Page 118 of Beautiful Trauma

“I did.” I couldn’t help smiling when I thought about my conversation with Mam after I returned from Dublin. After seeing my last two long-term relationships end badly, she’d had her doubts at first. Especially considering the only thing she knew about Mila was that she had duped me. But the more I talked about all the things that enamored me with Mila, the more Mam became a believer.

“What did she say?”

“Initially, she had her concerns, but I was able to make her a fan.”

Crossing her arms over her chest, Mila countered, “I find that hard to believe.”

“Then I’ll prove you wrong. Come to Boston with me.”

“Tonight?”

“Why not?”

“I have a job. And before you tell me to get someone else to run the place, I’ve already taken advantage of my assistant’s kindness.”

“Just tell her you’re emotionally overwrought and need to get out of town for a few days.”

From her expression, I could tell I was wearing her down. “We’ll meet my mom and babysit, and then we’ll go to New York for some fun.”

“You are such a bad influence,” she mused.

The waiter returned then with our appetizers. Just as I reached for a bite of calamari, a fire alarm blared through the room. With his brows furrowed, our waiter glanced around. After exchanging words with another waiter, he said in a raised voice, “Everyone stay calm. While I’m sure there isn’t a fire, please exit through the front door. Once the fire department clears us, we’ll come back inside.”

Unease pricked up my spine. From the way the waitstaff were acting, there wasn’t a reason for the fire alarm to be going off. And if there wasn’t a real fire, someone banked on pretending there was to get everyone outside.

Reaching for Mila’s hand, I said, “Let’s go.”

Fear swirled in her eyes as she slipped her hand in mine. The bodyguard I’d arrived with, Sandro, appeared at my side. As his gaze swept left and right, he remarked, “I don’t like this.”

“Neither do I.”

“I told Dino to bring the car around to the back. We’ll go out the employee entrance rather than out front.”

“Good thinking.”

As we made our way to the back, it felt like salmon spawning against the flow of the people. When we finally got to the exit, Sandro stuck his head out the door. At the pop of a gun, Mila screamed. I jerked her against me as Sandro’s head exploded with the gunshot.

When his body dropped at our feet, I whirled around to start dragging Mila to the front of the restaurant. But two menwith guns appeared before me. “Bogdan? Denis? What are you doing?” Mila demanded.

“Following orders.”

“Excuse me?”

“We’re to take the two of you to your Father.”

“But we’ve done nothing wrong. We aren’t even in my father’s territory.”

When Denis grabbed her forcibly by the arm, Mila cried out in pain. Seeing red, I lunged at Denis. “Get your fucking hands off of her!”

The next thing I knew I was being slammed against the wall by Bogdan who had at least a hundred and fifty pounds on me. With his arm under my chin, he said, “The only reason your brains aren’t splattered over this wall is because the boss gave us strict orders to bring you to him alive.” A cruel grin curved on his lips. “But he didn’t say anything about roughing you up.”

As I struggled against him, Bogdan’s meaty fist slammed into my jaw. “Stop it!” Mila screamed.

I returned two punches to Bogdan’s chest and abdomen before he grabbed me by the waist and slammed me to the ground. The last thing I remembered was Mila’s screams before the world became dark.

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE: MILA

After Kellan’s limp body was thrown into the back of an SUV, I was forced to walk to a different one. I gasped at the sight of the SUV I’d arrived in facing me with Dino slumped over the steering wheel. My heart sank. I’d hoped he’d driven off to get help. But he must’ve been ambushed when he came around the back.