Page 25 of My Mafia Queen

“It’s more than how it looks.”

“I know.”

A cold smile tugs at her lips.

“And yes, there are. Of course there are better men out there…” she says, her focus shifting to her cup.

She drinks more coffee.

“But they’re all taken,” she murmurs, setting her coffee down again and leaning back against the counter.

My eyebrows slide up as I try to make sense of what she just said.

“How old do you think I am?” she asks.

“I don’t know. Thirty-six? Thirty-seven?”

“I’m forty-two.”

Noticing my surprise, she smiles.

“I bet I’m the person you’ve talked the most to when it comes to his girlfriends.”

“Yes. I’ve rarely known them. He doesn’t let us befriend his girlfriends.”

“I’ve noticed that too,” she admits.

“So you were, uh… a single mother when you met my father? Have you been married?”

“I’ve never been married or lived with the father of my baby if that’s what you mean.“

“I can’t imagine my father is that good at picking up women.”

“No, he’s not. He is just one in a long line of men who are not that good, but they are available and willing to meet you again. And again.”

“You fear him.”

She laughs.

“I do. But he’s not the first man I fear.”

I look at her, perplexed.

“He could do you so much harm. Why would you do that to yourself?”

Sadness slides over her face.

“I don’t want to pass judgment on you,” I say, and she gestures in response.

“Don’t worry. You’re not the first person who’s asked me that, and I don’t plan to be with him forever. These things never last for long. So the normal thought process that would go into this doesn’t apply in this case. Other than that, he hasn’t been physically or verbally abusive to me. It’s not a great consolation, but it’s a fact.”

“You must know why I left.”

She nods.

“And why Tina isn't home.”

She tilts her head again.

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