Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 82524 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 413(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82524 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 413(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
“Rafe!” I bite his index finger. He grunts, glaring at me. “I won’t be in the room, okay? I’ll only plan it. Make it look real. Whatever else you do will be your business. I’ll take care of the catering, the logistics, that stuff.”
He studies me for a long moment. I watch him in return. Something shifted inside me back when Nunzio took me. Back when I watched Byron get killed.
There’s still fear. Mostly for Hattie.
But I want to hurt the men who hurt my friends even more than I’m terrified of them.
“How far are you willing to go, love?” he asks quietly, voice a velvet whisper. He grabs my wrist suddenly and tugs me toward him.
His lips find mine. I return his feverish, hungry kiss.
“As far as it takes.”
“Are you sure?”
“I can’t live in fear my whole life, Rafe. I need to do something to take back control.”
He presses his forehead to mine. “Alright, love. I understand that better than you’ll ever know.”
34
JUNE
Ihit the buzzer on an old apartment intercom and wait. The line comes to life. “Hello?”
“Hey, stranger. It’s been a while.”
Beth’s voice goes silent, but the line stays alive. I hear a Real Housewife reunion in the background. “JUNE?! Are you kidding me? Is that really you?!”
“Yep, buzz me in.”
The door unlocks. I make it up the steps and Beth’s already waiting in the hall. She screams and rushes me like a bull and I laugh as she hugs me wildly.
“Oh my god! I’ve been so worried! You disappeared but Marnie said you were okay but couldn’t talk and I didn’t know what the heck that meant and now you’re married and oh my god is that the ring and you have to tell me about your husband—“
“Calm down!”
“I’m so happy to see you.” Beth’s laughing and crying and hugging me. “Come on, come inside before Mrs. Taylor calls the cops for an excessive display of emotion.”
Beth’s apartment is small, tidy, and immaculately decorated. I always loved this place. She lives alone in a decent South Philly neighborhood. Rent’s high, but she makes it work.
She peppers me with questions as she makes tea. Nothing’s changed in the weeks since I married Rafe. She’s still running the business though she says it’s a lot harder without me.
“Come on, you were always the brains of the operation.”
She dismisses that with a waved hand. “Bullshit. I did decor. You did the important stuff.” She sets down the hot beverages and sits across from me at the table. “Talk now. Tell me everything. How are you doing?!”
I thought a lot about this on the way over. What would I tell her? How much could I reveal? But now that I’m sitting here, it’s like all those careful plans evaporate into the air.
“I married a mobster and fell in love with him.”
Beth laughs awkwardly but the smile dies the second she realizes I’m not kidding. “Hattie’s father?”
“The one and only.”
“Holy crap. The mystery man.”
I give her the full story. I leave out some details, but she gets the less sanitized version. When I’m done, she looks utterly stunned.
“I can’t believe you’ve been through all that in the last few weeks. This is crazy.”
“I know, right? But it’s good too. You should see Rafe with Hattie. The two of them are like the same person.”
“I pray for the world if there’s a second Hattie.”
I tell her about how Rafe makes Hattie breakfast every day, how he’s infinitely patient with her stories and questions, and he goes out of his way to make sure she’s safe and happy.
“He really is a fantastic dad. I never would’ve guessed.”
“You’re here now though. Does that mean you’re back in the city for good?”
“I think so. Rafe has a town house in Old City—“
“Oh my god, of course he does.”
“Right off Two Street.”
“My god. That’s got to be millions of dollars.”
“Oh, easily, and it’s gorgeous too.”
She groans and gestures around her. “My landlord told me the other day that the walls might leak this winter because he doesn’t feel like resealing the roof.”
“I might have good news on that front too.”
Her eyebrows shoot up. “You know a roofer?”
“No, but Rafe is going to hire us for a job, and he’s really generous.”
She holds up her hands. “No, no way, I’m not doing charity gigs. I appreciate it, but—“
“It’s not charity. It’s a real job. Me and you back at it again.”
She looks skeptical. “But you’re married to a rich guy now.”
“Every Little Thing wasn’t only about the money, although it definitely was about that too. Working with you is like… fulfilling. It makes me feel useful. So maybe I’m financially stable now—“
“More like fabulously wealthy. Seriously, are you decked out in designer clothes right now?”
I blush a little and ignore her question, because yes, yes, I am. “But I can’t imagine not working with you. So I’m really sorry I haven’t been in contact lately and I disappeared on you, but I promise, I’m back for good. What do you say? Will you work with me again?”