When The Sun Goes Down - A Midnight Mafia Novel

Twelve

"What is that face for?" Alessio asked as he walked past me, naturally he didn't care enough to actually stop and listen to whatever I had to say but rather kept moving.

I stood up straight when he passed me and followed him, struggling to keep up in my stilettos. We had been playing this innocent game of cat and mouse for the past few weeks since he enlisted el verme to his services.

I was the mouse.

I wanted nothing more than to follow Alessio around the whole place yelling at him for letting Nicolo join. I loved Nicolo and I loved having his company down here. I missed him, missed my family. Having him here was a little bit of sanity making this grueling "job" bearable for the first time since I had been "hired." But he wasn't safe. As long as he was in this business, he wasn't safe. And as much as I wanted to spend time with him, it wasn't worth risking his life.

I was furious at Alessio for enlisting him. He knew who he was to me and he accepted him regardless. As much as I wanted to chase him and yell at him. I couldn't.

I was too humiliated. It was only for a moment, but I wanted him. I wanted Alessio Genovese. The criminal, the murderer, the one who had essentially signed sealed and delivered Nicolo's death wish. When we broke apart and I could breathe again such a thought was terrifying. I mean, it was Alessio for God's sake. I hated to admit it but Mia was right. I had wanted Alessio in the same way she wanted the men she slept with, maybe even more.

Brief as that moment may have been, it had happened. I couldn't escape it, and rather than face it, face him I was cowering. That moment had me ducking behind counters when I saw him and ignoring him when he tried to talk to me. I didn't even want to know what he had been saying to me before. 

Well...

I did. 

I was just too proud to admit it.  

So instead I had been avoiding him, tried avoiding thinking of him, of why I reacted the way I did, what it meant. I'd been down here for some time, maybe I was just sexually frustrated and he happened to have pressed the right buttons. Maybe I was just in a vulnerable state, delirious and confused and he'd attacked when I was at my lowest. In any case I was avoiding him, Mia had told me he had even asked her where I was hiding. The dirty alley cat was hunting its prey.

But not anymore, not today. Today I was the cat. I needed Alessio for something and I would have to face him eventually, right?

"Alessio." I called after him.

Something in the tone of my voice must have caught him because not only did he stop walking but he even turned back around to face me.

I wasn't expecting that and his attention left me stunned for a moment. I stared at his perfect face remembering the way it had softened sensually as his hands trace my body and my cheeks lit fire.

"Sbrigati!" He yelled and threw his hands up in the air. "Sputa il rospo!

(hurry up) (spit it out! Literal translation is spit the toad out)

"Well I can't have a conversation with you when I can't understand what you're saying."

"Uffa." He groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I said hurry up, spit it out already. I haven't got all damn day."

(No actual translation, but is similar to blah or ugh, generally a noise you would make when frustrated)

"Well, I want to go outside."

"And?"

"And I believe you're the only person who can let that happen."

"Hm."

"Don't just hm me! Mia has been out five times in this past month alone! I've been here three months and haven't gone out once!"

"Mia clearly has made more friends than you."

"I know you told everyone I wasn't permitted above." I said just as he turned his back to me. He stopped mid turn and gave me his attention again.

"Porca vacca...Verme told you that?"

(Translates to 'pig cow' but is used like, damn, or shit)

"It doesn't matter who. I want to know why!"

"I don't trust you, obviously. If I sent you out with one of these idiots and you fled, well where would that leave us?"

"I'm going to be out eventually. What difference does it make if I 'escape' now, or you let me out later?" I asked putting air quotes along escape.

"Because if you escaped, then you would not be completing your end of the agreement. And there are consequences to such actions."

"Alessio!" I groaned and threw my head back dramatically. "It's like a prison down here! Penitenziario!" I pinched my fingers together for emphasis. My Italian was horrible, if he even understood the word I may have to jump for joy. For all I knew my mispronunciation of the word could have resulted to it meaning something completely different.

He smirked. "Ma che parli L 'Italiano adesso? Che bella sorpresa!"

(Wow do you speak Italian now? What a beautiful surprise)

"Oh shut up." I groaned. Of course he would use my actual attempt at speaking his language against me. At this point, I didn't even care what he said. I was too busy feeling like a moron.

"Va bene." He shrugged. "Ti ci portero." He watched me with deeply amused eyes for a moment. "Katherine, you do speak Italian now, no?"

"No." I snapped.

"Would you like to know what I said? Just now?"

I sighed heavily, waiting for him to go on. It was obvious though, he was going to actually make me ask. I thought about asking please in Italian, as it was one of the few phrases I knew, but I figured he would just be a smart ass about that too and we would simply go back to square one. "Please." I grumbled when he still didn't answer.

"I said, okay. I'll take you there."

"You'll what?"

"I'll take you."

"You?" I said in disbelief.

"Me." He took a step closer to me and tilted my head up with his thumb. "I believe the words you are looking for is thank you, Genie." I pulled my head away quickly.

"I thought...I mean, I figured I'd go up with..."

"Verme?"

"Well, yeah."

"Oh certainly not." I waited patiently for more. "Why? So you could go run home to Daddy? See your family? Tell them all how safe you are?"

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"A scema!" He tapped me on the head. "And say what? I'm in an undercover Mafia hangout, I'm fine but I'm going to go ahead and disappear for another two months? Don't worry about me." He rolled his eyes. "No, you can't see anyone while you're out."

(a stupid person)

I frowned. "I miss my family Alessio. I want them to know I'm okay."

"And they will. When your contract is up. You have two days to decided where you'd like to go, we will leave on the third day."