Page 36 of Dangerous Vows

Well, if that’s not a perk, I don’t know what is.

I wonder if the staff knows his family’s secret. The truth is, I don’t even know if our families work together. I’ve only recently been dragged into our mobbed-up world, which turns my stomach.

So far, I’ve learned that my life isn’t mine. I’m a pawn—owned by my father, promised to a future husband. Traded. Bartered. Silenced.

If I marry Vukan, what will he do to me?

Being a mafia princess isn’t what it’s cracked up to be.

I settle into a dining room chair, pull my legs up, and cross them in my lap before I sink my teeth into the bacon.

“Oh, my God, this is the bomb.” I helped myself to the pot of coffee and noticed a smaller carafe. I peer inside it. It smells strong, so I pour myself a cup and watch the dark liquid fill my coffee cup.

I swallow the bacon and taste the new coffee. It’s espresso. Pietro must like it.

I still don’t know much about the handsome devil who bears his prominent family’s name.What are his secrets?

I’m lost in my thoughts over the elusive billionaire—the man who came inside me repeatedly last night. I’m still marveling at how he appears to like me if he wants a repeat.

And it was hot. The hottest sex I’ve ever had. I can’t even finish counting the number of orgasms the man gives me when I’m coming again.

I can’t stop my grin as I remember how I slid my hand over his taut six-pack abs. He must live in a gym as the muscles in his legs ripple when he walks.

He says I’m his.

I hope he comes with a small army, as it’s only a matter of time before my father sends men for me. Whether it’s hostile or not, I don’t know. But my father will go to any lengths necessary to get what he wants. Nothing means more to him than adding another zero to a business deal.

After I finish breakfast, I decide I’d better get home. Sarah will be back soon, and I’m excited to see her.

I take one last view of the park and pull on my trousers. I leave my shirt as I’d look funny carrying it. I stuff my bra in my purse and slip into my heels. It’s only been two days since my last walk of shame.

But it’s so worth it.

But as I walk the streets, I’m keenly aware my father has eyes onme and that from here on out, I’m never alone. My father’s men are always there, lurking and waiting. But it never dawned on me that there might also be other eyes on me and that they live in the shadows and are possibly trailing behind me right now with a different agenda.

By the time I reach my apartment, my nerves are stretched thin. The place is still mine; it is small but comfortable in a way that the hotel will never be. I kick off my shoes, throw my bag on the counter, and Sarah breezes in behind me just as I flop down on the couch.

“Tell me something good,” I say.

She hums thoughtfully. “I might have a thing for a pilot.” She tosses her luggage into her room and returns to sit with me on the sofa.

I sit up, grinning. “A pilot? That’s new.”

“I know. Right? He’s cute. He always flirts with me when I grab coffee at the terminal. I think he might actually ask me out.”

I chuckle. “Or maybe you should ask him out first. You know, take charge of your destiny.”

Sarah groans dramatically. “Ugh. Don’t make me do the work. I like the chase. And he needs to do the chasing. Didn’t you learn anything from the bookHe’s Just Not That Into You?”

I shrug. “Who follows rules? That’s no fun!” I tease her, and then we end up talking longer. I love girl time with Sarah; her usual humor chips away at the tension I’ve been carrying.

“Oh, by the way, my father is in the hospital.”

“Way to bury the lead,” she gasps. I briefly fill her in on my father’s drama, leaving out the details I can’t tell her to keep her safe, and by the time we’ve finished talking about it, I almost feel normal.

Almost.

Dinner is an uninspired bag of bagel bites eaten while standing in the kitchen. The night is creeping in, and with it, my next shift at work.

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