Coerced Kiss: A Dark Mafia Romance (New York Underworld Book 1) by Charmaine Pauls

Author:Charmaine Pauls [Pauls, Charmaine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-10-21T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER

NINETEEN

Anya

After Saverio is gone, I read the history he mapped out for us. It’s a beautiful story. Believable. Under different circumstances, it would’ve been romantic. I bet if he tells the tale at a party, people will hang on his lips. The falseness is bittersweet, tormenting me with something I’ll never have, and as I try to make the untruth my own, a silly but deeply hurtful sentimentality settles in my chest.

Not wanting to dwell on the sweet narrative of the make-belief love story, I slam the laptop shut with a sigh. This isn’t my life. My life is a lot more complicated than the one in the Word document. For now, Saverio may pay my medical bills, an arrangement I’m both grateful for and uncomfortable with, but when our fake relationship comes to an end, I still have to take care of my baby and my mom. Making sure I’m financially independent remains my priority, which means my job still comes first.

I grab my bag and test if Saverio is good for his word by deactivating the alarm by the front door before unlocking and opening it.

One of the men in the dark suits steps up. “Can I get you anything, Ms. Brennan?”

My gaze is drawn to the gun in the body holster where his jacket has slipped aside. “I’m going to work.”

“Wait here,” he says, taking a phone from his pocket. “I’ll signal the driver.”

“What about Saverio? Didn’t he just leave with his driver? I can take the subway.”

“Mr. De Luca drove himself,” the man says in an emotionless tone before addressing the person on the other end of the line. “Ms. Brennan needs to go in to the office.”

Not a second later, the black car rolls down the circular driveway from the side of the garage and pulls up in front of the house. Another car with two men in suits stops behind him. My bodyguards, I assume.

The driver gets out and opens the door for me. He’s an elderly gentleman with a tuft of white hair and a stern expression. The collar of his shirt is starched, and his black suit doesn’t sport a single crease.

“Thank you, Kevin,” I say as I get inside.

He closes the door without replying.

When he gets behind the wheel, I smile at him in the rearview mirror. “Thank you for driving me.”

He gives a tight nod. It seems Kevin isn’t big on making conversation. Respecting his boundaries, I stay quiet.

It’s already three o-clock when he drops me off in front of the accounting firm. Ms. Price doesn’t hide her disgruntlement when I knock on her door to tell her I just got in. I’ve barely settled behind my desk before she barges into the office with a pile of folders in her arms.

Dumping them in my in-tray, she says, “Make sure everything is filed before the end of the day.”

I stare at her with bafflement as she marches with a stiff back through the door. I catch the gaze of my colleague, Jasmine, who sits on my left.

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