To Have and to Heist(85)

“I still don’t like it,” he grumbled.

“You don’t get a choice,” I said. “But I like knowing that if I wanted, I wouldn’t have to do it alone.”

* * *

◆ ◆ ◆

?Even seated behind his giant mahogany desk, Mr. Angelini was an imposing man, especially when he spent the first few moments of our meeting staring at me in silence.

“Close the door.” He lifted his chin and gestured to one of the two bodyguards in the room.

I was flattered he thought I was such a threat, but two massive armed guards seemed a bit extreme.

After the door clicked shut, I focused on my breathing, but the cloying scent of cigar smoke made me choke on my second inhale.

“Any problems with the wedding plans?” he asked in a conversational tone that did nothing to relieve the tension that had frozen me in place.

“No problems,” I said with a conviction I didn’t feel in the least. “We’re all set for tomorrow.”

“Good.” He drummed his thick fingers on the desk. “The wedding must go ahead. You understand that.”

“I see no reason why it wouldn’t,” I said. “I’ve checked in with all the vendors, the priest, the musicians . . . Even the elephant will be here.”

“Excellent.”

“If that’s all you need . . .” I moved to stand, and he waved me down.

“There’s something else we need to discuss.”

Bile rose in my throat. Maybe the two guards were here to kill me and chop me into pieces and spirit me out of the house in the gym bag in the corner. Although I hadn’t seen a hatchet . . .

“I understand you had an altercation with my future son-in-law at the bridal dress shop.” His voice was cool, but his coal-black eyes burned with hellfire. “And that you spoke to the police.”

“Someone else called them,” I said quickly, in case he thought I’d ratted him out. “I told the detective in charge that it was just a misunderstanding. I didn’t want anything to spoil the wedding and I thought you’d prefer to handle the matter in-house.”

Had I misjudged Mr. Angelini? Maybe he’d been horrified when he found out what had happened. Maybe the gym bag was for Mario. Maybe Mario was already in there.

“Indeed I do.” He pulled a white envelope from the desk drawer and pushed it toward me.

What the hell? Was he terminating my contract? It wasn’t my fault Mario had stormed into the shop. And what was I supposed to do when he threatened my bestie?

“I thought he was going to hurt Bella,” I said, thinking fast. “He was violent and I was trying to protect her. I’m worried for her after they get married.”

“The marriage is my concern,” he said. “What happens between them is not.”

I couldn’t imagine my father ever saying anything like that. When he’d found out about Kyle, I had to hold him back from hunting Kyle down. But what did I expect of a Mafia boss who was forcing his daughter into marriage? He wasn’t a normal dad. This wasn’t a normal life. She deserved better. She deserved to be loved.

“I’m sorry it didn’t work out.” I reached for my bag, and he gave an irritated grunt that froze me in my seat.

“I appreciate your discretion.” He nodded at the envelope.

Taking the hint, I opened the envelope and thumbed through the wad of bills inside, wishing I had Anil’s gift for math. This wasn’t a send-off; it was a pay-off.

“Is that enough?”

I stared at him openmouthed while my brain went into overdrive. How much was in the envelope? Was it polite to take it out, or should I count it in the envelope? Should I use the calculator app on my phone, or would he think I couldn’t count by twenties and fire me on the spot? What did normal people do in this situation? Did normal people ever get into this situation? Was this legal? Would I have to declare it on my taxes? What should I say? Would I be underselling myself if I said yes?

“No? You want more?” Misunderstanding my silence, he gestured to one of the guards. “Gino, open the safe.”

I hadn’t paid much attention to Mr. Angelini’s bodyguards, but Gino was the kind of guy who sucked all the light out of a room. Well over six feet tall, his arms and chest thick with muscle, Gino was dressed in all black, his dark hair shorn to a fuzz. His face was hard, cold, and chiseled with menace. If anyone was going to chop me up and stuff me in a gym bag, it was him.

“Gino’s the head of my private security team,” Mr. Angelini said when he caught me staring.

I suspected Gino also headed the Assassination Squad, the Body Disposal Team, and he probably enjoyed mixing different types of concrete the way Chloe and I liked to mix different types of cocktails on a Saturday night.

Gino slid his hand over the top of the bookcase behind the desk. I heard a click, and the bookcase swung open to reveal a safe embedded in the wall, just as Anil had described. Gino spun the dial and the door swung open to reveal a bundle of papers, a stack of white envelopes stuffed with cash, and a large blue velvet jewelry box, the perfect size to hold the Wild Heart.

I stifled a gasp. There it was. Only five feet away. The key to Chloe’s salvation and our financial freedom.

Gino’s head snapped to the side, his narrowed gaze locked on my face. Without missing a beat, he shoved the jewelry box to the back of the safe before taking out an envelope and handing it to Mr. Angelini.