Elle smiled and nodded then watched them walk out the door, letting her finally breathe again. Thank God.
Elle believed she was in the clear. For now, anyway.
* * *
He could hear the sound of his phone buzzing on his wooden desk. He picked it up without having to look at the caller ID.
“She’s smart. Came into work like nothing happened, claiming she must have missed the whole thing. Cops spoke to her already. She made it seem like they got nothing from her.”
“Yeah, Sal called about an hour ago. She played dumb to the cops. You’re my consigliere, Vinny; what do you think?” He took a cigar out of his box then snapped the lid closed.
“I’m advising you to figure this shit out on your own. It will be good for you. Just keep me updated.”
“Okay, I’ve got it handled for now.” With that, he ended the call and lit his cigar. His consigliere was right; she was fucking smart. He knew she wasn’t opening her mouth in the near future. The only thing he didn’t know was if she had actually seen him and his crew do it or just heard what had occurred. That, he needed to find out. She might not be saying shit now, but you never knew if a person would down the road. Besides, if his enemies found out he had left a witness alive, it could bring down his whole operation, everything he had done to be the one calling the shots.
Elle had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time. That I know all too well.
He pushed the bad memory back. He couldn’t feel sorry for the girl. His son had been there, as well as Sal; he had to protect them both. He had made an oath long ago to protect the family.
He leaned back in his expensive, leather chair, taking a hit of his cigar. Exhaling, he watched the smoke fill the room.
It was time to check in and see if any progress had been made.
* * *
Nero lay in bed, looking up at the ceiling. Something had been bothering him ever since Elle had run out on him in art class. No girl had ever run away from him, and they sure as hell wouldn’t after what he had pulled on her in the closet. Any other girl would have begged me to fuck them right there.
Playing with Elle had built tension inside of him. He needed to get it out, and when Stephanie and Stacy had been waiting for him at his car, he had known exactly how. He had chosen Stacy because she had been exactly what he needed; nothing was off-limits with her. At least, that had been what he’d thought he needed, but his dick was still hard. For the first time in years, Nero was sexually frustrated. Fuck, would she hurry?
Nero’s phone rang. “Yeah?”
“Tell me how it went.”
Nero got out of the bed and opened the door leading to his balcony. Walking out, he shut the doors.
“Well, she showed up to school. I gotta say, I was kind of shocked she actually did. Should have known, though, she wouldn’t let her friend go to school without her. First class, she was a little out of it. Looked mostly tired but snapped back pretty fast.”
“Did you talk to her?”
“You don’t seem surprised.” Nero must have missed something.
“I had Vinny and Enzo check in on her at the diner. She had enough balls to go to work, acting like she was already gone before it happened. When the cops asked her about the murder, she pretended it was the first she’d heard of it.”
“So, I assume this was a test. How did I do…boss?” Nero made sure his father got his meaning.
“Don’t take it personally, son. Answer the question.”
“Yes, I talked to her. It’s going to take time for her to trust me, though. She doesn’t exactly have reason to trust anyone in school. As you can see, she’s not your typical high school girl.”
“Yeah, I’m seeing that, especially after years of seeing the girls you and your brother bring home. Why can’t either of you bring a girl like that home?”
“Probably because we’d have to work too hard to get in their panties.”
“Well, you have one month to get into them and find out what she saw. Oh, and I don’t want to see another girl walk through my front doors unless it’s Elle. Mistake number one already. A piece of advice, father to son, she ain’t the cheating type. You’re done fucking around. Consider yourself married off till the job is done.” All Nero could hear after that was a tone saying his dad had said his peace.
Nero squeezed the phone. Done fucking around. That’s a joke.
He opened the door and lay back down on the bed, considering what his dad had said about Elle. ‘She had enough balls to go to work.’
Elle had fooled the cops and everyone else besides the family.
Nero smiled. Elle, I am going to have fun with you.
Nero heard the bathroom door open right on cue. Stacy came out, showered and dressed. She headed for the door. “See you tomorrow, Nero.”
“Did I give you permission to leave?” Nero grabbed her hand.
Stacy beamed and jumped on top of him.
No, he was not quite done with her tonight; he had only grown harder at the thought of Elle. Nero was sure he would fuck Stacy until the thought of Elle disappeared. Little did Nero know, however, it was sleep that would come first.
* * *
Elle lay in bed, exhausted. Work had been mentally draining, worrying about who was going to walk through the doors next. Then she had to come home and do homework on top of that.
To top it all off, the thought of Nero going home with another girl was really messing with her brain. Why do I even care about him?
She didn’t understand why guys were attracted to girls like Cassandra. Oh, yeah, right.
Elle knew she was nothing like them. She didn’t have money, didn’t buy fancy clothes, and didn’t throw herself at boys. I’m just a waitress.
It really bugged Elle to not be able to shake him from her thoughts because, clearly, he only wanted to get laid and girls meant nothing else to him. Moreover, Elle would never picture herself with a guy like Nero.
Honestly, Elle had never pictured herself with anyone. She had never liked anyone enough. Elle was definitely a virgin—hell, she had never even been kissed before. I am definitely not his type, and he isn’t mine.
Elle had decided long ago, no matter what changed, she wouldn’t be with anyone at Legacy Prep High because not one of them gave a shit about her. All the times she had been bullied, all the laughs and stares—she blamed them as much as the ones causing the actual pain.
Elle spent the night begging for sleep to come and rescue her from her thoughts, but not even sleep gave her a reprieve from Nero.
Chapter Seven
A Deal With the Devil
When Elle walked into English class the next morning, she came to a halt, causing Chloe to bump right into her. Elle slowly started walking to her seat, unable to believe it. She stopped at the seat in front of hers, staring down at a gloating Nero. She really wanted to wipe that smirk off his face.
“Good morning, Elle.” Elle could hear how shocked Chloe was at hearing her name come out of his mouth.
Completely ignore him, Elle decided.
She took her seat, and of course, all she could see in front of her was Nero. She had spent the whole night trying to forget him, and now he’d graced her with an upfront view of himself.
She turned her head to look at Chloe, unable to look at him anymore; even the back of his head was handsome. She didn’t even want to get started on the back muscles she saw under his white, button-up shirt.
It wasn’t long before Elle couldn’t even look at Chloe, either; she had a big smirk on her face.
Attempting to ignore them both, all Elle could smell was Nero’s cologne; it was the scent of pure man. The smell of him brought her back to yesterday in the art supply closet. She got chills at the memory of his finger running down her skin. Stop!
Elle swore this was the longest class of her life. She needed to get away from him.
She jumped out of her seat when the bell rang and threw on her bag. She would wait for Chloe in the ha
ll. The problem was, Nero was prepared for her running away today. He grabbed her arm.
“Could you please stop doing that?”
Elle looked down at his warm hand, holding her back. “Doing what?” She gave him the same smile he had been giving her before.
“Running from me.”
Elle laughed. “I am not run—”
Nero squeezed her hand ever so slightly. “Remember what I said yesterday, Elle.”
Elle looked him in the eyes. Damn, he really must not like liars.
“I just wanted to walk you to class.”
“Nope, sorry.” She jerked her arm away from his grasp and ran straight out of there.
Waiting in the hallway, she hoped Chloe would appear before him and was thrilled when she did. Elle wasted no time in walking to their next class. She got there quickly and they took their seats.
Once she was settled, Elle couldn’t help feeling Chloe’s eyes on her. She looked over at her best friend to see she was smiling from ear to ear.
“Stop it! I swear, if you don’t stop looking at me that way, I’m going to find a new best friend.” Elle covered her face with her hands. It was hard not to smile with Chloe.
“Hmm, like Nero?” Chloe was way too happy for Elle’s liking.
Elle sunk down in her desk. She really wanted to dislike Nero, but everything was telling her to like him.
“Elle, I don’t know why you’re trying so hard to dislike him. He clearly likes you.”
“Are you joking right now?” Elle was serious.
“Uh, no.”
“I dislike him because he didn’t give a shit about me all the times I was pushed around and hit. Or how about all those times I was called waitress, all the mental abuse I took, no we took. Then, just two days ago, he called you a freak in English—I know it was him.” That had been on our first day back from Christmas break in English class. Mr. Evans had asked us to introduce ourselves, and when Chloe had finished, a whisper of “freak” had echoed around the room, coming from Nero’s general direction. “Now, for some odd reason, he wants to be friends? No, screw that.” Elle was done thinking about him; she wasn’t wasting any more thoughts on him.
“Listen, Elle; all I can tell you is when I see him look at you, I know he likes you. Maybe you should give him a chance. I think you’re fighting your feelings because of me.”
“Chloe, it doesn’t matter.” Elle didn’t want to talk about this.
“It does matter. I want you to be happy, Elle. Don’t do this because of my fears. I don’t think Nero would do anything to hurt you, or me for that matter. I could get used to Nero, for you, of course.” Chloe looked down at her hands.
Elle smiled. She loved her best friend. Chloe meant everything to her. It would take a lot for Chloe to trust Nero, though.
He is going to have to prove himself big time.
The day went on and Elle realized Cassandra still wasn’t back in school. She and Chloe were able to have one more day of peace, and they enjoyed every second of it. The only bad thing about it was they were sure, when she got back tomorrow, it would be Hell.
Elle and Chloe went to the cafeteria when the bell rang and got in line to eat chicken patties, again. They sat down and Elle scanned the room. She knew she was looking for Nero but didn’t want to admit it. When she finally spotted him, he was at his table.
Elle looked back down at her food and began to eat, but then saw Sebastian out of the corner of her eye, heading her way. She had no time to warn Chloe. This is going to be bad.
She paid him no attention when he stood, looking down at her. “Have you heard why Cassandra isn’t here?”
Elle kept her eyes glued to Chloe.
“Well, she was suspended. Do you know why?” Elle could feel him losing his temper with each passing second. She wasn’t going to look at him, though. He honestly scared the shit out of her.
Sebastian slammed his hands down on the table. “I am talking to you, waitress!”
While the whole cafeteria went silent at his outburst, Elle could see Chloe was absolutely terrified; she had practically jumped ten feet. As Elle finally looked up at him, she thought he resembled a complete psychopath.
“Now, do you know why?”
Elle said nothing, only looked at his crazed face. There was never a point in saying a word to Sebastian; it only made things worse. And yes, it’s been worse than this.
“Do you?” That was it; he snapped. Elle could see him jump toward her. He wanted to put his hands on her and make her answer. Elle shut her eyes, waiting for it to come.
“I better not see you lay your fucking hands on Elle, ever. I don’t want to see you talking to her or even looking in her direction, and that goes for Chloe, too. Because, if you do, I will make damn sure everyone in this school will be calling you the freak. Do you understand me?”
Elle was no longer scared of Sebastian with one glance at Nero. His voice was too calm, his face too composed, but his green eyes promised his words were true.
Sebastian was shocked. He knew not to question him, though. He only nodded. That, however, didn’t stop him from giving Elle a look that said he would get her next time, when Nero wasn’t around. She knew he would, too. That, I have no doubt of.
When Nero was satisfied he understood, he finally let him go. Then Nero looked around the cafeteria, making sure everyone was paying attention.
“Their names are Elle and Chloe, and you will call them by their names.”
Elle had not been expecting that, and by the expression on Chloe’s face, she hadn’t been, either. She couldn’t believe he had not only told Sebastian to fuck off, but the whole school, as well. All these years, she had gone with not one person standing up for her, and here Nero had stood up to the whole school.
Elle watched Nero come over to her. “You okay?”
She hoped her face didn’t look as dumb as she thought. It does. I know it does. “Um, yeah, I’m fine.” She looked over at Chloe to make sure she was good. She didn’t look terrified anymore; she looked a little dazed. Elle was certain she looked the same.
Nero grinned. “Do you think I could sit here now?”
Elle knew he deserved some consolation for what he had done. Still, she felt that this wasn’t going to change anything. She didn’t believe his intentions were good and knew a guy like Nero would never like her. Elle figured she could let him sit with her, though. It’s not like he will keep sitting here, anyway.
She glanced at Chloe to make sure she was okay with it. She knew she wasn’t thrilled, yet she would deal.
Elle looked up at Nero and smiled. “Sure, why not?”
“Good.” Nero looked up across the cafeteria and motioned a ‘come here’. Elle saw Nero’s crew get up from their table and come toward them. Oh, shit.
She immediately got up and stood beside Chloe. “What are you doing?” She could feel Chloe getting nervous.
“Uh, I’m sitting here, and they sit where I sit.”
“No, I said you can sit here. I didn’t say they could.”
“What’s the big deal?” Elle saw it dawn on him the moment he asked. He could figure it out by the way she was standing in front of Chloe.
“They can’t sit here, Nero.”
Elle watched Nero hold up his hand, stopping his crew.
“Ba-Elle, listen; letting them sit here will make sure no one will ever say or do anything to you and Chloe again. They won’t hurt you. I promise.” He made sure to hold her eyes, letting her know he was telling the truth. “They won’t touch Chloe, either. I give you my word.”
Elle looked at Chloe. She knew she was running out of room to protect her friend in this Hell. This semester had started out terribly, and it was only the first week. Elle knew she needed help, and if anyone in this school could protect Chloe, it was Nero and his crew. Sorry, Chloe.
Elle sat down beside Chloe. “You better not be lying to me, Nero.”
Elle knew he had heard her; he nodded, not only for her, but for
his crew to come over.
Elle whispered to Chloe, “It’s going to be okay. I haven’t let anyone in here hurt you, have I?” And she hadn’t. Elle did whatever it took to make sure no one laid a finger on her. Yes, that meant Elle got the short end of the stick in here, but Chloe got the shortest end of the shittiest stick outside of here.
Elle gave Chloe a smile when she finally answered, shaking her head no.
Elle could see the signal Nero gave the young blond one to sit beside Chloe. That tugged at her heart a little. He was a good choice because he was practically a kid and had never had any part in their bullying.
Nero took his seat on the other side of Elle and draped his arm on the back of her chair as Amo and Vincent took the other two remaining seats across from them.
“This is my little brother, Leo.” Leo flashed his shiny, white teeth.
Jesus, he is a miniature Nero.
“Leo, this is Chloe.” He nodded toward Chloe.
“Hey, Chloe.” Leo held his hand out.
Elle quickly took his hand. “Sorry, she’s germaphobic. I’m Elle.”
Elle watched the four guys stare at her and Chloe. The situation was already awkward, and that had just made it a lot more so.
“That’s freaking genius, Nero. Why haven’t we thought of that after all the gross hands we’ve had to shake?” Leo laughed at his own joke, the guys all joining in, and Elle couldn’t help herself from laughing with them. Even Chloe chuckled.
Elle automatically liked Leo. It was something you couldn’t help; he was completely adorable with his long, dirty-blond hair and deep-blue eyes. He knew how to handle himself even at a young age, and Elle knew he had gotten it from his older brother.
Surprisingly, Elle thought lunch was going well. Nero, Amo, and Vincent talked mostly to themselves the whole time while Elle asked Leo questions about how he liked high school so far. Leo, being easy to talk to, had Chloe chiming in, as well. It was a nice lunch. They’d never had any company besides themselves. They, of course, never minded it, but it was a nice change. It was time to head back to class before they knew it.
Elle and Chloe got up first to take their trays to the trash, but Nero stopped Elle. He grabbed her tray and took it from her while Amo came up and grabbed Chloe’s tray. Chloe, however, didn’t let it go; she kept her hands on the tray, holding it tight. Amo held on tighter and slowly pulled it closer to him, freeing it from her hands.
Nero (Made Men #1) Page 5
