The Mancini Saga (Book #1) I.O.U.

by April M. Reign

  She watched him as closely as he watched her. They stared at each other, noticing nothing else around them. When Antonio walked over and hugged his brother, his eyes stayed fixated on Tania.

  “Thank you for coming,” he said, finally breaking away to glance at his brother. Then, as if second nature, he hugged Mia before he turned his attention back to Tania.

  Mia wanted to introduce them, but Carlo would not give her enough space to move away from him. When she tried to step out of his grip, he tightened his arm. She was frustrated.

  Carlo whispered in her ear, “You can introduce them from here.”

  “Antonio, this is my best friend, Tania,” she said.

  Antonio kissed the back of Tania’s hand. She giggled. He placed a hand on the small of her back, walked her away from Carlo and Mia, and introduced her to some of his colleagues.

  Mia gritted her teeth. She reached down to his fingers on her waist and tried to pry them from her body.

  He leaned in to her ear, “You can struggle all you want. Tonight, I’m not letting you out of my sight. For some reason, you keep sidestepping the law. I can’t figure out why you keep popping up in areas where you shouldn’t be.”

  Without a doubt, she knew that he had seen her the night before. She wanted to come clean so he would stop his bullying tactics. And if he got upset, so be it. “Carlo, I can explain last night.”

  “No, you’re going to sit down and tell me everything tomorrow night just like we planned. But, don’t think that I’m not angry. I’m furious with you. I have no idea who you are.”

  “You know who I am, you just don’t know some of the details about me,” she mumbled.

  “Your name and phone number were found in the jeans of a dead woman. You are vague about your past and you refuse to tell me anything about yourself or your family. And let’s not forget about last night, when you disappeared until early morning.”

  She could feel his fingers biting into her skin harder and harder with each statement he made. Tears stung her eyes—not because he was hurting her—but because he was right. Everything he said was the truth and if they reversed roles, she would be skeptical of him.

  The only other thing that caused her watery eyes was the knowledge that the entire night was going to be hell because that was how he wanted it to be. Worse, she had no choice in the matter.

  He knew more than he was saying; he wanted her to be honest with him. He was not going to let up until she told him everything.

  “You’re going about this wrong,” she whispered up at him. “And in fact, you’re being a jerk right now.”

  “Good. Things will not always go your way. You run when things aren’t going the way you planned—something I’m sure you started at a young age. Everyone has let you get away with it; well, not this time.” He turned her to face him. His large hands wrapped around her shoulders. He pulled her close to him; her head tilted up looking into his face.

  He stared at her. His lips in a tight line, eyes narrowed and eyebrows furrowed. “I’m in love with you, Mia.”

  Mia’s eyes searched his face while her emotion caught in her throat. She swallowed. When she tried to say something, he stopped her.

  “I’ve fallen in love with you. You will not run from me. I’m not perfect, but I’m a good, faithful man. I know you’re a special woman, and I value that. I also know that you have agreed to tell me the truth about your past and your life tomorrow, at dinner. I’m trying to be patient. In the meantime, I’m not letting you run from me.”

  She could see the seriousness in his eyes. Her body trembled at the depth in which he loved her. She had never experienced so much emotion. She nodded, unable to speak; she leaned into his arms and laid her head on his chest. He made her feel safe.

  When she looked up at him, her face was wet from tears. He held her body tight against his. She wanted to tell him how much she loved him, but she couldn’t—not until he knew the truth about her past. Instead, she reached up and pulled him down for a sensual kiss.

  “Hey you two, enough of that stuff.” Antonio walked up with Tania’s hand wrapped in his. “I asked Tania to join me after the show for a couple of drinks. Are you two interested?”

  “Of course,” Mia reached over, grabbed Tania’s hand, and squeezed it, smiling.

  Antonio leaned in to Carlo and whispered, “Watch her for me; I don’t want these vultures to get to her while I’m doing the show.”

  Carlo put his hand on his brother’s shoulder, “Antonio, you just met her; don’t worry about her, focus on your part in the show.”

  Antonio snickered. He turned to Tania, “Don’t go anywhere.”

  They watched the show and cheered for Antonio when he played his parts perfectly. When the show ended, he changed into his clothes and met them outside the theater. The lights just outside the Broadway theater building painted the night with electric lights, as bright as day. The tall buildings, with their phenomenal artistry and history, surrounded them in all directions—something Mia admired daily.

  The four of them stopped into a quaint, popular restaurant in the theater district for appetizers and drinks. The atmosphere felt warm and cozy, with tables dressed in linen and flickering candles on each table. When the server came over, they ordered their drinks.

  “Antonio, you were good out there. You nailed your part perfectly,” Carlo said, hitting his brother on the arm.

  “Thanks, I found my inspiration,” he looked over at Tania. She blushed.

  “We were so excited to see you perform tonight. My stomach fluttered with nerves each time you had to do your part.” Mia smiled.

  Tania laughed, “Oh, me, too.” She reached over and squeezed his hand.

  “So, how do you two know each other?” Antonio asked Tania and Mia.

  They both sighed and looked at each other to see who wanted to tell the story. Mia took the reins.

  “Tania came into the restaurant, where I work, one evening for dinner. We started talking, and we became friends.”

  “It didn’t happen that easy. Let me tell you, this one here,” she pointed at Mia, “is stubborn, to say the least,” they laughed.

  “So, tell us what happened,” Carlo winked at Mia and kissed the back of her hand.

  “Okay, our friend, Fredrick, and I had a very long day at work, and we were meeting for dinner. The restaurant was busy, so the space was limited. I guess that’s why the hostess sat us in the new girl’s station. Trust me; this did not make either of us happy,” she rubbed her hand down Mia’s arm.

  “Well, I wasn’t happy about it, either. The hostess sat this blonde bombshell and loud, gay man at a table in my station and within seconds of sitting down they both started causing problems.”

  The men started laughing, “So, what happened?” Antonio asked.

  “We were a little difficult, but the silverware had dried food stuck on them, and the glassware sported lipstick marks. So, when the food came out, and it was cold, we were irritated. We asked to speak to her boss. Mia went back, got the cook, and brought him out to our table. I was shocked, and Fredrick started laughing, which in turn made me laugh.

  “Well, the cook really is my boss since it’s up to him to make quality food that will make the customer happy. Everyone in my station started clapping and Fredrick jumped up, and gave me a hug and kiss for my ‘ingenuity,’ I think he called it.”

  “That’s what I call making a good situation out of a bad one,” Carlo laughed.

  Tania looked over at Antonio, “What about you? Do you have any funny stories?” she asked.

  Carlo started to laugh when Antonio pointed his finger at him. “Don’t start telling my life without my consent,” he stated.

  Carlo could not help it; he had to make fun of his brother a little. “Okay, true story, Antonio wanted to be an actor from the time he was two years old. On this occasion, he plotted to scare our brother, Angelo. Antonio was what?” he looked at his brother for his age when he pulled this prank.

&nb
sp; “I must have been eight years old,” he said, wishing that his brother would not tell this story.

  “He was eight, and Angelo was four years old. Antonio planned this whole prank. He went to the kitchen and heisted one of our mother’s steak knives and some ketchup. He then went into the bedroom that he shared with Angelo and staged his own perfect death. He put the knife right between his arm and side and spilled ketchup all over. However, not before he used our mother’s makeup and whitened his face.

  “Well, instead of Angelo walking in to find him, our mother walked in and completely lost it. Of course, that is not the funny part. The funny part is the fact that she called emergency and was yelling in Italian. She rounded up all the kids. In the group of kids she had rounded up, there stood Antonio. Unfortunately, my mom didn’t notice him. We were all laughing, telling her that he was okay, but she made everyone leave the house.”

  Antonio shook his head at the story and laughed inwardly, “It was funny, now that I think back on it.”

  Tania was laughing, “You must have been convincing in your acting if she didn’t even notice that you were okay.”

  “Yeah and when the ambulance came, Mama had sent them in the room, but no one was there. Antonio got in trouble for that one,” they all laughed—everyone except, Mia.

  She had flashbacks of the night before with the man on the stone bed, a knife sticking out of his chest, blood oozing from the wound. She was staring at her drink, trying to get the image out of her head.

  Carlo chose that story on purpose. Her reaction was what he expected. He leaned over and whispered in her ear, “I can’t take the image away for you, but you might want to talk to someone. You walked into a bad situation. You ever do that again, I don’t even want to think about how angry I’ll be.”

  She swallowed and glanced over at him. He kept throwing this small amount of knowledge he had, in her face. It was frustrating her. She leaned over and spoke into his ear, “You think you know what you saw last night, but you don’t. Stop trying to put a damper on this night. You’re going to get your explanation and when you do, you can leave me, if you want.”

  Irritation flashed over his eyes. How shallow did she think he was that he would run from someone’s past? Without warning, he stood and brought Mia up with him. “We can’t thank you two enough for inviting us to have drinks with you. We’re both tired.”

  Mia went to protest, but thought better of it when he looked at her through narrowed eyes. She hugged Antonio and Tania then praised Antonio again for a great performance.

  The moment they were outside, and away from crowds, Mia let loose. “What was that about? Why did we run out of there?”

  “Because, Mia, I can’t pretend anymore. Why were you at that house last night?” He demanded.

  “I knew you saw me.”

  “Yes, I did. Now tell me why you were at a location where there were drugs, guns, and death,” he demanded.

  “Miesha runs a nonprofit organization called PHOFF.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “People Helping Others Find Freedom.”

  “Go on,” he said with his arms crossed over his chest.

  “People come to us and ask us to help them escape controlling situations. In this case, Julia’s parents asked for our help.”

  “Why didn’t you send her to the police?”

  “Sometimes, people don’t want to involve the police. Maybe for fear that their family member will get in trouble or that the police have too many rules to follow just to get inside a home. Besides, in this case, Julia could have been killed.”

  “You could have been killed!” Anger and concern flashed across his face.

  “But, I wasn’t, and Julia is safe now.”

  He stared at her, piecing everything she said together. Then he threw his arms down to his sides and turned around, angry, putting his hand up to his forehead. “It all makes sense now.”

  “What does?”

  “You know Denise Murphy because you helped her to escape the cult that she was a part of in Connecticut.”

  Mia gasped, “How do you know about the cult?”

  “Why do you think you haven’t been questioned since the first time I questioned you?”

  “I don’t know.”

  Carlo stepped toward her, and Mia stepped back. His eyes showed something other than anger. His eyes showed concern—a strong, loving care for her well-being. “You know what, I’m not going to stand here and watch you put yourself in those situations ever again.”

  With those words, he saw her—emotionally—run again. He finally realized that Mia had a problem with authority. If someone told her what to do, or what not to do, she shut down. He immediately tried to compensate. “Okay, I’m not going to tell you what you can and cannot do, but if we are in a relationship, then I think it’s only fair . . . if we talk about it, at least.”

  She stepped toward him. He wrapped her in his arms and hugged her tightly. She molded into the safety of his embrace. That was the problem. When he demanded answers of her, she shut down. When he asked of her, she opened up.

  “We have a big day tomorrow, with dinner and all. Are you ready to go home?” he asked.

  She nodded.

  He flagged down a taxi, took her home, and made sure she made it into her apartment safely. When he left, he felt better that he knew a little more about her. He finally felt as if he could sleep tonight.

  Chapter Eleven

  After a grueling morning of shopping for the ingredients to make Carlo’s favorite Italian meal, Mia felt ready to take a nap. She realized that she had no time, considering her plans were to make the evening perfect. She cleaned her apartment, set out candles, and chilled the wine. She took a hot shower, spent extra time with her hair and makeup, and put on a gold dress with a wrap-style neckline. The dress hugged her slender body, stopping above the knee showing off her long, flawless legs.

  She tried to remember the events of her past in the order that she wanted to tell him. She spent many years blocking out her past; now she had to dig deep for the facts that made up the life she left behind. With each old memory, which she excavated from her past, her heart pounded faster and louder. Her mind raced through her memories, creating nervous spurts of emotions that formed small beads of sweat on her forehead.

  Her suppressed memories were slowly resurfacing, and with each memory that she brought forward into the present, she had to take a few moments to process them. It was not easy, but it was long overdue. She needed to share her past with Carlo, so that she could share her future with him.

  After she set up the house and got dressed, she started the dinner menu that Isabelle had suggested: Carlo’s favorite meal. She put the pots on the stove, pulled out the utensils and started chopping, grating and preparing her special meal.

  When Carlo knocked on the door, Mia’s stomach quickly tied in knots. Although she couldn’t wait to spend the evening with him, she feared that he would deny her love once he knew about her past. She had no choice; she would take that chance, ready or not.

  Then Mia thought about the short time when she was homeless, sleeping in Central Park, stealing what she needed in order to survive. Would that make him turn his back on her? He gave an oath to uphold the law and the thought of falling in love with a woman who broke the law on numerous occasions might be disturbing to him.

  She kept replaying how he treated Jose when he tried to steal the money in Mia’s hand. The thought that he might treat her like that made her queasy.

  She knew she had no other choice but to tell him about her past. Too many events could resurface at some point in her life. If he decided to leave her, then she would have no choice but to accept that. She had experienced pain in her life. She knew that with pain came the process of healing. That was all she could hope for in the end.

  When she opened the door, Mia held her breath. She was speechless as they both stared intently at each other. She looked at a vision of perfection standing in front
of her. He wore a fitted blue suit with a white dress shirt and blue tie with gold specks. His deep-set eyes were smoldering dark. He held a dozen, perfect, long-stemmed red roses across his arm. “I’ve missed you,” Carlo’s deep voice hoarsely rumbled.

  His words broke her free from the trance his appearance held over her. “I—I’m sorry, come in, please.”

  “Mia, my love, you are absolutely stunning.” He handed her the flowers and kissed her on the cheek.

  “And you, Carlo, are a vision of perfection.” She smiled at him over her shoulder as she went to put the flowers in water.