Mafia Kings: Valentino: Dark Mafia Romance Series #6 by Olivia Thorn

Mafia Kings: Valentino: Chapter 47

After collecting from the pimps, Rocco said we were going to break for lunch. He and his buddies strolled towards a pizza joint, the kind that serves fast food to tourists.

He’d just collected over $10,000 in protection money, but he was still going to eat at a shitty restaurant.

Figures.

“I’m surprised, Movie Star,” Rocco sneered. “You didn’t try to pay for a single one of them.”

“I only pay for normal people, not pimps and drug dealers.”

“Oh, you’ll be happy then – we’re doing the shopkeepers after lunch,” he said, and all his thugs laughed.

Suddenly Paolo came trotting up. “Hey, Valentino, something important came up – I need you to come with me.”

I immediately saw a light at the end of the tunnel.

I turned to Rocco. “Look, I don’t want to be there for the shopkeepers, and you don’t want me there – so can we call it a day?”

Rocco gave me a smile of smug superiority. I’d just asked his permission in front of his minions, establishing that he was the boss.

But I could see the wheels turning.

I could guess what he was thinking:

Do I humiliate him and MAKE him watch me shake down the shopkeepers?

Or do I let him go now, avoid another scene, and keep it so everybody KNOWS I’m the boss?

the second

With a twist.

“Say ‘please,’” he sneered.

balled my hands into fists and made a calculation of

give in and then have to hang out with this

I say one little word

myself to make it sound like

like he was pissed I hadn’t

must have decided it wasn’t worth the chance I’d make him look bad in front of

outta here,” he said dismissively, then walked into

turned towards Paolo and smiled. “That was

I was serious – I need you

“What is it?”

know when we get there.” Paolo started down the

frowned as I

and eager as always, but I didn’t like his mysterious

down Gela’s winding streets, the more

was taking me to get

But –

Why?

sense. I’d done

had cut a deal

out here, where a

wait to kill me until I was

Vicari had the local police in his pocket – but probably only as far

a murder in broad daylight with dozens of

a cobblestone walkway with old, crumbling