Page 26 of Forgetting the Enemy
Chapter 10
Michael
“So I’m guessing you have a lot of questions. I’ll answer anything I can, but I also need to warn you that Dr. Siegel said we should not bombard you with information about your past. So I may choose to hold some things back until you’re ready.” At least by telling her something, perhaps I won’t get in trouble for not telling her everything. I mean, it is the truth, so technically I’m not lying to her either.
“Okay, I guess the first thing I want to know is, who am I?” she asks.
I expected this to be her first question, but I had not planned out how to answer her. “As you know, your given name is Zaira. Your last name is Bonita.”
“Italian? I presume?”
I can’t help but laugh. “Yes, Italian. Very Italian.”
Before she asks her next question, Isabella comes out with her tea and my Jack and Coke. Thank fuck for that. I have a feeling this is going to be a rough Q&A session. The Jack will help ease my pain.
“Thank you, Isabella. And please tell Ricco he doesn’t have to hide. I know he’s watching, and he can come out if he wants.”
She blushes and hurries off. Once she gets to the house, Ricco steps into the light and nods in my direction. He remains at his post just outside the French doors. Stubborn bastard. But he’s good at his job, which is exactly what he’s doing.
“So, any more questions?” I’m hoping she’s done for the night, but I know she will have more. A lot more.
She smiles and then asks, “Do I have any family?”
“Yes, you have a brother and a sister.”
“And my parents?”
“They’re both deceased.”
“Oh.” A sadness crosses her face for a mother and father she doesn’t even remember having. I know she will always miss her mother, and I swear I’m gonna find out who killed her, but I doubt she will ever feel the same way about her father. Then, she totally surprises me by asking, “Why would you need a bodyguard?”
Well, shit. That was not a question I expected to hear from her. How in the hell do I explain this one? “Well, Zaira, that’s a tough question to answer until you get a better understanding of who you are. For now, I think it would be best to say that my family is a very influential family in New York. Every member needs protection in some form or another.”
“I gather from the interactions I have witnessed with you and all these people I have met that you are their boss?”
“As of today, yes. My father retired today. He was supposed to wait until my thirtieth birthday in six months, but he decided not to. He made the announcement right before dinner.”
The answer seems to appease her for the time being, and I’m relieved. Then she asks, “How do I know you?”
Oh, shit, another tough one. “Well, we grew up together. We’ve been friends for a long time.” I keep my answers truthful but vague. I’m trying very hard not to throw too much information at her at once.
“Why are you keeping me here instead of letting me go home to my family?”
There it is, the question I knew she would ask but I am dreading at the same time. I have no idea what the fuck to tell her as I haven’t fully figured this one out myself.
And before I can think about it anymore, words flow freely out of my mouth. “We’re engaged. I’m your fiancé.”
What. The. Fuck.What have I done?That will surely be the beginning to the end. I can’t take it back, and I sure as hell can’t lie my way out of it. The damage is done.
Zaira looks down at her left hand and scowls. Victor’s gaudy diamond ring rests awkwardly on her left ring finger. It’s obvious she is not impressed with it. “We’re engaged?” she asks.
I’ve said the lie, so now I have to play the part. I take her left hand and kiss it. “This is not my ring that you wear.” And then before I know it, another lie flows from my mouth. “You bought this ring to ward off any unwanted advances.”
She smiles when she realizes she won’t have to wear the ugly, obnoxious ring much longer.
“We just recently got engaged, and we didn’t have time to pick one out yet.”
She looks at me curiously, and I can tell she is trying to figure out if what I am telling her is true. I can see the thoughts enter her mind as she thinks.Do I love him? Could I love him?“Did we date long?”
