Page 34 of Mafioso's Muse
The question had her wondering if the strenuous session she’d just endured had been intentionally designed to wear her out and render her useless for the evening. Normally, she wouldn’t have entertained the idea, but Vaughn’s warning came to mind.
‘Just be careful.’
‘It would be rude to cancel now,’ she pointed out.
He shook his head and said in a disappointed tone, ‘Honestly, I thought you were smarter than this.’
She licked sweat from her lips. ‘Nigel trusts him.’
Harrison tutted. ‘Nigel doesn’t have a choice. It’s trust him or close the doors. You, on the other hand, definitely have a choice.’
She bent to pick up her water bottle and took a drink before towelling off again. ‘I’m late. I’ll see you Monday.’
He crossed his arms. ‘Remember, you need proper sleep.’
She fled the studio before he could guilt her any further.
The change rooms were empty. Everyone else had already gone home. She showered quickly and put on a body suit, some printed pants that didn’t require ironing, flats, and whatever make-up she could manage in two minutes before heading outside.
It was 6:05 p.m.
She was late.
Finn had the Mercedes double-parked. He was leaning against the vehicle, eyes on the door.
‘Sorry,’ she said, jogging over as best she could on legs resembling jelly. ‘You could have parked somewhere legal and texted me your location.’
Finn opened the back door for her. ‘Evening, Miss Hayes.’ Clearly he wasn’t even going to entertain her suggestion.
She climbed in, keeping a firm grip on her gym bag.
‘Do you want that in the boot?’ Finn asked.
She placed the bag between her feet. ‘No, it’s fine. Thanks.’ Once Finn was in the driver’s seat, she asked, ‘So, where are we going?’
‘Toorak.’
Not entirely surprising. The suburb was synonymous with wealth and privilege, having some of the highest average property values in Melbourne.
They drove in easy silence, Willow eventually relaxing into the journey despite the fact that she was being driven around by a man she barely knew. If Vaughn trusted him to collect her alone, that was good enough for her. She hoped that wasn’t naive on her part.
As they entered the leafy suburb, Willow took in the palatial homes and manicured gardens. They looked like they were straight out of a magazine spread.
The sun was low in the sky when the car slowed and the indicator signalled left. Finn stopped at a set of iron gates and punched in a code. The gates swung open, and they drove into a turning circle, stopping in front of a two-storey rendered house with a tennis court beside it. Willow stared up at it while Finn walked around to get her door. Picking up her bag, she exited the car.
‘Thank you,’ she said.
He nodded before returning to the driver’s side.
The front door to the house opened, and Vaughn stepped outside, stopping beneath the portico. He was wearing a pale green shirt rolled to the elbows and tailored trousers. It was casual for him. He leaned against one of the giant pillars propping the veranda up and watched her walk up the path towards him.
‘Let me take that,’ he said, reaching for her bag.
‘It’s pretty gross,’ she warned.
He took it anyway.
‘Don’t… smell it.’ She clamped her mouth shut, realising that was a ridiculous thing to say.