Faked: A Dark Mafia Romance

by Vanessa Waltz

  Maybe I could smooth this over.

  We'd done nothing but banter, and he had a calm presence. The president watched me with a small smile. His gaze never left me as I drifted to the espresso machine.

  I made a drink with whipped cream and stepped around the counter. His expression lit up as I approached. He pulled out the chair next to him and patted the seat. I sank in the chair, pushing the cup toward him to bring this situation to sane ground.

  “It’s an iced mocha.”

  “Looks nice. Would you mind?” He nudged it. “You don’t look bloodthirsty, but I can’t be too careful. Nico Costa might force a pretty girl to poison me.”

  Whatever.

  I rolled my eyes, grabbed it, and drank. Then I sucked the contents from the bottom of the straw.

  “Satisfied?”

  “Very. You’re not what I expected.” He took it back, rubbing at the spot where my lips touched. “I thought you’d be high maintenance, but here you are, slaving away at a cafe. Wiping tables. Picking up chairs. Is this what you really want?”

  He’d spent way too much time thinking about me, and his unwelcome frankness gritted my teeth. I didn’t need a stalker, especially a biker who was supposed to kill me before deciding to bulldoze my life and tell me what to do.

  “Killian, you seem…decent,” I settled on, skipping crazy, creepy, and odd. “But the truth is I’m just a college student. My brother’s world has nothing to do with me. I have no interest in playing mafia politics. I’d like to take my classes and my internships in peace, so I'd appreciate it if you left me alone.”

  His smile grew, and my insides squirmed. “Like it or not, you’re involved.”

  My nostrils flared. “But—”

  “You’re just what I need. Too good to be wasted as a sweetbutt.”

  Whoa.

  The heaviness in my gut sank further. What would make him leave?

  I stood. “I have to get back to work.”

  He caught my arm, locking me in the chair. “Sweetheart, you’re not working here anymore.”

  “Says who?”

  “Your future husband.”

  A violent throbbing began in my throat. “And who the hell is that?”

  He lifted an eyebrow. “Me.”

  This guy was off his rocker, and I wasn’t dealing with it.

  “I don’t have time for this. You’re obviously drunk or high, and you thought coming in here and harassing Michael’s sister would be hilarious.”

  “Your uncle gave you away,” he growled, fingers digging into my flesh. “You’re part of a trade.”

  I tried to keep my heart cold, but the idea that I’d been used for a transaction dipped me in lava. “My uncle wouldn’t do that!”

  Killian’s voice smoothed to a velvet caress. “I won’t hurt you. I just want you to be my wife.”

  Fear knotted inside me.

  What disturbed me more—his words or the earnest hush in which he said them? I shrank from him, shaken by his intensity.

  “You’re crazy.”

  I shouldn’t have said that.

  Killian waved me off. “An arranged marriage isn’t crazy. It’s par for the course for people like us.”

  “I'm not marrying you.”

  “You’ll get to know me, and you’ll realize I’m not horrible.” He took my hand, but I wrenched from his grip.

  “No. I found out what you did to Carmela.”

  “That wasn’t me,” he responded coolly. “And I wouldn’t judge us all on one bad actor. Let’s go.”

  “No.”

  His lips thinned, and he frowned as though I behaved in a way that disappointed him. “I don’t want to have to strap you to my bike.”

  “My brother would never, ever approve of you.”

  “You’re not listening. It’s not up to him.”

  He grabbed me, dragging me past the students gaping at us over laptop screens. We burst outside, and he marched me to a row of chrome.

  A black fright swept through me.

  “No.” I yanked my elbow back. “I—I don’t want this.”

  “Too bad.” He engulfed me in his steel embrace, restricting my movement. “It’s a done deal—”

  My chest strained against a bottled scream, killed by my clamped lips. A fist wrapped my guts as he shoved me toward his motorcycle.

  “Killian. Stop.”

  My joy soared at the graveyard voice. It boomed from a Mustang rolling to the curb. Vinn stepped out, positioning himself behind the vehicle. He draped his arm over the door, his hair mussed, and his clothes wrinkled. He seemed off-kilter, not himself.

  “Take another step toward those bikes, and I’ll blow up every Harley dealership in this city.”

  Killian laughed, and so did the bikers lined on the street. “What do you want, Costa?”

  “To chop off your hands for touching Liana.” Vinn's slanted gaze shifted, warning me not to interrupt. “There’s been a major miscommunication. She’s my fiancée.”

  A horrible thrill shot through me.

  “Really?” Killian’s amusement grew as he faced me. “Where’s your ring?”

  I wet my lips. “I-I don’t have one yet.”

  “How does someone propose without a ring?” Killian quipped.

  “Not all women need a diamond, but I guess you wouldn’t know that.” Vinn leaned against the car, arms crossed. “You people buy your wives.”

  Killian beamed at him. “You have got to teach me how you nailed this girl down.”

  “Persistence,” he said silkily. “We’re childhood sweethearts, and I haven’t had the chance to go shopping with the doctor appointments. She’s pregnant.” His words just about gave me a heart attack. “Nico was just released. He had no idea. Nobody did.”

  What the hell is he doing?

  Lying through his teeth. He expected me to back him, and I would, but then what? I wasn’t pregnant and wouldn’t be for years.

  “Y-yeah,” I stammered, recovering. “I’m a few weeks along.”

  Killian huffed. “I’m not buying it.”

  Vinn stepped forward, his eyes gleaming like volcanic rock. “I have two police cruisers on standby to raid your cocaine smuggling operation. Let her go, and I’ll call them off.”

  Killian’s mouth twisted. None of them would get jail time, but losing all that product would hurt. His pocket chimed a second later, and he laughed at the screen. “Oh, he’s fucking good.”

  “Answer it.” Vinn waved. “I’ll wait.”

  Killian stabbed the button and held the phone to his ear. “What’s up?” He sighed as a woman’s voice blasted from the speaker. “Really?”

  After a few moments, he ended the conversation. A heavy silence dropped between them before Killian broke it. “You won—this time. Shithead.”

  I wrenched free of Killian, walking stiffly. The walk became a run as I whirled around the car and flung into Vinn’s embrace. I burst with a relieved gasp and threw my arms over his massive shoulders, squeezing.

  Vinn soothed me without words as he drew me close, bathing me in his scent. He cupped my face, and my heart lurched madly. Blood rushed where he touched me. He smelled like the sea, fresh and weightless, like suntan lotion and the countless summers when I played with my brother and his best friend. The images washed over me like a wave lapping my feet.

  Vinn’s lips brushed my ear before trailing to my cheek, where he kissed me. Foolishly, I let the heat from it warm me.

  “Do exactly as I say. You’re mine now.”

  Twelve

  Vinn

  Nico had put a gun to my goddamned head.

  After everything I’d done for the Family.

  The countless pep talks with his son, sending him to rehab, visiting Nico in jail…all of it had added up to a big, fat zero. I’d killed men I barely knew. I’d fiercely defended our interests because, without my uncle, I’d still be a jobless felon.

  I had nothing but this.

  I would’ve gladly died on a Cost
a hill.

  For what?

  He’d been ready to blow out my brains a few hours ago. Nothing mattered to him but that jackass, Anthony. He’d only spared me because Liana’s “pregnancy” made her a worthless bargaining chip. I would’ve jumped in front of a speeding train to save her life. He was in a hurry to dispose of her.

  The betrayal sat like a rock in my throat.

  Fuck up again, and your kid won’t have a father.

  He’d said it right before I drove to Liana. I didn’t feel the impact until Liana was safe. Now, I burned with a corrosive hatred.

  I charged into the kitchen. Drawers slammed as I searched for something to drown the rage. I tore through cupboards, finding a half-filled fifth that some chick had brought over. The tinted liquid poured like oil.

  I pressed the cup to my mouth and drank. The floral syrup hit my tongue, pitting my stomach with nausea. Like death in a bottle. Specifically, like the purple flowers that had sprouted all over Iraq. Bitterness chased away my short-lived relief.

  Tentative footsteps tapped the floor.

  Shit. I wasn’t alone. Suddenly, resentment over all those times she’d shown up at the hospital and rehab washed into my gut with my next gulp. Liana was always there to witness my weakest moments.

  “Vinn, you’re stronger than this.”

  I closed my eyes. “Leave.”

  “No.”

  Of course she wouldn’t. “I’m not asking.”

  Judging by her approach, she didn’t give a shit. “What do you really want, Vinn?”

  To be numb.

  It was no use. I couldn’t wall myself in ice. Liana had blown back into my life, and, ever since, I’d been a fucking mess. Distracted. Angry. Impulsive.

  Jealous.

  Killian’s face materialized in my head.

  I hurled my drink.

  A small gasp echoed behind me as glass shattered over tiles, the shards slipping into the gas range. My vision fogged over with the image of Killian all over Liana. It’d been so much worse than James, because the biker had the means to steal her from me.

  Over my rotting corpse.

  Liana bumped into my back. Her hands slid across my midsection and anchored over my arms.

  My pulse skittered from the unexpected touch. I didn’t do well with being restrained, even if it was by a pint-sized girl I could toss a hundred yards. I tugged her wrists.

  She cinched harder.

  “Li, I don’t like being held.”

  “That’s because you’re not used to it.” Liana stroked my abdomen, and discomfort swooped into my gut. “Get over it. If you’re this uncomfortable about a hug, we’re screwed. You’ll never convince anyone we’re a real couple.”

  She had a point.

  I clutched her forearm as my heartbeat galloped ahead. “I’m not in the mood for whatever this is.”

  “You need a hug, Vinn.”

  I need to kill everyone.

  Annoyance stabbed at me as she inhaled deeply, tightening like a belt. The last thing I wanted to be was violent, especially to her, but a dangerous impulse stirred in my body. I ached to throw her on the bed and fuck away some of this frustration.

  “I can’t be nice to you right now.”

  “You don’t have to be.”

  “Liana.” I gritted my teeth, fighting to keep my rage under control. “Leave me the hell alone.”

  I seized the vodka, breaking from her hold.

  “No.” She latched onto me like a barnacle. “Vinny, don’t do this to yourself.”

  That soft tone beckoned too many bad memories.

  A knot sank in my throat as she shoved herself between me and the counter. Something in her voice had stolen all desire for drinking, and I let her take the bottle. She tipped the booze, emptying it into the sink. As the purple liquid circled the drain, she leaned into me.

  “It’ll be okay,” she murmured. “We don’t have to jump into anything.”

  She was dead wrong.

  If you’re not pregnant in a few weeks, he’ll know I lied.

  I couldn’t pile that on top of everything else.

  I tensed as she rubbed my back, the warmth a shock to my system. Pink stained her cheeks as she stepped away, transferring her grip as she led me from the kitchen.

  Watery sunlight filtered through the clouds, filling my living room with washed-out tones. We sat on my couch, facing the Boston skyline. She untied the green apron and slipped it from her neck, shaking out her hair that’d glided through my hands like goose down. A black tank was all she wore underneath, and the seashell necklace dipped in her cleavage.

  The sight of it encased my chest in ice.

  I wished the man who gave it to her a slow, painful death.

  “Let’s figure this out,” she said mildly, as though we faced a tricky problem on an exam. “What can we do to change Nico’s mind?”

  “Nothing.”

  “I can’t accept that, Vinn.”

  I clenched my jaw so hard, pain shot into my teeth. “Well, too bad. It is what it is.”

  “He can’t do this to us,” she burst. “There are rules.”

  “They don’t apply to him.”

  “Of course they do. Nico’s the boss of the Family.”

  “He cares more about his son. Our baby is the only thing in the way of getting Anthony back.” I rubbed my forehead. “Nico will come after me.”

  “Not if you kill him first.”

  Apparently, we were on the same page.

  Disturbing.

  My back stiffened. “Don’t talk like that.”

  “Why not?”

  Her brows flickered as she met my gaze, her beautiful face shining with a naive optimism that clashed with her words. She was supposed to be all sweetness and light.

  “I’d hate it if you lost the part of you I like the most.”

  Liana rolled her eyes, but her blush spread to her chest. “Says the guy who threatened to fuck my mouth.”

  Maybe she was right.

  I was a goddamned hypocrite, and Liana had changed from the mousy girl who’d doted on me. She talked a lot more. Most of what she said, I resented, but she had a steel spine like her brother. She didn’t seem to give a damn about my approval.

  I respected that.

  But it was inconvenient as hell.

  Giving up on placating her, I shook my head. “I’ll handle Nico, but it’ll take a while. I can’t just snap my fingers and—”

  Kill him.

  I couldn’t say it.

  “How, then?”

  “Don’t worry about it.” I breathed deeply, sinking into the cushions. “Real question is, how will we make it until then?”

  Liana crossed her legs. “No idea.”

  “We’ll have to fake ultrasounds, doctor appointments, blood tests, baby showers, everything. Nico will be hanging over my fucking shoulder, waiting for me to make a mistake to shoot me, so he can hand you over to Killian. You’ll be here all day.”

  I hated this.

  It wasn’t in my nature to bluff. When threatened, I hit back.

  I hit hard.

  However, I couldn’t murder Nico without the Family backing me, plus I’d risk pissing off every greaseball from here to Montreal. Nico had powerful friends who’d hunt me down. I could strike him down and die, or I could bide my time. And if I chose to wait, I needed to buy a ring. Book a venue for our party. Move her in the house. I had to tell Michael I really did knock up his sister.

  Liana’s hopeful face filled me with dread. The words stuck in my throat. She would not be okay with this.

  “Li, he needs to think I got you pregnant.”

  A strained laugh burst from her clamped lips. “This is so insane.”

  “I know.”

  “A pregnancy can’t be faked. You fudge all the tests you want. My flat stomach gives it away.” Liana’s incredulity slashed through my calm. “What about my mom, my friends, the coworkers who’ve seen me drinking, and God, what about Michael?”

/>   “You’ll have a miscarriage.”

  “Then we’re right where we started, and I’m not fabricating a goddamned miscarriage.” She groaned, rubbing her eyes. “I’ll leave town.”

  “Then he’ll figure out I lied and kill me. And he’ll force you into Killian’s arms, except you’ll probably be passed around because you defied your husband-to-be.”

  “What if we—”

  “We’re engaged, Li. We’ll make it look good. We’re not telling anyone this is fake. Not Michael. Not your mom. Nobody.”

  “Why not?”

  “The more people we let in on the secret, the more potential leaks.”

  “Vinn, this will never work. You may have bought me a month—maybe two—and then it’ll be obvious I’m not pregnant.”

  I couldn’t dwell on it. “One crisis at a time.”

  “Tell him it was a false positive.”

  “No,” I ground out. “The only reason Nico backed off was because he thinks you’re pregnant. No man wants a woman who’s carrying another guy’s kid.”

  Her mouth twisted. “Well, that’s a lousy attitude.”

  “Sorry. I live in the real world.”

  “Faking a pregnancy is too much.” She slid off the couch, shaking her head. “It’s despicable. I can’t do it.”

  I marveled at her ability to blaze past the actual problem.

  “You think I want this? I have to tell my best friend I knocked up his sister.” Christ, just imagining it made me sick. “You’re the hapless victim. I’m the bastard who ruined you.”

  She flinched. “We don’t have to do any of this!”

  “Unfortunately, we do. He’s not letting this go.” I mimed a pistol and tapped my temple. “I had a fucking gun to my head. So did your brother. I saved us by the skin of my teeth.”

  “Ohmigod. Are you okay?”

  The tenderness in her gaze was ill-fitting for the heat stirring in my chest.

  “I’m fine. Let’s discuss what we’re telling Michael.”

  She shook her head, pained. “No, Vinn.”

  “Trust me. I don’t like it, either.”

  “He’ll never forgive us.”

  “Yeah, but he’ll be alive. As long as he’s breathing, he can hate me all he wants. Mike sucks at hiding his feelings. One look at him, and Nico will know I lied…” I trailed off, my stomach hardening. “You don’t want me dead. Do you?”