunt always leaves me flustered and anxious.

“You should be outside. It’s too nice to be indoors. You young people never go outside. In my day, our parents would send us out at seven a.m. and tell us to come back for dinner.”

“Yes, well, my chores couldn’t wait.” I stifle my sigh. I love my aunt, I really do, but she can be an overbearing woman. Typical Italian.

“How is everything these past few weeks?”

“Fine. Work is good, all the paperwork for my promotion was finalized a few weeks ago.”

“Hmm… And what about a man?”

“No man, Zia.” My mind flashes to Andre, but I lock that out immediately.

“If you put all that energy into finding a man instead of getting a promotion, you could be married by now, bambina. Then you would have no need for promotions and corporations. You would be a wife, a mother. What a woman should be.”

It’s the lecture I’ve heard at least once a month since I was old enough to go on birth control. Though part of me wants to turn around and give the very same lecture to her.

Aunt Maria never married or had children, if by choice I’m not too sure, but I’m grateful every day that she was willing to take me in and raise me.

“I know.” I tap my foot on the seat.

“What about Sam? You definitely don’t want to see him again?”

“He cheated on me, Zia. Surely I deserve more than to be with a man who doesn’t even have the decency to stay faithful.”

“Men make mistakes.”

“What, like dad?”

Fuck. Why did I say that?

The line is silent for a moment, and I cringe.

We rarely talk about my parents. My mother was Maria’s sister, and she died giving birth to me. My father stuck around until I was twelve but then decided it was too much, so he dumped me on Maria’s doorstep.

The rest was history.

“There was no decency in that man, bambina. I will not discuss him. What I do want to discuss is why you are single.”

“Please, can we talk about anything else. I’ve already had this lecture once today.”

“From who?”

“Cassi.”

“Well, it seems Cassi and I are on the same page for once.”

Maria has never hidden her disapproval of Cassi in the thirteen years we’ve been friends.

I’m almost tempted to tell Maria about my ‘date’ with Andre just to get her off my back, but it’s safe to say she wouldn’t let it go as easily as Cassi did.

If anything, Maria would go storming down to the Ritz-Carlton and bang on Andre’s door, not leaving until he promised to put a ring on my finger…

Nope. Not going there. Not even in my nightmares.

---