Page 37 of The Mafia’s Girlfriend

If you’d just fucking said so in the first place...

She gripped the front of my shirt and tugged on the material to whisper again. “Where can I hide?”

I held her hand and guided her away.

Chapter 14

Emma

The one day I wasn’t actively looking for Luke at the Tropican to talk to him, he approached me. Oh, the irony. Right now, with a Marchese spy lurking after me, I didn’t have any time of irony. All I had time for today while Krista napped after a night of drinking wine in her condo was hiding.

I first noticed this spy near the pool, so I hid in my condo as long as I could. I didn’t have anything to eat, though, so I headed out to the restaurant to pick up takeout. That was my second spotting. Walking in a circling path, I felt confident that I lost him, but when I reached my condo, I noticed him hiding behind a tree, likely waiting for me to return to ambush me.

I tried to stay out in the common areas of the resort all day, figuring the spy would leave, but he hadn’t it was almost dusk, and that asshole was still here.

It paid to be led to a hiding spot by someone who worked here. A lot more worker buildings stood at the back of the property, and it was through here that Luke finally slowed us down from jogging away in a confusing, twisting route around hedges, paths, and garden beds.

Dropping into a walk, he glanced back from where we’d come from.

“Who are you hiding from?”

“Someone.”

He released my hand but shot me a hard look that suggested I think twice about fucking with him or resorting to sarcasm.

I couldn’t tell him the truth, though. Explaining that I belonged to the mafia was a last-ditch thing to do. I didn’t want him to judge me or to look at me through a different light. It was a prejudice I didn’t deserve. I never chose to be a member of the Giordino family. I was born into it and was expected to serve as a full-blood member. To serve by sacrificing myself in a marriage I didn’t choose or want at all.

“Does this have something to do with those men who tried to force you out of the club with them?”

Yes. “No.” I cleared my throat, hating the taste of the falsehood burning on my tongue. I didn’t want to lie to him, but the less he knew, the better. For me and him. I couldn’t help but be selfish. If he was aware of the danger of protecting me, he would walk away now and never come back. I wasn’t ready for him to cut me out of his life like that.

“Sort of,” I amended after a moment.

He paused to glance at me. Seeming to listen for anyone else in this maintenance area, he held up a hand for me to stay still.

“What do you mean, sort of?” he whispered after he deemed the coast was clear. He guided me around a row of lawnmowers, trekking closer to the garage of gardening equipment.

“It’s similar,” I said, trying to be evasive. “That night, some men were interested in me. I was not interested in them. Ergo, conflict followed.”

“How eloquent,” he quipped.

“And this guy following me here...” I dared a look over my shoulder. Not watching where I was walking caused me to step right into another piece of landscape machinery. Metal clanged and a ruckus sounded.

He mouthed a curse, hurrying to catch the machine before it toppled into another. So much for my attempt at stealth.

We didn’t speak, listening for anyone coming. I didn’t hear anything, but he seemed to think he did. He grabbed my hand, wrapping his warm, calloused fingers around mine. Then we were off again, sneaking further through the gardening area.

The Tropican had numerous garden beds and floral displays. My father invested in this property and it was a cash cow. I wasn’t surprised that they needed this much equipment and resources to keep the place looking pristine and lush, but right now, as Luke led me further back to hide, I appreciated how much stuff was back here to hide behind.

“This guy who’s following you...” he prompted again.

All I could focus on was the heat of his hand not letting go of mine. It was such a simple, basic touch, but it suggested such a bigger concept—security. I was secure with him, more than I’d ever felt with anyone in the Giordino organization. Time and time again, Luke stepped up to the challenge of seeing to my safety at the same time he’d let me make my own decisions.

He could never know what a gift that was for me. Just meeting him proved to be a big part of that “living my life” goal.

He squeezed my fingers, and I was jarred back to the present.

“Who is that man?”