Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 84324 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 422(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84324 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 422(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
“Yes.”
“She’ll come to live here with us?”
I already know where this is going and mutter, “Yes, Ma.”
“Then you’ll just have to deal with me getting involved.”
That’s what I thought.
Chapter 10
Laurie
La mia farfalla is Italian and translates to ‘my butterfly.’
Sitting on the bed, reading the information on Google, my eyebrow lifts.
Adriano is Italian?
Seriously, Laurie? You made a deal with some random man and all you know is his name, age, and that he might be Italian. Oh, and he owns a club in Island Park.
I think about it for a moment, then shake my head.
He paid me five million. I don’t care if his name is Peter Pan and he’s taking me to Neverland.
My phone buzzes in my hand, and seeing a message from Elise, I tap on it.
Elise: Oh my God!!! I only saw this now. What is going on? Are you okay?
Realizing I now have money to load airtime onto my phone, I quickly go into my bank app.
When I see my balance, the shock hits again, and I stare at the enormous amount.
Sweet Jesus. That’s a lot of money.
My thoughts get away from me, and for a while I wonder about what I should do with the millions.
Millions.
Plural.
Suddenly, intense happiness explodes in me like fireworks, and I shoot up, jumping on the bed while letting out a shriek. “Oh, my God! I’m rich!” I scream at the top of my lungs as I lunge off the bed and run out of the bedroom.
I dance and twirl, laughing as I’ve never laughed before, until I come to a stop in front of the windows, and I see all the twinkling lights of Manhattan.
A sob bursts from me, and lifting a trembling hand to my mouth, I begin to cry because this is too surreal for me to process.
I have five million and twenty thousand dollars.
I never have to work again.
No getting up at the crack of dawn and working late nights.
No commuting.
No counting every cent to make my shitty paycheck last a whole month.
No Austin lying on that damn couch, eating expensive takeout while leaving all the chores and worries to me.
No more Heather talking down to me like I’m trash.
My phone rings, ripping me out of my thoughts, and when I see Elise’s name, I quickly answer.
“Hi, sorry. I was going to call.”
“My fucking heart, Laurie! Are you okay?”
“Yes.” Again, I’m overwhelmed, and when I burst out in tears, Elise says, “You don’t sound okay. I have some money on my credit card. I can take the first flight to New York.”
I shake my head and force the words out. “I’m crying because I’m happy.”
“Oh.” She pauses for a few seconds. “Your message was very ominous. Did you finally leave that bum? Who is this Adriano Rizzo?”
“I have a lot to tell you.” I walk to the couches and sit down. “Austin was cheating on me with Heather’s best friend, and he kicked me out. Late at night, might I add. The bastard could’ve timed it better,” I grumble. “The next day Heather accused me of stealing money and fired me.”
“What the fuck?” Elise snaps angrily. “I swear, if I were there, I would’ve fucked them up.”
Elise has a bit of a potty mouth, but I’ve gotten used to it.
“It gets worse,” I mutter, getting up again to check what snacks there are in the kitchen. “Heather refused to pay me for the last month, so I was out on the street without a dime to my name. I spent the night in a diner, and luckily the waitress took pity on me and didn’t ask me to leave.”
“No! Why didn’t you call me? Send me your bank details right now. I can transfer enough to keep you going for a couple of months.”
God, I love my best friend. We have never met in person, but she’s always been there for me.
“You don’t have to worry. The man whose ID I sent you made me a deal I couldn’t refuse and paid me a crap ton of money.”
Elise sounds very skeptical when she asks, “What kind of deal?”
How do I explain it to her?
Wanting to make it sound better than it’s probably going to be, I ask, “Have you watched Pretty Woman?”
She gasps, and her tone is filled with disbelief. “Are you serious? He’s paying you for sex?” There’s a short pause, then she adds, “He’s hot. How much is he paying you?”
“A lot, and apparently it’s not about sex. He mentioned something along the lines of a relationship, but I have no idea what that entails.”
“Huh?”
I shrug as I open a can of mixed nuts. “Adriano has zero social skills and is a big ol’ grumpy bear. I think he just wants company, but his sour personality scares off women.”
Then again, he did kiss the living daylights out of me.