My Mobster

by J. L. Drake

  He ran a tattooed finger ran down my cheek to the hard line of my jaw, and his leather jacket squeaked. With a flick of his hand, he tipped up my face. His too plump lips hovered within a hairsbreadth of my mouth. I could smell the powdered sugar on his breath. I barely suppressed a shudder while I waited for him to speak.

  “I know how to make this work.”

  My eyes widened and hope surged through me. “How?”

  “We do a trade.”

  “A trade?” I parroted, the two words scraping over my vocal cords like sandpaper.

  “Yes.” He stroked the length of my hair. “My sister for Gian’s sister. How does that sound?”

  My heart rate skyrocketed even as my mind refused to do the math. “What are you suggesting?”

  Konstantin leaned forward, and the smell of leather and wood wrapped around me like an embrace. “You know exactly what I’m suggesting.” His lips vibrated against the shell of my ear, and the weird, combustible chemistry always buzzing and crackling between us raised the fine hairs on the back of my neck. “But I’m happy to clarify. Gian gets my sister without any conditions, and we get engaged.”

  Shock ricocheted through my chest like a pinball machine, and I jumped out of my chair. “No. Absolutely not. I can’t make that deal. I don’t have that kind of power, and my family would never accept it.”

  Konstantin shrugged, unconcerned. “Then it looks like your brother will have to accept that he will never come within a hundred feet of my sister again, or I’ll slice him into a million pieces and feed him to my dog.”

  I tipped my head toward the ceiling, staring at the garish red paint and brass chandelier with detached fascination. I wanted Evie and Gian to be happy. God knew I did, and I’d do most anything to make it happen. Be that as it may, I didn’t know if I could spend my life tethered to Konstantin. He may have been Evie’s brother, but where Evie was light, he was dark. And I was pretty sure ice water, not blood, pumped through his veins.

  I groaned. “I can’t.”

  “Is that your final answer?” Alix hissed.

  “How will an engagement between your son and me benefit you?”

  “Well, let’s just call it a step in the right direction.”

  “Or it will start a war.”

  “I’m not worried. Your family won’t go to war with me after what happened with the DiTonnos.”

  I closed my eyes, hoping to stave off the landslide memories about my dead fiancé. It didn’t work. Rocco’s open smile and his dark eyes haunted me. My heart still ached with how much I missed him. I’d do anything to have another day with him. I’d never love anyone the way I loved him. Truthfully, I couldn’t remember a day when I hadn’t loved him. He was my childhood friend, my lover, and eventually my fiancé, and he’d been dead for nearly two years. Images of Rocco plaited together, making me hurt deep inside my bones. With a blinding clarity, I knew the feeling would never disappear entirely.

  If Evie and Gian loved each other half as much as I loved Rocco, I couldn’t let this opportunity slip through my fingers. While I might never find love again, it didn’t mean I had to my condemn brother and my best friend to loveless life. Besides, it didn’t matter if I committed my foreseeable future to the man next to me. My heart was dead, and it would never beat again. Not for anyone and certainly not for Konstantin Trincher.

  “Fine,” I rasped, dread spreading like venom through my vital organs. “I’ll do it.”

  A smirk stretched across Alix’s face, crinkling his already weatherworn face, and my stomach lurched. “It looks like we have a deal.”

  I fingered the engagement ring that dangled from a long chain around my neck. My mom had been begging me to take it off for over a year. She’d got it in her held that the gesture would help me move on. Well, now she had her wish, only not in the way she would have liked.

  I cleared my throat. “Are you going to contact my brother, or should I?”

  Alix strummed his fingers on his thigh, his eyes holding me prisoner. “I’ll send you something indicating we’ve removed any objections to Gian’s involvement with Evangeline.”

  “Thank you.” I exhaled. “What about me?”

  “Don’t worry about it.” Konstantin squeezed my shoulder, and goose bumps broke out over my arms. I hated that my body reacted to him, and I sent out a silent prayer for indifference. “We’ll work out the details later. I’m not in any rush.”

  Unable to utter a single word, I nodded. I fled the tiny Russian restaurant in Brighton Beach without looking back, my favorite black heels ticking like a countdown to the end of the world. I’d sold my soul to the devil. Thinking about my future almost made me throw up.

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY-EIGHT

  Gian

  “Gian, this needs to stop.”

  I drained my glass of whiskey, the now familiar burn the only thing that made me feel alive these days. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Carmela.”

  “I know what’s going on. I know you’re screwing with the Russians every chance you get. I know you’re drinking too much. I know you’re pissing people off purely because you can. You’re being reckless, and that’s not who you are.”

  I slammed my glass down, the ice rattling together. “You don’t know shit.”

  She shut the door to my office with a definitive thud. “Contrary to what Dad and Dominick think, Mom and I do have eyes and ears. We hear the whispered conversations. We see the strained looks.”

  I clenched the arms of my chair. “So what?”

  “In case you haven’t noticed, Dad is dying sooner rather than later, and rather than making peace with his life, he’s going out of his mind because he’s worried about you, which means Mom is coming out of her skin.”

  I didn’t need this shit right now. I had all the guilt and regrets I could swallow. “They don’t need to worry about me. I’m fine. I’m better than fine. The club has never made so much money. I went on a date with the Amato girl like Mom asked. What more do you want from me?”

  That would be the last date I went on for a long time. I could barely be civil to the woman. There was nothing wrong with her. She was attractive. She had a pleasant smile. Our families were friendly, except she wasn’t her. I spent the entire night counting off the minutes until I could leave without offending her or her family. After sixty-three minutes, I slapped a wad of money on the table and hailed her a cab.

  Carmela’s lips puckered. “I want you to be happy.”

  “Dammit, Carmela. Leave it alone. Okay? I don’t want to do this tonight.” I stood and edged around my desk. “I have a meeting in ten minutes. You need to go.”

  She stuck her hand in her tote bag, rooting around for something. “Opening night is tomorrow.”

  I shuffled some papers on my desk, ignoring the dull ache in my chest. Fortunately, my sister was smart enough not to mention Evie by name. The last time she did, I came unglued. I woke up with a black eye and a hangover I wouldn’t forget for years. “Great. Have fun.”

  She tossed a rectangular ticket on my desk paper clipped to a white envelope. “This is for you.”

  Hope flickered inside of my chest. “Who gave you this?”

  “I bought the ticket for you. I thought you’d want to see the show.”

  I eyed the ticket like it was a snake primed to bite me. “Yeah, well, you were wrong. She doesn’t want anything to do with me, and even if she did, it wouldn’t matter.”

  “It matters because you love her.”

  I swiped the ticket and envelope from my desk and held it out to her. “Goodbye, Carmela.”

  She swatted it away. “Read the letter, you stubborn jerk.”

  “Is it from her?”

  “No.” She rolled her eyes. “Read it anyway. You’ll like what it says.”

  I tossed the ticket on the chair next to Carmela and slid my finger across the seam of the envelope.

  Gian,

  I no longer have any objections to your involvement with
our mutual acquaintance. You’re free to pursue her without interference.

  -A.T.

  “Is this real?”

  She folded her arms across her chest. “Yes.”

  “How did you get this?”

  “Her brother and I wanted to make this right. We met to discuss our shared interest in helping you two be happy, and this letter showed up at my house a few days later.”

  I stuffed the letter and ticket in my pocket. “Fuck, Carmela, tell me you didn’t meet him alone.”

  She bit the side of her lower lip, and I knew she was lying. She was my twin. I knew her gestures like the back of my hand, and biting on her lower was her tell.

  “I wasn’t alone. We met in public, and I’m fine and in one piece.” She twirled around in a circle. “You don’t need to worry about me. I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself.”

  “You’re lying. What happened?”

  “Gian, nothing bad happened. We talked. We came to an understanding, and now you need to go get your girl.”

  I didn’t know if I had it in me to keep chasing her. I loved her, but I needed her to show me she wanted me too. Because every single time we hit a bump, her first instinct was to run away.

  “I can’t keep chasing her. She said I wasn’t worth it. She didn’t want to fight for us. She doesn’t want anything to do with my life.”

  “Then don’t chase her. Go to her show, say hello, and leave. She’ll know the ball is in her court. She may do something about it, or she may not.”

  “Seriously, Carmela? How does that help either of us?”

  “If you don’t try, you’ll never know.”

  I fingered the ticket in my pocket. Regardless of what happened between us, I couldn’t deny I wanted to see her perform on a stage and talk to her one more time. If she wanted more, she needed to tell me because I was done pleading my case. I pushed her to kiss me to make her ex jealous. I pushed her into a fake engagement. I pushed her to try a real relationship. I told her I loved her, and she fled when things got complicated. I gave her what she wanted. I haven’t contacted her, and I’d continue to leave her alone unless she told me otherwise.

  “Fine. I’ll go. I’ll talk to her, but I can’t promise anything other that.”

  She flicked me in the chest. “She won’t let you go again. You’ll see. By this time tomorrow, you’ll be one-half of a sickeningly happy couple again.”

  “I’m not so sure, but thanks for setting this up. I owe you.”

  As she strutted toward the door, she shot me a parting grin over her shoulder. “In case you’re hard up for a way to thank me, you should know I like shoes. Expensive shoes. With red soles. And four-inch heels.”

  “Yeah. Yeah. I get it.”

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY-NINE

  Evangeline

  Still on a high from finishing my first live performance in over a year, I scrubbed the stage makeup from my face. I didn’t land a lead role, but I had one solo, which was more than I expected given my yearlong absence.

  Laughter floated into the small dressing room I shared with a couple of other girls, along with the distinct pop of champagne bottles being opened. Friends and family members roamed the halls, congratulating loved ones.

  There was so much to be thankful for tonight. My ankle didn’t hurt. I hadn’t missed a note. The performance went off without a hitch, and I couldn’t wait to read the reviews. Judging by the applause and the electricity humming backstage, everyone expected them to be favorable.

  Underneath all the excitement, I couldn’t deny I felt a thread of sadness that hadn’t gone away in months. I’d moved out of Kon’s apartment as soon as my agent told me I got this role, and I hadn’t exchanged a single word with him since. My mom had stopped reaching out to me over a month ago. Carmela had texted a quick note to say good luck this morning, but other than the time we met for coffee so she could hand deliver my suitcase stuffed with my clothes and personal belongings, I hadn’t seen her. And Gian…well, I hadn’t heard a single word from him.

  Although I had managed to rebuild a couple of friendships and make a few new ones, nothing filled the hole in my heart from the loss of Gian and my best friend. During my late night searches of Carmela’s social media, I never found out anything about him. Not a mention. Not a picture. The thought of never seeing or hearing about him again made me sick to my stomach.

  I quickly brushed away the thought. I couldn’t jump down the what-if rabbit hole tonight, because it led to a shit ton of tears and swollen eyes.

  Someone rapped on the already open door, and I spun around.

  “Hey, Evie,” John, one of my co-workers, said. “Do you need a ride to the after party?”

  “Yeah. Let me finish up a few things, and I’ll be out in a couple of minutes.”

  “Take your time. We’re not leaving for a half hour or so.” He took two steps backward then said, “Oh, and there’s someone waiting for you at the end of the hall.”

  “Who?”

  He shrugged. “He didn’t say.”

  “Huh.” I shoved my arms into my jacket. “Okay. Thanks.”

  I hoped it wasn’t Kon or my dad. I wouldn’t put it past Kon to show up tonight and pretend nothing had happened. As for my dad, while I didn’t think he’d come here, he was a wildcard. I had no idea what he would want from me, if anything, going forward.

  “Sure thing, sweetheart.”

  I cringed at his use of that endearment. It reminded me of Gian, and I didn’t want to think about him tonight. I wanted to celebrate a successful opening and the resurrection of my career. I stepped out of the dressing room and saw him.

  “Evangeline.” Gian’s smoky voice raced through me like a shot of morphine.

  “Gian,” his name rolled off my lips with longing, regret, and more than a little hope. “What are you doing here?”

  “I couldn’t miss your opening night.” He handed me a bouquet of stargazer lilies. “These are for you.”

  “Thank you. They’re beautiful.” I brought them to my nose, inhaling their sweetly fragrant scent. “I hope you didn’t fall asleep.”

  “No. I barely blinked.” He chuckled, and then his eyes softened, and they looked like warm honey. He brushed his fingertips along the tip of my nose, and I swayed toward him. It’d been too long since he’d touched me. “You had pollen on your face.”

  “Oh.” I smiled through hollow ache in my chest. “Thanks.”

  We lapsed into silence, and I twirled the bouquet in my hand.

  “You were beautiful out there. I couldn’t take my eyes off you, and I’m pretty sure nobody else could either.”

  My heart squeezed. “Thanks. Does that mean I changed your mind about musicals?”

  His mouth twisted into a lopsided grin. “Only if you’re on the stage.” He pressed a kiss to my forehead. “I better get going. Carmela said the cast is having a big party tonight to celebrate the opening.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Take care, sweetheart, and don’t be a stranger. Carmela misses you. So does my mom. I think they’re planning to catch one of your shows next week.”

  The minute he turned his back to me, my eyes blurred with tears.

  Oh, shit. Why now? Why when I finally had my life together.

  “Wait, Gian.”

  He halted mid-step, glancing at me over his shoulder. “Yeah?”

  “I wanted to let you know you’re worth it. You’re worth everything. I didn’t mean what I said that night at Carmine’s, and I um…” I licked my lips, waiting, hesitating, not knowing if I should continue. Was I too late? He didn’t say he missed me. He said his mom and sister missed me.

  His face was blank.

  “I still love you.”

  “You do?” His hands in his pockets, he turned to face me.

  “I do.” He didn’t respond right away, so I kept rambling. “I didn’t mean what I said that night. It was stupid and hurtful. I mean, I don’t like what you do, that much is true. But I still wa
nt you in my life. I know there’s chance you’ve moved on, and you’re done with me…maybe we could still be friends?”

  He sighed, and his body sagged, drawing attention to the shadows under his eyes. “Is that what you want? To be friends and nothing else?”

  I dropped my arms, and the flowers brushed the side of my pants. “I’ll take whatever you’re offering. It’s up to you. I screwed up and didn’t fight for us when it counted.” I pushed my hair away from my face. “For what it’s worth, I really thought I was doing the right thing.”

  He grabbed my hand and knitted our fingers together. “And what was that?”

  “I was ashamed of my family, and I felt guilty for putting you in a position where you had to choose between your family and me. I refused to let you sacrifice anything for me.”

  He raised his eyebrows. “So you made the choice for me?”

  I dropped my gaze to the floor. “I guess so.”

  “Well, you chose wrong.”

  “I-I did?”

  “I love you, Evie. I would’ve found a way to make things work. Your dad’s demands were just that: demands. There’s always room for negotiation. You walked away without giving us a chance to fix things.”

  “What now?”

  “You tell me. The ball is in your court.”

  I tilted my head to the side. “It is?”

  “What are you going to do, sweetheart? Are you going to fight for us, or are you going to run away again?”

  I didn’t have to think about it. I knew exactly what I wanted. “I want to be with you. I want to fight for us. I want a second chance, one that starts with truths instead of lies. Life instead of death. Love instead of fear.”

  A huge grin spread across his face. “Thank God,” he murmured. Then, his lips crashed against mine.

  “Just so you know,” he whispered next to my ear, a few minutes later. “I won’t let you go again.”