Falling For The Mob

66 Rules

Zoë

I watch the ticking of the clock right above the nurse's station—fifteen minutes, and I'll be done.

Normally, I wouldn't be counting down the seconds like this, but I am tired, and I can say without a shadow of a doubt that Sam didn't let me sleep more than two hours last night. Then again, blaming her isn't completely fair either.

My phone buzzes with a message telling me that she is waiting by the back entrance to take me home instead of Jonas.

Quickly, I pack up, avoiding every possibility of getting a last-minute emergency to fall into my lap. At this point, I'd just be a liability—not that I think I'll sleep much tonight either.

~~~

"Where would you like to go for dinner?"

I arch my eyebrow at the first thing she says to me when I step in. Not that the question is that strange, but she has a strange grin on her face, almost nervous.

"I thought we would order in as we always do."

"Yes, of course," she replies, starting the engine. I quickly shut the ignition off. I'd be blind not to see the disappointment flash across her face before she turns away.

"What is going through your mind? Are you upset with me?" I gently ask, taking her hand that is tightly gripping the steering wheel.

Her eyes remain focused on my thumb running in a circular motion over her skin. She takes that same deep breath before finally looking back up at me.

"It has come to my attention how many things I did wrong in our previous attempt at whatever we were. For example, until now, I have never taken you out on a date."

She pulls her hand out of mine, then reaches behind my seat to pull out a half-dead bouquet of flowers. "I would have ordered an arrangement or picked up something else, but then I would have been late."

Before I can react, she throws them back on the seat and lets out a deep breath. "Is it normal for things so small to be so trivial?" She chuckles bitterly as she looks out the window. There she goes again, seeing the worst in herself.

I pull her in by the collar of her dress shirt and kiss her. Though caught by surprise, she wastes no time.

"I love the dead flowers, Sam, because you picked them out. You thought about me and wanted to do something nice, and you got them. Not everything needs to be perfect or planned for that matter. I love the effort that went into it—that's all I ever wanted from you. I wouldn't like an expensive arrangement that Addy picked out for you, more."

She briefly flinches at the mention of her name but then smiles back at me. "Does this mean yes to letting me take you to dinner?"

I grimace, knowing that I'll have to disappoint her. "Do you really think that's a good idea? I mean, you'd probably be recognized, and people would start talking."

Her brows furrow. "I have no reason to hide, nor do I care much for public opinion. But I take it your concern may not be aimed at my image."

"Isn't it dangerous? Aren't there people that could try coming after you, or me, for this?"

"No one more dangerous than Gianni, and we are prepared for any attack."

Nervously, I bite my lip, this time with her being the one trying to calm me. "Love, if this is not what you want, if you wish for us to remain a secret, I can understand."

Nausea stirs in me and keeps building.

"No, it's not that. I'm not ashamed. It's just that this has been going on for less than twenty-four hours. It's just so fast, I'm barely getting used to the idea of having you back. I just don't want to deal with other people right now. My parents don't even know yet. We haven't even been able to establish a plan on how any of this is going to work."