Page 19 of When She Unravels
Ras props his ankle on his knee. “If you’re thinking about what happened, maybe we should talk ab—”
“I’m done talking about it,” I bite out. “Did they clean up the garage?”
“Yes, the body’s gone.”
“Good. There’s nothing more to do until we get more information.” Ras knows it as well as me. Hypotheses and suspicions aren’t enough to make an accusation against our don.
He studies me for a moment and then narrows his eyes. “Then what the fuck is on your mind? You’re fixated on something.”
I glare at him. Sometimes, he’s able to read me too well.
I shouldn’t have let her leave. I should have leaned into the wicked thought I had when she said she’d do anything to get the job.Peel off that dress,climb onto my cock, and bounce.
That visual sends a pulse to my groin. It feels particularly filthy, because that’s not how I hire my employees. My morals might be loose by most standards, but I wouldn’t get to where I am by doing stupid shit like that at my legitimate businesses. Reputation is everything in Ibiza.
“It’s that girl, isn’t it?” Ras asks, studying my sullen expression. “If you wanted her, why did you let her go?
“I didn’t,” I say. “She’ll be here Monday.”
That throws him off. “What do you mean?”
“She’s going to audition for a job. I agreed to a week-long trial.”
Ras touches his fingers to his forehead and looks up at me. “Are you fucking serious?”
“I’m really not in a joking mood.”
This earns me a frustrated groan. “What trial? You know I don’t have time for this with everything going on.”
Ras is the only person who’s allowed to speak to me that way. Without each other, we’d both be dead ten times over. Plus, he’s family. Still, when I give him a dark look, he straightens his back and makes a tiny nod. It’s his way of acknowledging now’s not the time to test my patience.
He’s not wrong though. Why the fuck did I agree to this stupid trial? I can call it off, but I don’t like breaking my word. I might as well have a bit of fun tormenting Romero the way the memory of her is tormenting me now. She won’t last more than a few days. If she’s a hard worker, then I’m a fucking priest.
“I don’t want you to spend time on it. Give her to Inez.”
He arches a brow. “Inez? If the girl’s going to be working here, we might as well make her a dancer. She’ll do well with the VIPs.”
The thought of her dancing in front of groups of drunk men spreads a burning sensation through my chest. Nofuckingway. “I said give her to Inez. If she lasts a week, I might reconsider, though I don’t expect her to.”
He lets out a long breath through his lips. “Va bene.”
“Did you talk to Napoletano?”
“A few hours ago,” he says. “The construction project was greenlighted by Sal this morning.”
“Merda.” Sal’s going to be pouring concrete for a factory that’s on another clan’s territory.Our don is a fucking idiot. I know it, Ras knows it, everyone fucking knows it. And yet no one speaks up. “We’re going to have a war on our hands.”
Ras shakes his head. “You already made your opinion known last month. Leave it.”
I don’t like his tone. “You think I should have stayed silent at the meeting?”
Ras sighs. “You know Sal will never listen to you, even if you’re one hundred percent right and he’s one hundred percent wrong. Speaking up will only make things worse. You pissed him off by questioning his judgement in front of all the other capos at the meeting, and now we have Nelo and Vito here, sticking their ugly noses into our business. Who knows how far he’s willing to go to bring you in line?”
Our eyes meet. Yes…how far?
I lean back into my chair and look at the picture hanging on my wall. Ras, his parents, Martina, and I. It would have been a different photo if Sal hadn’t killed my father and taken his place as the don of the Casalesi clan, one of the most powerful in the Camorrasistema.
My mother would still be alive.
