Page 69 of Dangerous Contract: Part 2

"Of course I did. I was staring at the screen the entire time."

"I thought you were only looking at Toya," Raz snapped.

"I cast a glance at Monique a couple of times. Why?"

Raz rubbed his thumb over the screen. "Were her eyes puffy, like she'd been crying?"

"I don't remember."

"Leo!"

"You sure you want the answer, Don Cattaneo?" Leo hesitated.

No, he wasn't sure. Still, he needed to know. "Yes," Raz mumbled, his jaw clenched.

"Okay. Don't yell at me this time like you did the last time," Leo warned.

"Answer the damn question," Raz demanded, anger simmering just beneath the surface.

"Fine," Leo relented. "Yeah, it looked like she'd been crying. It looked like she'd been crying a lot. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

"Fuck!" Raz yelled, throwing the device. It slammed into the wall, the screen cracking before it hit the ground.

"That's the third device you've broken," Leo informed him. "That number coincides with the number of times Monique hascome to the casino. Why won't you just see her already and stop tearing up shit?"

Raz's hands shook with barely contained rage, the veins in his arms bulging as he clenched his fists, barely resisting the urge to punch something as he struggled for control. The problem was, the person he wanted to punch was himself.

How dare he make her cry?Fuck!Closing his eyes, he leaned back in his seat and attempted to push the thought of his Rosa crying from his mind. Tears meant she was alive. The dead couldn't cry.

As long as she was alive and well, then he was happy-ish. At least he was happier than he would be if she were in constant danger.If I don't think about her, eventually, I'll get over her. I think. I hope. I pray.

"Raz, just see her and..." Leo started, but Raz interrupted him before he could begin a new lecture.

"It's over between me and her, Leo. Seeing her will only give her hope."

"Notseeing her is killing you. You're losing weight, Raz."

"I'm on a diet," Raz lied.

"Is it a heartbreak diet?" Leo asked.

Yeah. That's what it was.

"If that's what it is," Leo continued. "Then you should bottle that shit up and sell it. It works."

"Shouldn'tyoube working?" Raz snapped.

"My job is to guard the don. Right now, I'm failing. You look a mess, Raz."

I feel a mess,Raz thought but remained silent with his eyes closed.

"As your guard, the one who protects you and who has to answer to your family if I fail to protect you, I'm giving you two options. Get back with Monique, or let me kill her so that youcan finally get over her," Leo said, his voice firm but laced with concern.

Orazio's eyes snapped open. He sat up in his seat.

"Touch her and die," Raz growled.

"Those are your options," Leo told him. "I'll give you a week to make a decision." Leo turned to leave the room.

---