Chasing Stars - A Midnight Mafia Novel

Bonus Chapter

This chapter is written in Alessio's POV and should be read as such. You guys earned it.

"I-I have to think about it." She sputtered out after several failed attempts at words.

It made sense. As much as Katherine could tell herself that this was okay, that her and I, the reporter and the criminal, the cop's daughter and the mobster, that the moon and the sun could ever fall in love clearly she knew somewhere in her that it was still so very wrong. That we were wrong.

Maybe it was self deserved, she had after all spent so much time chasing me for me to push her away, turn her down. I had lathered up her naked breasts and still refused to kiss her before, maybe I deserved a little bit of rejection as well?

Except...this wasn't a little bit of rejection, it was a hell of a lot.

"It's been over twenty minutes." I reminded Simone and Siv when the time had crept too far up on me making my thoughts all too much opportunity to do the same.

"Working on it boss." Simone muttered from behind one of several computer screens and with large headphones covering his ears. It was a wonder he could even hear me from behind them.

"Work. Faster." I said sharply.

Siv remained wordless though he was doing the same, there were four computers between the both of them, the sound of my metronome kept the tempo as they typed quickly.

"Bit out of our skill level." Simone added after a moment.

"Well." I turned my wrist to examine my watch. "You have ten minutes to make it your skill level, or we will have a problem."

"Yes sir."

I tapped the bottom of my pen thoughtfully as they worked. Trying vigorously to break into the NYPD data base. This was a bit out of their pay grade, I wouldn't pretend it wasn't.

Simone and Silvano could hack, but much more minor things. They could work their way into your accounts, emails, phone records, in a world so driven by technology the two proved to be quite valuable when needing to dig up some dirt on someone or find a conversation or such. However, when it came to larger matters I had more experienced men to do this.

Men who would hack government accounts, who could weasel their way into your bank account to wire money without your consent, men who found access into street camera in the city of New York to watch your every move.

I didn't want those men today. The matter in which I wanted to see to today was much more sensitive. I was working on a whim, an insecurity perhaps even. Something the other men need not know about.

I watched the metronome tick from side to side.

Perhaps I was unmarriageable. I mean, had I found someone willing to marry me before Katherine? So perhaps there was a reason for that, a reason I was still not married.I could laugh.

But I wouldn't.

Hm. No one wanted to marry me. I hadn't given it much thought before today. Hadn't seemed like such a catastrophe before. I tapped the butt of my pen on the desk at each tick of the metronome.

I hadn't considered this. I had considering asking Katherine, her saying yes, and then coming to her senses the next time she nearly died and making a run for it them. I had considered the possibility of an outright no even. But I'll think about it.