Page 24 of Surprise Pregnancy for Villain

I sit down cross-legged in front of the screen and eat my crackers as I watch. I see nothing much out of the ordinary—traffic reports and other local interest stuff. No mention of me or my family or of finding Vito’s dead body somewhere, but after a commercial break, I get a shock. Film footage shows the burning shell of a local warehouse, thought to be a money laundering facility. Firefighters battle the blaze as the reporter reveals that hundreds of millions of dollars are believed to have literally gone up in smoke, and that the facility is alleged to be part of the Rossi crime family’s holdings.

The Rossis! That name I know. My father has complained about them for as long as I can remember, the hated Rossis—our rivals and archenemies. He told me how they are of very old lineage and have been in America longer than us Borellis, but because our family rose to power very quickly, challenging their position of dominance in the territory, they hate us just as much as we hate them. If anyone had money to burn, it’s the Rossis. What poetic justice, some of their fortune lost in a fire.Burn baby, burn.

The broadcaster continues the story, how two men believed to be of a rival organization were found dead in the stairwell of a high-rise apartment building the day before, killed execution style. It’s a sure sign of a mob killing, and I hope it wasn’t any of my father’s close associates. No wonder he was in such a weird mood on the way to school; perhaps it wasn’t about my mother or about me at all.

Some still photos now flash onto the TV screen, as the news guy continues to speak. “High-ranking members of the Rossi organization are known to the police. Stefano Rossi and his son Ezio are…” I don’t hear the rest because my eyes are fixed on the faces in the pictures— the guy I met in the bar is among them.

Ezio Rossi.

I’ve been fantasizing about my father’s arch nemesis.Oh. My. God.

With my hands clasped to my jaw, I gape at the screen, taking in the tall, dark, gorgeous man dressed in a suit that was made for him—

A Brioni suit.

I leap from the bed, a loud gasp flying from my lips.

It’s him.

Peering closer, I realize now that I’ve been too distracted by fear and anger to notice what was right in front of me. He might’ve worn a mask, but that hair… more than once, I’ve fantasized about running my fingers through those silky locks.

The guy from the bar and my kidnapper are one and the same.

Holy shit. I start to shiver all over. If I wasn’t scared before, I am now. I’ve come face to face with the enemy. Now I know why he wasn’t interested in my family’s money; he doesn’t need it. So, what does he want with me? Or from me? Does it have something to do with this fire?

The news moves on to another story, and I shut the TV off. Whatever he wants, he’s not going to get it. I’ve got to escape but how? Even if I broke the window, I couldn’t fit through. All I can do is wait until the man gets back and try to overpower him somehow. There must be something in this room I can use to hit him with. Maybe that Bible in the drawer—or the drawer itself.

But what if he never comes back?

No, that wouldn’t make sense. He or one of his hitmen has to come back to do whatever it is they intend to do with me. One thing’s for sure, I need to be awake when they do. I take a deep breath and get to my feet. I remove the drawer from the nightstand, Bible and all. I pull the checkered blanket off the bed and bring both items across the room. I curl up in the blanket with my back to the wall. When Ezio, or one of his men try to come in, I’ll be waiting behind the door, ready to strike.

Chapter Twelve

Ezio

It’s past sunrise, but the narrow road leading to the cabin is still in the shadows, owing to the tall, dense forest on either side. The scents of syrup-laden pancakes, fried bacon, and scrambled eggs emanate from the take-out container on the passenger seat, making my stomach rumble. My unwilling houseguest should be hungry enough by now, too. If not, well…it’s her choice whether she wants to eat it, but since I’m her only source for food and shelter, she’ll have to come around sooner or later.

I pull up to the cabin and slip my mask on, looking for any signs of disturbance but don’t see anything amiss. All looks exactly as I’d left it last night. I take the food and a few other provisions I’ve brought inside the cabin and put them in the kitchen. I realize Nicki will need more than just food, but there aren’t exactly any women’s fashion stores open at this time of day. Clothes and other niceties will have to wait a little longer.

The cabin is eerily quiet, but the room temperature is still quite comfortable. As I approach Nicki’s room with her breakfast, I listen for any movement but hear nothing and assume she’s still asleep. I unlock the door and cautiously swing it open, but the first thing I see is the empty bed with a missing checkered cover.Shit. Where is she?

Breakfast plate in hand, I step further into the room, my eyes scanning from wall to wall. On the right side of the room is the door to the bathroom, but I don’t see any light coming from underneath it. I turn to look left but barely shift my glance before something solid hits me on the side of my head.What the fuck…!

The sound of splintering wood breaks the silence of the room, and I take a staggering step sideways, dropping the plate to the floor. When I can focus again, I see Nicki right in front of me, her eyes wild and her teeth gritted. She tries to shove past me, but I grab her around the waist and wrestle her to the floor.

“Get off me!” she screams, my eardrums nearly splitting at the intensity of her shrieking. “Help! Somebody, help me!” She writhes and kicks under my body weight and pummels me with her fists.

I grasp her flailing arms and pin them above her head, desperate to shout at her to fucking behave.

“Let. Me. Go. Ezio,” she breathes.

Fuck.

Her eyes gleam with satisfaction. I imagine that she’s seeing how surprised I am.

“Yeah, did you really think that mask would conceal everything, you asshole? Stupid you for leaving me with a fucking TV.”

My head falls. I breathe a sigh while mentally kicking my own ass. I didn’t know the news outlets would run the story about the fire. I certainly had no clue that my photo would be up there. Still, I shouldn’t have given her that access.

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