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A smirk tugs my lips as I lean forward. “Marry me.”
Her brows crease until they nearly meet in the center of her face. She looks like she’s about to punch me in the face but maintains composure.
“No, thanks. Already applied to become a nun.”
“We were two seconds away from having sex,” I smirk.
She shrugs. “Jesus forgives.”
“Don’t test me now.”
“Look, why don’t we both go our separate ways. I’ll forget whatever I heard, and you leave me the fuck alone,” she smiles, a forced tight-lipped one that gets on my nerves. “So...” she proceeds to stand, grabbing her purse. “This meeting is over…”
“Sit the fuck down, Aria Abruzzi...” I growl.
“Don’t you dare tell me what to do!” she yells, pointing her purse towards me, hands trembling with rage.
The anger in me is raging like a storm. Her audacity! And I hate how my eyes keep falling to her jiggling breasts. I’m tempted to bend her over my knees and spank her ass until it holds my red hand imprints.
“Your father’s life is at risk, and so is yours. I’m sure you know that.” Her gaze narrows on me as I take out a cigarette from my jacket’s inside breast pocket and have it lit within seconds, dragging a puff that holds my sanity.
“I, in turn, need intel on someone who is trying to expose my family and, in the process, ruin my business. Plus any other information that’d be useful in the long run. If you marry me, I can offer you protection in return for working for me.”
She scoffs, then retorts sarcastically, “Why don’t you go to the FBI…oh I forgot, you’re a criminal.”
“Shut the fuck up and listen to me!” My heart races as I slam my fist against the table.The nerve she has!
Briefcase in hand, I stand up slowly, trying hard not to crash my lips on her smart mouth. “If we make this deal, I can protect you and your dad. You work for me and round up the motherfucker who is trying to screw me...”
“And why would I deal with you? For all I know, it could be a trap to kill me.” She bites her lips, and I clench my fist.
“If I wanted you dead, you’d already be dead.”
“Well, screw you, Elio Donatelli, because I will never become your wife.” And with that, she sashays away angrily, her flair skirt bouncing along with her ass.
Fuck. Is she even wearing underwear?
Chapter six
Aria
I dab underneath my eyes with a powder brush for the umpteenth time, trying to cover up the blackened bags that have formed there within the past few days. Shutting my eyes tightly, I release a pent-up breath to relax my grating nerves, especially because I’m still livid about Elio Donatelli’s unthinkable offer.
Why the hell did he think I was going to accept becoming his wife? A criminal’s wife? How did he even come up with such an outrageous idea?
I rub at my temples to alleviate the dull throbbing that has begun there, careful not to smear the layer of makeup I’ve just added to my face.
With a frustrated breath, I open my eyes to give myself a distraction because Elio Donatelli’s face would not stopsurfacing in my mind. He was probably thinking his fancy three-piece suit and alpha male charisma were enough to have me tripping to the extent of saying, “I do.”
Shaking my head, I release a loud scoff at the thought.
There’s so much productive stuff for me to do and Elio Donatelli is not on the list. I already have a few case files to work on, so I head towards my desk to run through one of the older case files once again. That would serve as a worthy distraction from the abominable mafia lord.
Sliding my blue-light-blocking glasses onto my eyes, I peer into my laptop screen to make out the words in my email when my phone vibrates. I usually just silence my phone at work and turn the screen over to avoid distractions, but since this call readsMount Pleasant Healthcare, I decide to bend my rules and take the call. That’s the general hospital where my dad is being treated, so it has to be important.
“Aria Abruzzi speaking.” My voice is steady as I still scan through the email my client sent to me earlier in the day.
“Miss Abruzzi, I’m afraid we need your attention at the hospital immediately,” a voice tells me.