“No one asked for my opinion,” Carlo says, catching my attention, “but I’m going to give it anyway. You would make an excellent leader, my dear. Because you did what you had to do to keep the rest of your family and those you care about safe. Your brother was the bad seed. And I hope I’m not speaking out of turn when I say we all saw that.”
“You’re not,” Papa says. “I will grieve for the son I had and the man I needed him to be. But the punishment fit the crime here, Nadia. Don’t torture yourself. You were defending yourself. And me.”
Relief floods me. “Thank you.”
“I’m sorry for the way this ended,” Carlo says to my father. “If there is anything my family can do for you, we are always at your disposal.”
“Thank you, old friend,” Papa says. “And likewise.”
“We still haven’t figured out who killed Elena’s parents,” Rafe points out. “That goes back farther than Alex.”
“That’s something we’ll have to keep digging into,” Shane agrees. “We’ll find them.”
“I have something to say,” Carmine says. “Mr. Tarenkov, I’d like to ask for your permission to marry your daughter.”
My eyes fly to Carmine’s in surprise.
Our fathers share a smile.
“Well, it’s about damn time, my boy,” Papa says. “Carlo and I have been throwing you at each other for years.”
“I thought they’d never come to their senses,” Carlo says with a laugh. “A couple of stubborn children we have here, Igor.”
“Wait. You wanted us to marry?” Carmine asks.
“Of course. Why do you think we’ve allowed you to spend so much time together?” My father winks at me. Winks! I don’t think I’ve ever seen him wink a day in his life.
“How do you like that?” Shane says with a laugh. “Pop’s a matchmaker.”
The brothers both laugh as Carmine crosses to me with humor in his chocolate brown eyes.
He lowers to one knee.
“Will you marry me, Nadia, and be the best part of my life until I’m no longer on this Earth?”
“Let me think about it.” I grin as he digs into his pocket and comes out with a rock the size of a baby’s fist. “Geez, Carmine. Did you have to get something so fancy?”
“Yes.” He slips it onto my finger and then kisses my knuckles. “I’m going to give you everything you’ve ever dreamed of.”
“I believe you.” He kisses me carefully.
“Is that a yes?”
“That’s a hell yes.”
Epilogue
~Ivie~
It’s been a long-ass day at the clinic. Annika took off for home about an hour ago, but I decided to stay and clean up a bit. Annika just hasn’t been herself over the past month or so, not since her husband died.
I’m worried about her.
So, if I can stay late at work, make sure everything is perfect for her here and take some of the burdens off her, I’ll gladly do it.
Annika is my best friend. She’s the only person in the world who knows my deepest secrets. And I’ll do whatever it takes to help her.
I hear the bell on the front door and hurry out to tell whoever it is that we’re closed.
But when I get there, I stop cold.
“Hello, Ivie.” He flips the lock on the door, and I dial Annika’s number and leave my phone on the desk so she can hear everything. I hope with all my might that she answers. “Or should I say, Laryssa?”
I shake my head. “I’m sorry, I don’t know a Laryssa. I’m Ivie. And we’re closed for the day. But if you’d like to make an appointment, I can help you with that.”
“You know, I thought for a long time that your father was an imbecile. Stupid. He didn’t cover his tracks well.”
I just raise my chin, determined not to let him see my fear.
“But you’re different. You covered your tracks very well. And I know that you couldn’t have done that alone. Which tells me that your father isn’t as stupid as I thought.”
“I don’t know what you could possibly want from me. I’m just living my life.”
“And a nice life it is,” he says. “Good for you, Laryssa. I couldn’t make your father pay for his sins when he was alive—and we both know that those sins were many. But now I’ve found you.”
I shake my head as he walks around the counter.
“Now, don’t do something silly like try to get away. You’re coming with me. And you’re going to pay for the sins of your father.”
He jabs a syringe into my arm, and I immediately feel…heavy.
“There, now. Come along, Laryssa. We have plenty of work to do.”
Don’t miss HEADHUNTER, the next book in the With Me In Seattle MAFIA series! You can get it here: www.kristenprobyauthor.com/headhunter
And here is a sneak peek at Headhunter:
Headhunter
A With Me In Seattle MAFIA Novel
Prologue
~Ivie~
“I’m not doing this for you anymore.” I glare at my father and raise my chin, trying to appear way more confident than I feel.
My stomach pitches when he slowly turns to glare at me with cold, blue eyes. The same eyes that look back at me in the mirror.
But I’m nothing like the man who sired me. And I never will be.
Without another word, he turns back to the task at hand, making an egg sandwich. Our apartment is small and in a dirty little neighborhood in the Bronx. He says it helps us blend in, that no one will pay us any mind here.
In reality, he spends money as quickly as it lands in his pocket, and this is all he can afford.
I turn sixteen this summer, and he’s already made it clear that I’ll be quitting school and taking a full-time job.
What I want doesn’t matter. It never has with this man.
“Did you hear me?” I demand.
“I hear nothing important.” His voice is calm, thick with that Bulgarian accent that I hate so much.
“I’m serious. I’m not doing your bidding anymore. If I get caught, I’ll go to jail.”
“You are too young for jail.”
“No.” I shake my head and plant my hands on my hips. “I’m not too young. They’ll send me to juvie. Either way, I’ll be locked up, and I’m not doing that for you. This is ridiculous. Why can’t you be a normal father instead of gambling and selling fake jewelry? Why don’t you just get a real job so we can live a normal life?”
Without a look, he spins and backhands me, sending me sprawling on the floor. My cheek sings in pain, and I see stars as he leans over so close that his nose nudges mine.
“You are my property,” he growls. “You are nothing but a female. And you’ll do exactly as I say, when I say. If you try to defy me again, I’ll sell you to the many men who have already asked for your body.”