Page 13 of The Mobster's Forced Marriage

“Do you know the old industrial station in Bedford Park? He’ll be waiting for you there tomorrow at nine. He has an offer, and he wants…”

I chuckle and wave my hands, making her stop. “Wait, are you serious right now?”

Elena shrugs. “Yes, Louis sounded quite serious.”

“Oh, I see.” So it’s not a joke. I smile mockingly, unable to contain the bitter feeling in my chest. That asshole wants to talk now, huh? Well, it’s too late for that. “Then you can tell him to go to hell because only my gun will ever talk to him again.”

I turn away from Elena and clench my jaw, ignoring the ache growing in my heart. After everything, Louis wants totalk. Not apologize, not explain himself, not admit his own cruelty. No, he hasan offerfor me, how fucking nice. God, I can’t believe I used to be crazy about him.

But I bite back the lump in my throat and open the car door. None of it matters now. I have to pick up Misha from school, and then I have to figure out how to kill Louis without any witnesses.

“Sasha?” Elena calls me again, and even though I’m tempted to close the door right under her nose and drive away, I purse my lips and turn around. Her voice sounds too genuine to ignore.

She meets my gaze with a crease between her eyebrows and a puzzled look in her eyes. “Why do you hate him so much?”

Ah, what a question. I look away and chuckle quietly, my focus drifting through my memories. What would be the best way to explain it?

“Because Louis has made my life a living hell.”

Chapter 5 - Louis

Luna lets out bubbly laughter, awkwardly waving her arms and trying to stretch her legs at the same time, and my heart grows with warmth. I can’t help a big smile when I look at her sparkly eyes, plump cheeks, and the cutest tiny nose that she scrunches sometimes just because she’s in the mood for it.

I swear to god, Luna is the loveliest tiny creature on this planet, even when she’s screaming and sobbing at the top of her lungs.

“What if I steal you, little princess?” I coo at her, rubbing her belly, and Luna focuses on me with the most serious look I’ve ever seen. “Do you wanna live with Uncle Louis? Do you?”

“Just don’t forget to change her diapers and give her eight ounces of breast milk every six hours.” Jacinta huffs, takes a seat on the floor next to me, and looks at me with an amused smile. “Oh, also, make sure she takes a nap in the afternoon, but not too late or you won’t be able to put her to sleep. Also, I’ll give you an ointment for her neck, she gets—”

“Okay, okay, I got it.” I sigh dramatically and turn to Luna. “I guess not today. Let’s wait till you get on your feet, alright?”

She looks back at me with a serious frown and three fingers in her mouth. Precious. Jacinta and I simultaneously chuckle, and Jacinta picks her daughter up to press a kiss on her cheek. Luna doesn’t look impressed. A butterfly-shaped hairpin in Jacinta’s dark wavy hair seems to be much more interesting to her.

“So what do you think you’ll do now?” Jacinta settles Luna in her lap and looks at me, continuing our conversation from before she went to grab a snack in the kitchen. “It doesn’t look like you want tojusttalk to that girl.”

Am I so obvious? I chuckle and rub my neck, suddenly feeling awkward to admit it. I know that my plan isn’t perfect, and I actually haven’t talked to Riccardo about it, but…well, it won’t do us any harm, right?

“I want to offer Sasha an alliance.”

Jacinta’s eyebrows immediately go up, and she just stares at me for a moment with a baffled expression. “Do you mean you want to marry her?”

Uh, I don’t like how that sounds, but I guess it’s one way to say it. So I nod, and Jacinta finally blinks out of her surprise and looks away, shaking her head.

You know, she’s a really nice and smart girl, especially for a nineteen-year-old, so her opinion is kinda important to me. Not that her disapproval would make me change my mind, but I still tense up when I see an unsure look on her face.

“It will make our position stronger,” I add in an attempt to explain myself. In a way, it’s a rehearsal before telling Riccardo and Paolo about my plan, so I feel determined to make Jacinta agree with me. “Of course, we already have a deal with the Russians thanks to Elena, but wouldn’t another marriage only make it stronger? If I do it, your relatives—”

Jacinta glares at me, and I clear my throat and correct myself.

“If I marry Sasha, the Mexicans will see that our alliance with the Bratva is even stronger than before. It will be a powerful message to everyone, including the Russians, that we stand together, don’t you think?”

For a moment, Jacinta doesn’t say anything, contemplating my words and stroking Luna’s cheeks. But Luna doesn’t seem to like her mother’s display of affection, and after a few strokes she grimaces and swings her arms, ready to cry. Jacinta immediately coos and places her back on her mat with toys hanging off a wooden arch.

“Do you like that better? Yes, my baby?” Jacinta talks to her, rubbing her belly, but Luna is already distracted by an octopus swinging right above her head.

The scene fills my heart with fondness, but I can’t keep my focus on them for too long before my thoughts drift back to Sasha and my proposal. It can’t be such a bad idea, right? I look at Jacinta and clear my throat, too impatient to hear her opinion. She’s the first one to hear about this, after all.

“So…what do you think?”

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