Ugly Ronney: mafia romance [English]

Chapter 7-3

I thanked Ashley for the change of clothes she had brought me, although I thought the lime green shirt was too loud and tight for my taste.

"Go on, get upstairs. You're late."

Ashley seemed to be worried about me. She took my dirty pants and folded them carefully. Timothy, who had stayed with us while I changed, opened the living room doors.

"Are you sure this is okay?"

I adjusted my glasses and then tugged on the bottom of my shirt, hoping to make it a little longer. Fortunately, the pants didn't fit my curves.

"You are perfect!" replied Timothy with an unconvinced expression.

I took a deep breath and raised my head with imperious authority before leaving to join Yeraz. In a few minutes, I would be among lions.

I felt as if I were petrified on the spot when all eyes turned to me. I closed the door slowly so as not to disturb the heavy silence that reigned in the room. The place was bathed in sunlight, which seeped through the large windows along the wall. A dozen men, gathered around a large oval table, examined me from head to toe with a look of pity, then exchanged dismayed glances.

Hamza, at the end of the table, was getting agitated. He spoke to Yeraz in Arabic. The man seemed to disapprove of my presence vehemently. The wrinkles on Yeraz's forehead deepened. With a wave of his hand, he pointed to an empty seat for me next to him.

With my eyes turned to the kitchen window, I barely heard Timothy's question. It was when he put his hand on mine that I came to my senses. My assistant was looking at me with a puzzled expression.

"The files you asked me to print, are they for Mr. Khan?"

"No, they're for Camilia."

"But does Mr. Khan know about this? I don't want to get in trouble with the boss."

Timothy glanced around as if he were afraid he had been overheard. I sighed and adjusted my glasses before poking the carrots and beef on my plate with my fork.

"I don't report to Yeraz, but to Camilia. And you, you work for me. So please print this file before the end of the day."

My tone had been harsher than I would have liked. Timothy couldn't help it if my brain was threatening to explode after this morning's tense meeting.

"I'm sorry. My weekend has been a bit of a mess. Spending my time with Yeraz... He's a completely different person outside of these walls."

A stunned silence greeted my words. Timothy's face immediately changed expressions. I opened my mouth and shook my head to explain, but no sound came out.

"Wait a minute. You and Mr. Khan saw each other over the weekend?"

"Yes, but it's not what you think, Timothy."

"Oh, but I'm not thinking anything."

Shit, that's not helping.

"He's trying to intimidate me into resigning from this job."

The young man nodded, causing his red hair to move slightly on his forehead.

"Well, you're still here today. It proves that you are much stronger than people think."

Timothy walked briskly to get my cup of coffee. I was uncomfortable with being served like this, but my assistants wouldn't let me do any of the work myself. When he came back to stand in front of me, he twisted his mouth and handed me my cup of coffee with an embarrassed look. I questioned him with my eyes.

"To tell you the truth," he began, "I didn't think I'd see you again this week. We've seen a lot of people come and go before you, but you're the only one who doesn't fear the consequences of sticking your nose in Mr. Khan's business. He's not going to make life easy for you, you know."

"I know, but I have nothing to lose. My life is already absolute chaos. He can't make it worse."

I took a hot sip of my coffee and then changed the subject.

"Where's Ashley?"

"She's out scouting the venue for the Thanksgiving gala. The decorator needs the exact measurements of the room and more pictures. She's in charge of organizing everything with her."

I wanted to ask him about Ashley and Yeraz, but their relationship was none of my business. I just wondered if I could completely trust my assistant, since she was sleeping with the boss.

"Tomorrow I'm scheduled to meet with Roskuf's national and international executives," I said. "To prepare for the meeting, I need to consult the latest business correspondence with them and report analyses."

Timothy took a quick look at his watch and began to clear the island.

"It's in the archives. I'll show you how the software Mr. Khan uses works, and then you're on your own. You're the only one who's allowed to see those files."

I was about to thank him when we heard the front door open. Timothy and I looked at each other, surprised. Yeraz wasn't expecting anyone. Then a face, which was beginning to look familiar, appeared right in the doorway of the kitchen.

"Peter, please introduce yourself when you show up unannounced," Timothy admonished, putting a hand over his heart.

Peter twirled his hand in the air.

"You have to be joking. I'm more at home here than you are."

His gaze went over my assistant's shoulder to detail me insistently. I was unable to make a single movement. The pair of anise green high-heeled pumps he was holding in his right hand caught my attention.

"Do you need anything?" Timothy said impatiently.

"Yes, I need Ronney. If you knew what I was getting into, you wouldn't believe it. Wish me luck. I'm going to need it."

Peter's weary voice almost indicated the beginning of a nervous breakdown. Timothy turned to me, addressing our guest.

"Sorry, we still have a lot of work to do, and..."

Without paying attention to Timothy's comment, Peter turned around.

"Ronney, I'll wait for you upstairs in your apartments. I don't have much time to waste with you, so let's hurry."

With that, he walked out into the hallway and up the stairs. Peter reminded me of an actor on a theater stage. He always seemed to be performing, bringing out his gay side to the fullest.

Timothy clapped his hands and said, "You should go. It's best not to keep him waiting. I'll sort your emails in order of urgency and start answering them."

I was about to argue, to refuse to go up that staircase, but I realized that I had no choice but to join Peter. There was no saying no to this man.