Page 43 of The Sting of Love
“What’s going on, Donny?” I ask.
“Willow… this is really hard for me to say. Mostly because I’ve never had to do anything like this before.” He grits his teeth and blinks several times. “I’ve wrestled with my mind all day.”
“Why?”
“Because I can’t see you anymore, and I don’t want that to be an option because I really like you.”
My breath stills, and I gaze on at him as a gamut of emotion takes me. “Why can’t you see me anymore if you like me, and I like you?”
This is a first for me too. He’s not the first guy to break up with me. He’s just the first who mattered.
“My life… is dangerous,” he answers, and my stomach twists into knots.
Dangerous…likethe gun.
He studies me, and I steel my spine although my lips part and tremble.
“Dangerous?” I ask. Now I worry. “Donny, are you in trouble?”
“Not yet, Bella. But trouble is never far from me. Willow… I know you saw my gun, yet you never asked about it.”
I steady my breathing and look down at my feet in the little pumps that match my dress. What am I supposed to say to him? He lifts my chin and guides my gaze back to his.
“Ask me about it.”
My soul quivers. Part of me didn’t want to know, but now that he’s confronting me I have to ask. “Why do you have a gun… Donny?”
“My work…”
The piercing look he gives me makes me think he wants me to guess. So… I do the most sensible thing I’ve done since meeting him and use my brain. Those questions come rushing back to me.
The main question that strikes me is this: Apart from cops or anyone to do with law enforcement, what kind of people do I know carry guns around on them?
As I look at him the answer comes straightaway. I just know.
Mobster. The mafia.That’s what comes to my mind as I think of the most dangerous thing.
“Are you… in the mob… Donny?” I ask the question with a quiver in my voice. I’ve seen enough movies to know I shouldn’t ask a question like that, and I’ve probably asked too many questions already. I ask it, though, because of the direction the conversation is steering, and when he nods confirmation and releases me, my heart races.
Fear fills me. I can’t help it. It just comes, and I know he can tell.
“Don’t be afraid of me. You won’t see me again.”
“What?” A tear runs down my cheek, and he catches it. He holds my face and my attention. As I watch him, everything around us fades into the darkness of the night and I just see him.
“The people I work for are dangerous. That makes my life dangerous, and I can’t risk you getting hurt. It’s too dangerous for you to be with me,” he says with a nod and drops his hand to his side. “I’m sorry. But I’m not sorry for the time I spent with you, or what I feel. You can do better than me, Bella.”
I’m left numb as he walks away.
I’m supposed to feel like what he did was noble and protective, open and honest, but how can I when I don’t think I can do better than what my heart wants?
Chapter Twelve
Donny
An assortment of paperwork litters the desk.
I think I’ve made more of a mess in here than it was when Mario left it. I’ve made such a mess that anything he could have left uncovered in the way of clues is now completely disturbed.
