I'm Nothing (The Family Book 2)(8)

She chuckled. “So, the whole mafia thing is real.”

“I did tell you.”

“Well, being told it, and seeing it with my own eyes is a little scary.”

“Scary? I’m passed being scared.”

“Do you feel anything?”

“I felt rage earlier. Does that count?”

“It does.” She took a seat at his kitchen counter, watching him as he grabbed several packs of noodles from his stash. She’d never seen so many packets outside of a supermarket. “Earlier you said you had a lot to make up for. What did you mean?”

He sighed. “Why is it that when I’m with you I feel comfortable enough to talk about all my secrets?”

“You know I’m a virgin.”

“Yeah, you see, it’s not the same.”

“I guess not.”

Tonio rested his hands on the counter, and he stared across at her. “Being the son of one of the heads of the mafia doesn’t allow you to have a life of innocence.”

“You’ve done bad things?”

“I’ve done things that stop me looking in the mirror. If you knew half of what I did, you wouldn’t even want to be in the same room as me.”

Zara frowned. “Then why help me?”

“Huh?”

“If you’ve done so many bad things, why did you help me? You could have just left me alone. From what I heard, Lucien was supposed to be working for you. Why not let me rot?”

“I thought you’d be happy with my help?”

“I am. I’m just not used to it.”

He nodded, and she felt bad.

“Would you like me to cook for you?”

“I can handle noodles. It’s the easiest thing in the world to cook.”

“I can think of something easier, but I’m going to stay completely silent, and pretend that I do not exist.”

“That sounds like a good plan. So, you’re a virgin, huh?” he asked.

“I take it you’re not.”

“I lost that card many years ago, probably long before I was actually ready for it.”

“I doubt that. I thought men were supposed to be hound dogs, and more than ready to lose that card.”

“We are supposed to be, but it doesn’t actually mean that we are.”

She watched him do the mundane task of filling up a saucepan with water, and she thought about it.

“I’m too plain for anyone to have sex with. It’s what Lucien was right about. I’m the plain one that usually ends up being friends with the guys. You don’t even have to lie about it. I know it’s the truth. I accepted it long ago.” She laughed, recalling her father. “My dad once said that there was going to be a guy out there who’d find me the most beautiful woman in the world. It’s nice what parents would say, huh?”

“My dad always told me I was nothing. I wonder if he still thought that when I was killing him?”

Wow, he wins the most depressing story. It was weird. He mentioned about killing his father, and yet she was not afraid. She really needed to have her brain looked at.





Chapter Four



“This is your room. I’m just across the hall,” Tonio said.

“Thank you.”

“You’ve got your own bathroom, and if you need anything, I have stuff in the kitchen.”

“More noodles?”

“Those noodles were nice. You can’t deny that.”

“No, I can’t deny that.” She entered the bedroom, and Tonio made to walk away. “I really appreciate everything you’ve done for me.”

He leaned against the doorframe, folding his arms across his chest. Tonio stared at her, wondering what was going on in that head of hers. She was thinner than he recalled her being at high school. The stress of her life had clearly eaten away at her. He’d found his high school yearbook, and the moment he saw her, the memories of copying from her came flooding back.

“I don’t even think you know what’s going to happen to your life now.”

“What do you mean?”

“You can’t go back to the pizza place. Well, you can, but you’re not going to go back alone. You’re going to have protection. You can keep running the shop but until we know what is going on, you’re going to have a guard on you. We’re also going to need to question your mother. We need to know everything.”

“What are you saying?”

“I saved you tonight, but there is no out from this. You’ll have a target on your head if we let you go.”

“Is that why you said I belonged to you?”

“Yeah. I claimed you as my own. I don’t expect anything from you.”

“As your girlfriend?” she asked.

“I’m going to let you get some rest. It has been a long night.” He left her alone, and entered his own room. Closing the door, he went to the desk that had his father’s laptop on it. He was too wired to actually go to sleep, so, removing his shirt, he started working on hacking his father’s files. His father was in to some deep illegal shit. The more he uncovered, the more he was sickened by it.

He wasn’t the only one they used to film fighting and fucking. If he’d had his friends working on this, he’d have gotten it done by now. Tonio didn’t want any of them to know. Once they knew, it would make everything more real. He already had his nightmares to keep him up.

Running a hand down his face, he kept on searching the files, and when he discovered one hidden away, he clicked on it. The name of the file was his name. It was password protected like everything else.

Typing his father’s name, Tonio huffed when that didn’t open it. Next, he tried his mother’s name, followed by the six mistresses his father had kept over the years. None of them worked. Birthdays didn’t work, nor did the pathetic password, one, two, three.

Sitting back, he stared at the file that he had spent months looking for. He was sure everything he wanted to hide was hidden in that file. He tried to delete it but once again, nothing. It wasn’t just the file he wanted to access, Tonio was sure the file also contained the contact details of everyone involved in that kind of shit.

Rubbing at his eyes, he finally conceded defeat for the night. It was getting late, and he was starting to get tired. Removing his pants, he walked naked into the shower room, and had a quick wash. Ten minutes later, he was heading back into his bedroom when he heard the scream. Grabbing his gun from the bed, he rushed into Zara’s room, only to find her sitting up.

Flicking on the light, he stared at her.

“It’s nothing. It was a bad dream. I’m so sorry.”

She was holding her chest, panting.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.” She wore a shirt that he’d left in the bedroom, and it seemed to swallow her up. Was he really that much bigger than she was? “You’re naked?”

He glanced down to find that he was indeed naked. “The towel dropped.” Ready to hurt whoever the intruder was, his cock remained flaccid. He didn’t get off on pain. Years of being forced to, he’d made a vow never to get off on it again. It wasn’t who he was. He wasn’t the animal.

“You’re nothing, boy!”

She covered her eyes. “God, I’m so sorry for looking.”

“Why? I’m not. It’s just a cock. Was your bad dream about what happened?”

She nodded. “Yeah, I thought I’d be fine, but it seems I’m not immune to shit like that.”

“Do you want me to stay with you?” he asked.

Zara bit her lip and nodded. “If you don’t mind.”

“I don’t mind.” He glanced down at his naked dick. “I better go and get some clothes on first.”

“Yeah, that would be good.”

He left her long enough to grab a pair of shorts. Quickly rushing back into her room, he climbed in beside her.

“Thank you,” she said.

“Hey, nothing to be thankful for.” He settled in beside her, staring up at the ceiling. This was the first time he’d actually slept in a woman’s bed. It was kind of strange. Technically it was his bed, but for now, Zara was inside it.

“You’re up late.”

“I was working.”

“Is there anything I can help you with?” she asked, rolling over.

He turned to find her hands tucked beneath her head.

She’s a virgin.

Tonio had lost count of the number of virgins he’d fucked. The number of girls and women he’d played with for the amusement of his father.

“No. This is not something anyone can help me with.”

“A problem shared is a problem halved.”

Too many people he didn’t know, knew about his past.

“This isn’t the kind of thing you share.”

Silence fell between them, and he liked the way she looked, all soft and happy.

“I knew you copied from me,” she said, startling him.

“You did.”

“Yep.” She smiled. “You always looked so sad that I doubted you ever studied for the exams that the teacher liked to give us. I didn’t want you to fail.”

“That’s … nice.”

She giggled. “Are you not used to people being nice to you?”

“No.”

“What about your parents?”

“No. They’re dead.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be. I killed them.” She tensed up, and he cursed. “Fuck! What is it about you that makes me spill my fucking secrets?”