Page 124 of My Mafia Queen

He wanted to figure me out. And boy, didn’t I just help him?

I push the door open to one of the rooms and find a nice, cozy space with a fireplace, a sofa and two armchairs, long drapes framing the windows, and an old table.

Wrong door, I figure, and I’m about to spin around and make the trip back.

I’ve clearly lost my way when I bump into him and scream.

His hand goes over my mouth before I realize that it’s him, and stop shouting.

My heart beats like crazy, and I’m out of breath when he shields me in his arms.

“Please don’t do this again,” I say, through gasps.

His hand goes to the back of my hair.

“You should’ve known I was behind you,” he says seriously, and I tear away from him.

“Seriously? How? I just got lost in your house.”

“And why the fuck that happened?” he asks, latching his hands onto his hips.

He’s right.

When he’s right, he’s right.

I lift my hand.

“I’ve made a fool of myself,” I say.

He studies me without saying a word, and he looks like he’s made up his mind about something, and my gut tells me it’s not good for me.

“I’ll help you with your sister when we go back,” he says evenly. “And then I’ll arrange for you to live in another state with her. Some of my people will protect you. At least in the beginning, until we figure out if anyone is after you. Your father shouldn’t be a problem at that point. And the other people in your life won’t bother you anymore.”

Whatever that means.

Well… Everything sounds like a dream come true, yet it doesn’t feel like that.

“What state do you have in mind?”

He shrugs.

“Whatever you like. It’s all the same to me.”

I ponder what he’s saying.

“Are you going to visit me?”

He smiles out of politeness.

“Sure.”

That’s a no.

“What about us?” I ask, a flicker of angst sweeping through me.

He closes the space between us, wraps his arm around my neck, and starts moving with me toward the exit.

“Do you remember what we talked about in the beginning?”

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