Page 16 of Mafia And Maid
“I can deal with demanding.” Again, I blurt it out, desperation clinging to each word as it leaves my mouth. “I’m not scared of hard work. I can handle whatever you throw at me. I just need a chance. Please.”
Now I’m begging. There’s no dignity. She’s left the building, alongside my sanity and self-worth. But I’ll beg and beg until I can find something.
He mutters something under his breath. “Nulla è difficile…per chi…”I can’t quite catch all the words, but it’s something in what must be a foreign language, and I’m not sure what it means. His massive body doesn’t move, but the muscle in his jaw ticks.
Please don’t say what everyone else has been saying to me:No. No, thank you. Sorry, but no. You’re not the sort of person we’re looking for. Good luck with life, but you’ve failed.
He gives me a soft smile as he looks at me.
My heart hitches with hope...
And his smile is genuine—not one of those fake polite smiles you’re given just before you’re turned down.
I hold my breath as he gives his answer...
“I don’t think you’re right for the job.”
Wait, what?He didn’t really just say that, did he?
“I’m sorry, Rosa.”
I close my eyes, my head dropping.
I really thought I had a chance, and the only thing I can do now is will my tears to stay back until I’m at least out of the building. My body is sagging, and I start to slide from the booth.
“My brothers are difficult to work for,” he says in a rush, his body softening and his brown eyes swirling with a different kind of emotion. “It wouldn’t be fair to you...”
“I understand. Thank you for your time.”
“But why don’t you fill in one of our casino application forms? Then, if something comes up, they can contact you.”
“Okay.” The word puffs out on a breath of air. Because it’s worth a chance. All I’ve got to lose is another few minutes of my time.
“Follow me.” He stands, giving me the once over again, slower this time, before curling his fist by his side and marching away. Each step forward is purposeful and powerful.
He’s leading me back toward Stella. My insides clench at the thought of her looking down at me again. But I know I have to leave my details with the casino. Because maybe, just maybe, it’ll lead to a job for me. And I remind myself that I’m doing this for Ethan. This is all for the boy who’s my whole world.
I start to fill out the form that he takes from behind the front desk and hands to me.
I sit a few tables away from him, but I can feel his gaze lasering into me.
And it makes me shudder.
Because he’s dangerous—and I don’t understand him. And it’s almost as if he’s feeling guilty for not giving me the job…
CHAPTER 4
CAMILLO
Why do I wish I could give her the job?
I don’t know the answer to this. What I do know, however, is that she wouldn’t last five fucking minutes around Marco. He’d be pissed off in no time with her constant flinching and stuttering.
He’s not one to mince his words. I can tell that this woman—Rosa—is fragile. And I can’t put her through that.
The thought continues to tumble through my mind as I move about the casino, leaving Rosa so that I can finish doing what I came here to do in the first place.
It’s taken me most of the interview to place her face. To put a name to the pretty cheeks that flushed pink and the full lips that trembled as we spoke. She’s Conor Davis’s daughter.