Broken Beauty - Stella Andrews Page 0,6
out.”
“It’s fine. I’m glad you told me.”
Pushing back my plate, I’ve suddenly lost my appetite. Mafia. My blood runs cold at the mere mention of the word.
Now I know who she is.
It doesn’t take me long to find my way to Ryder’s door. He wanted a debrief and after I tell him the details, he sits back and nods with approval. “Good job, Maverick, I know it was a hard one.”
“You could say that.”
The door opens and Ryder’s right-hand man, Snake, heads into the office and nods. “Hey, Mav, good to see you.”
I nod as he takes the seat beside me and groans. “I wish Bonnie would hurry up and get back from her mom’s, I’m all over the place.”
Ryder grins. “She’s only been gone two days, what’s the matter, you going soft?”
Snake grins wickedly. “As it happens, quite the opposite. It’s ok for guys like Maverick who can crook their little finger at any available woman in the bar and be balls deep inside ten minutes but I don’t have that luxury.”
Ryder rolls his eyes as I grin because from the looks of Snake you wouldn’t think he would be told to do anything and especially by a slip of a girl like Bonnie. However, we all know who holds the true power in their relationship as Snake groans and rubs his crotch.
Ryder rolls his eyes. “That’s disgusting, take it to the shower.”
Snake grins. “Who says I haven’t already? What can I say, I’m insatiable?”
Shaking his head, Ryder turns to me and I watch his expression change and prepare for what I know is coming.
“I have another job for you.”
“No.”
He raises his eyes and the atmosphere changes in the room. Gone is the easy banter and in its place is an edgy tension that causes Snake to lean forward and Ryder’s eyes to narrow as he says gruffly, “Explain.”
“You’re gonna ask me to take on the new girl.”
“And why is that a problem?”
I make a fist which is the only indication that I’m on the edge and you could hear a pin drop in the room as my two superiors look at me with a challenge in their eyes.
Nobody disobeys orders here—ever. But like my name suggests, I don’t always follow the rule book, so I say with a hard edge to my voice. “I don’t do mafia, you know that.”
I know there is nothing they can say to that because I made it perfectly clear the minute I arrived. It’s my one rule that I will not break and Ryder knows it because he nods respectfully and leans back. “Then we have a problem.”
Snake also leans back and I can breathe again. The last thing I want is to antagonize the two hardest men I will ever meet, but I have my rules and this is precisely the reason why.
Ryder turns to Snake. “Has Bonnie had any luck?”
“No. She won’t open up. God only knows what that fuckhead did to her, but she’s shut down completely. You can tell that by the look in her eyes.”
I hold my breath because I know that look. I’ve lived with it my entire life and yet I have no compassion for the alluring mafia princess because this is one shit storm I’m shielding myself from.
Ryder just sighs and says with resignation. “Then we give her more time.”
He stands and nods toward the door.
“Come on, I need a beer. When it involves women, I know shit, anyway.”
I follow them out, but a beer is the furthest thing from my mind. I need to get out of this place before I do something I’ll regret.
5
Sophia
Cassie runs ahead and I struggle to keep up with her. We decided to take Lou up on her offer because Ashton looked as if she could use the rest once Caspian was settled.
We are heading toward their pretty house nearby and Cassie is excited to spend time with her best friend.
I laugh as she yells for him at the top of her voice and it’s not long before the door slams open and he races out, catching her hand and dragging her inside.
Lou follows him out and laughs. “They’ll never change. Like two peas in a pod.”
I nod in agreement and I can feel her staring at me with a thoughtful expression and wonder what’s running through her mind. I know they’re curious. They don’t ask but they obviously have questions they know I don’t want to answer and they’re right.
She smiles and says slowly. “You know, honey,