Page 17 of Enforcer

How does one convince the girl with walls so high that not even a giant could get over them to let them fall?

I don’t have the answer right now, but by the time I step into the cabin and see her curled up in one of the chairs, her coat overher body with soft snores coming out of her mouth, I know I’ve got to get a plan together.

There’s no going back to before Alyssa.

There’s only after her.

CHAPTER SIX

ALYSSA

“Well, how did it go?” I ask Brynne, toying with my Apple Pencil on the desk back and forth aimlessly as I wait for her answer over the phone. They returned to Florida to finalize getting the estate up for sale and meet her mom after getting us settled in New York.

I swore she said others were going to handle that, but she likely just needed more time alone with Slate with all that’s happening. And who can blame them?

“Mom wasnotthrilled to learn I was dating Ardesia Ricci and not Lucio Ricci,” she says, and I smirk.

“Why not? The Grim Reaper of New York is every mother’s dream husband for their daughter, is he not?”

She chuckles. “Oh, yeah. Slate is Mom’s dream man come true.”

“Oh well, I’ve seen you two together; even if she doesn’t like it, she’ll get behind it once she sees what everyone sees.”

“She came around by the end of the meeting. After she met him.”

I grin. Of course, she did. Even as intimidating as Slate is, he’s a fucking sucker for Brynne, and he’d bend over backward for her, even die for her. It’s plain in the way he looks at her. Moves when she moves. Breathes when she breathes. Their love is palpable to everyone around them at all times, like a living microbe dancing in the air.

“So, you’ll be back soon, right? I’m going stir-crazy with all these men here,” I tell her.

She sighs. “Yes, we’re nearly done here, and we have to get back for the merger meeting. Which, we all know that’s going to be a shit show. It’s got Slate so on edge.”

It’s got everyone on edge. It’s all well and good to talk about bringing the two families together, but doing it seems like an uphill battle.

“No weapons, right? We discussed that before,” I remind her.

She chuckles softly, and I don’t know if it’s what I said or if Slate is prodding her while she’s trying to finish our conversation. “Absolutely no weapons.”

I let some tension flow out of my shoulders. “Good.”

The silence on the phone feels a bit heavy for a moment before she says, “So, how are you doing, Lyss? After everything? The plane ride home wasn’t too awkward, right? I’d have sent you home on another flight, but you didn’t want Slate knowing, and I didn’t want to send up red flags by booking you separately.”

“No, it was fine. Not too awkward, I promise,” I lie. The weight of the lie has my teeth aching a bit, too, like I stuffed my mouth full of sugar water and swished it around a few times over sensitive cavities.

“And you’re sure you don’t want to try and flesh something out with Dante?” Her question floats in the gray matter of my brain for too long, causing an ache to settle in.

I rub my temples. “No. You know me, B. I don’t want to cause strife as you’re trying to merge the families, nor do I want a messy breakup with a mafia boyfriend.”

“I’ve never seen you date anyone, Lyss. I worry about you sometimes, you know? I can’t help it. I love you.”

“I love you, too, B. I’ll be fine. Maybe one day, someone will sweep me off my feet. Until then, I’m a Lone Ranger.”

She sighs again. “Alright. Well, if you need me, I’m here. Don’t forget that, at least.”

“So, I’ll see you…” I trail off, waiting for her to insert her arrival time and date at any moment.

“Tomorrow,” I hear Slate say, and my heart rattles in my chest quicker.

“Tomorrow,” Brynne echoes. I hear her shift closer to the phone, and she whispers, “He wasn’t here until now.”

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