Page 14 of Surprise Twins for the Mafia Prince
“Oh, sure. That’s it. I bet you ask about the paternity of every baby you see. Give me a break.” I’m being reckless, I know. But something about his arrogance, that easy assumption that I’d want to be tied to him or his blood-soaked family name, cuts deeper than it should.
“Drop the attitude.” There’s a dangerous edge to his voice, and I know that I’m close to pushing him too far.
“Leave my house,” I snap back at him.
What the hell was I thinking? I never should have told him he’s the only one I’ve slept with recently. I think a part of me wanted to believe that he’d give a shit. I wanted to think that he might be a decent guy under all the tough guy posturing.
I was wrong.
“We’re not done with this conversation,” Dario insists. “If that’s my child?—”
His words cut off as the front door opens again, and I swear my heart stops as Dario reaches inside his suit jacket. He’s going for a gun, I just know it, and I recklessly reach out to place a hand on his wrist, stopping him.
“It’s my landlord,” I mutter as the man walks into the house with a toolbox in one hand.
“Alright, I’m here,” Mr. Lopez says, already sounding put out. “Show me the leak.”
His eyes land on Dario. There’s an understandable wariness in his eyes as he takes in my guest. Dario’s removed his hand from inside his suit, but aggression is coming off of him in waves.
“Mr. Lopez, this is Dario, my...friend.”
“Nice to meet you,” my landlord says with a nod. “No one else is allowed to live here without being on the lease.”
I roll my eyes, but before I can make it clear that Dario and I will never live together—hell would freeze over and thaw out again before that happened—he opens his mouth, and I can’t believe what comes out.
“That won’t be a problem. Paige will be breaking her lease and moving out immediately.”
8
DARIO
Now that Ihave my flash drive back, I can allow myself to appreciate how the fire flashes in Paige’s eyes when she gets angry.
It’s like watching lightning strike in real time. Dangerous and captivating all at once. I’ve always been attracted to feisty women, and Paige has been full of spirit and surprises tonight.
Right now, she’s staring at me like she wants to murder me, and I can feel my cock throbbing with the need. The pure rage radiating from her shouldn’t turn me on this much, but here we are.
I know now is not the time for it. There may never be a time when this woman welcomes me into her bed again, but that’s not going to stop me from taking her back to Vegas.
I believe her when she says that she doesn’t work for the Bratva. I know she wouldn’t still have the drive in her possession if she did, and she definitely wouldn’t have carelessly left it lying around. I’m not sure if I’m more amused or pissed off about that.
I had to go through so much bullshit to get the information on that flash drive and then spent weeks searching for it, and the whole time, that cup was rolling around on the floorboards of her car like a goddamn empty soda can.
I think she took the cup for a practical reason, to use it. That seemed nearly impossible to me before tonight. I was so sure that she must have intentionally betrayed me, somehow figuring out where I hid the drive and delivering it to my enemies. That made sense to me, and it explained why she’d left the hotel suite while I was still asleep.
Now, I suspect that she somehow realized who I was and fled because she hates my family. Well, that’s too damn bad.
If there’s a possibility that she’s carrying my child, she’s coming back home with me. I’m not sure if I believe it, but I did fuck her. There’s a chance the kid is mine, and I can’t ignore that. She’ll have to stay with me until I can confirm whether she’s telling the truth or not.
“Ignore him,” Paige says, smiling at her landlord. “The leak is in the kitchen ceiling.”
Paige turns back to me while her landlord goes to check out the damage. He doesn’t say anything about the mess all over the floor, and I wonder what kind of shit he’s seen from his tenants in the past.
“Why would you say that?” she hisses in a low voice. “Are you planning to make me disappear?”
That fire in her eyes is replaced by fear, and for once in my life, I’m not happy that someone is looking at me that way. Normally, striking fear into the heart of a person makes me feel powerful, like I’m in control of the situation. But not today.
Paige isn’t my enemy. She pissed me off when she took that flash drive, unknowingly, and it’s been a huge pain in my ass to track her down and get it back, but she might also be the future mother of my child.
