Stealing Iris: A Dark Mafia Romance (Blood Ties Book 1) by Sahara Roberts

Author:Sahara Roberts [Roberts, Sahara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-08-16T18:30:00+00:00

*****

IRIS

It took a few hours, more than she’s ever spent in the store, but she finally corners me when I go to clean up.

“Conrado said you were gone when he got here on Tuesday. Where were you?” she demands, her knuckles landing on her hip.

It’s been months since I left for lunch—or had a real lunch. Usually I grab a bag of chips, or I’ve taken to where I’ll open a pack of hot dogs and a loaf of regular bread I can keep in the back, so I have something to eat the entire week without raising suspicion. “I went out to lunch.”

Narrowing her eyes, she moves into my personal space. “With who?” she shoots out. Now that’s a question I hoped to avoid.

“A friend.” I don’t offer more because I don’t really want Conny knowing he came by, much less what happened after.

She snorts. “Is that friend a man? The same one who sent you food today?”

“I don’t know how that’s any of your business,” I snap, plopping the mop into the sink.

She pushes at my shoulder, turning me around to face her. In this light, the wrinkles around her eyes and mouth are more pronounced. When Dad went missing she fell apart, which made me doubt what I always believed about her. Though now that time’s passed, things have changed. Gone is the woman who was crying and scared, gone is the woman is who sat staring at the ransom money we’d gathered, angry at the world. She’s given up on him, and she’s dropped the pretense of caring about me. “Don’t think you can suddenly start acting like some little ho,” she snaps. “You’ve been rolling around with a man. Don’t deny it.”

My nostrils flare, and my body goes rigid. How dare she say such a thing? Clearly it hasn’t been important when her son is pinning me down on the desk. Conny’s threat looms over me, so I bite my tongue to keep from mouthing off. I swish the mop in and out of the sink while inside I’m shaking with suppressed anger. “Even if I am, it’s none of your concern, Olga.”

“Don’t lie to me, pendeja.”

“Hey!” Conny shouts, as he comes through the door. “What’s with all the noise?” His chest thrusts out, in that tough-guy stance he’s gotten to using lately. Though there isn’t enough of him to even stretch out the wife beater.

Olga juts her chin at a smug angle now that her darling son has come to the rescue. I can’t let her take over the conversation because I’ll end up on the wrong side of the story. So I do what I promised myself I wouldn’t. Squaring my shoulders, I focus on Conny and jump in, feet first. “I was just talking to your mom about Dante coming by the store the other day and—”

“What?” He rushes over to where we’re standing, nearly tripping over his own feet.

“Mijo,” Olga yelps, reaching out to keep him upright. “Be careful.”

His ostrich boots give an odd clump as he catches his footing.

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