Page 16 of Sinful Bargains

“If I’m using you, get rid of me.” I stepped closer, my eyes boring into hers.

She smirked, looking me dead in the eye. “Maybe I’ll just have to tell my father what you’re doing.”

I stood frozen, locked in a stare-off that neither of us dared to break. A choice sat in front of me, one I didn’t want to make. My jaw tightened as my hands moved on their own, reaching for her arms, gripping them just enough to steady the storm between us. It felt automatic—like muscle memory, like my body knew how to bandage the moment long enough for me to figure out my next move.

I let out a slow breath, forcing my voice to stay even. “I wasn’t sneaking around. I was helping her out.That’s all.”

Renee scoffed, shaking her head. “I don’t believe you.”

My patience was running thin. I exhaled sharply, dragging a hand down my face. “Jesus, Renee, just drop it.”

For a second, I thought she might. Her lips parted, hesitation flickering in her eyes. But then she tossed her hair over her shoulder, her expression hardening. “You’re full of shit, Joey.”

I didn’t have the energy for this. Not tonight. Not ever.

I stepped past her and headed for the kitchen, ignoring how she stood there, fuming, waiting for me to turn back, to fight, to give her something to sink her teeth into.

She wanted a war. She lived for the fight. But there was nothing here worth fighting for. There never was.

I barely had time to enjoy the silence before I heard Renee’s footsteps. Heavy footsteps. The sharp click of heels. Coming straight for me. “You don’t get to just walk away from me, Joseph Romano!” Renee’s voice was sharp, cutting through the room like a blade.

I didn’t turn to face her just yet. Instead, I poured myself adrink. “Didn’t realize I had to stand here and get screamed at to keep you happy.”

She let out a cold, loud laugh, but there was nothing amusing about it. “You think I don’t have the right to be pissed when myboyfriend—” she spat the word out, just to remind me of the title she gave me and made public to others. The title that sickened me to my fucking core. “—is sneaking around with some woman and her kid behind my back.”

I turned, locking eyes with her finally. “I already told you—I was helping her. That’s it. You want to twist that into something else, go ahead. I don’t give a shit.”

“Oh, you don’t give a shit? Right. That’s real comforting, Joey. I just don’t get why you won’t admit it.”

I let out a humorless chuckle, shaking my head. “Admitwhat? That I gave someone a ride? That I made sure a woman and her son didn’t have to walk home alone? That ain’t cheating. That’s basic decency. Something you wouldn’t understand if it smacked you dead in the face!”

Her lips parted in mock offense, but I saw the way her jaw clenched, the way her hands curled into fists. She wasn’t used to me pushing back. She wanted me to fold, to smooth things over. She wantedcontrol. “You think I don’t see right through you? You wanna be a hero, Joey? You wanna go play house with some broken little damsel and her son?” She laughed, bitter and cruel. “Go ahead.”

The only house I was playing was with her. And I couldn’t wait to watch the whole damn house burn to the ground.

I should’ve known better than to get involved. But there was something about Adriana that made me throw all caution out the window, like I was playing a game I didn’t even understand. And I was a master chess player. Helping her—driving her around, taking care of her kid, all that shit—felt like a distraction. A way to escape from everything that was slowlysuffocating me.But now?Now it felt like I’d walked right into a fucking trap.

Renee was right—well, partially. I wasn’t cheating on her, not in the way she thought. But this—whatever this was with Adriana—wasn’t just helping someone out. It was more. More than I wanted to admit. More than I should’ve let happen. And if I wasn’t careful, it was gonna ruin everything.

But the thing was, I was becoming careless.

ANTONIO

Enzo and I sat in my bedroom, finishing off the last of the cigarettes he’d stolen from his sister, Val. She wasn’t allowed to smoke, either, so she couldn't tell on him without explaining why she had them in the first place. That little detail was starting to work in our favor. We sat in silence for a minute, the smoke lingering between us, before I flicked the butt of the cigarette into the ashtray I had stashed under my bed.

We both stood up, brushing the ash off our jeans, knowing we were running out of time. Ma had already started her usual routine of dragging me to St. Augustine of the Sacred Heart, and I had to meet her at Davidson’s before she came looking for me.

I shoved my hands in my pockets, feeling the weight of the walk ahead. It was a long stretch, especially for a place I didn’t care to go, but she insisted. I knew the reason. She was trying to repent for the sin of killinghim. I couldn’t bring myself to call him my father. A real father wouldn’t hurt you. I knew that much.

We made our way out the door, the chill of winter inFebruary biting at my skin. Enzo walked beside me, his pace matching mine as we headed toward Davidson’s. I glanced at him, my mind drifting back to things I’d kept buried for too long.

“Do you still have dreams about your dad?” I asked.

Enzo didn’t respond right away, but I could tell he was thinking it over. It wasn’t the easiest question to answer. He didn’t have to say it aloud for me to know. We both carried those ghosts with us.

Enzo had confessed to me once that after his dad was murdered, he was the first one to walk outside and find him lying in the yard. He said he hardly slept anymore, that he could never shake that last image of his father out of his mind. He’d wake up in cold sweats, nightmares clawing at him. The difference between us was that Enzo loved his father—and his father loved him. From everything Enzo told me, his old man was a good guy, the kind who would’ve never hurt him. The kind who deserved better than some drive-by shooting in the early morning hours.

“Yeah, why?” Enzo asked, his bushy brows furrowing as he glanced at me.

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