Page 12 of Mob Princess

“Enough.”

I sighed. “This isn’t feasible.”

He bent forward, gripping my chin with his fingers. “Are you listening?”

I didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”

“Good. You’re going to get up at nine—every morning. And from nine in the morning until ten o’clock at night, you’ll check in with me. Every hour on the hour. I want to know who you’re with, what you’re doing, and when you’ll be done doing it.”

“And if I don’t agree?”

He patted my cheek. “I’ll have your phone traced every second of every day. Your choice.”

I wanted to claw his eyes out. How dare he treat me like some common prisoner when I’d shown him nothing but loyalty and grace? Did this man really still believe I was going to slit his throat in the middle of the night? Or poison him with some sort of drink? It made me wonder if he could ever feel for me the way I knew I felt for him. It made me wonder if I’d ever win his trust, or build a strong relationship with him, or even get a glimpse into what it might be like for him to love me.

Maybe he’ll kill you once this is all over anyway.“How do I know you won’t kill me in my sleep?”

He grinned. “You don’t.”

Cheeky little asshole. “Are you going to check in with me every hour on the hour?”

“If you call, yes.”

I tilted my head. “So, you’re going to tell me who you’re with and what you’re doing just like I’m going to?”

“No. I’m not.”

I snickered. “Then, I get to hack your phone, too.”

“Not how this works.”

I stood, pinning him with a glare. “That’s exactly how this works. I’m in this with you, Israel. I’m betraying everyone and everything I’ve ever known, and not just to save my own hide. But yours as well. You can trust me. I’m not going to—”

He shot up from the couch. “Says the woman who married me under a false name with a false identity, and never told me about any of it until she was backed into her own little corner.”

He has a point. “What can I do to prove to you that I’m really on your side in all of this?”

“You can do as I’m telling you to do or you can get out. Those are your only options right now.”

I didn’t like how overbearing he’d become. I didn’t like the controlling monster he’d turned into. But I saw it in his eyes. I saw how strung out this entire situation had made him. I saw the stress washing over his body and the anger fleeting behind his eyes and the frustration in his balled-up fists. And the longer I stared at him, the more that tough facade melted.

Until his hands gripped my shoulders, and his stare held my gaze. “Just do this for me, Bonnie. Please.”

And in my wildest dreams, I never thought I’d ever hear the great Israel Rossi say the word ‘please.’ Except sarcastically, perhaps.

“Okay.”

He sighed. “Thank you.”

“Under one condition.”

He rolled his eyes. “What?”

I closed the gap between us. “You’re going to run the same schedule with me. No more being gone by the time I get up and coming back after I go to sleep. If I’m going to run this schedule, so will you. And we’ll at least enjoy coffees and dinners together. Okay?”

His eyes danced between mine. “Is that what you want?”

“More than anything.”

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