“My God, that sounds like something from the 17th century,” Mandy said with a shiver.
I exhaled my breath deep and shuddering. “Yeah, and you haven’t even seen the man they want me to marry.” I rose to my feet. “Let’s go."
Chapter 16
Sienna
The sun shone brightly when we filed out of the apartment, but a heavy shadow rested on my heart. I pushed the images of Nonna and Gemma out of my mind.
Angelo stood waiting against the wall, his hands jammed into his pockets, and his head lowered as if he stared at the ground. At the sound of the door opening he turned and looked at me.
“We’re going to the mall,” I said airily, and began to head over to the car park with my friends.
When we arrived at Christine’s red Camry, I got into the backseat without a word. Mandy slid into the passenger’s seat while Christine took the wheel. Mandy rolled down the window and gazed at Angelo, who stood glaring at me. His hand lodged between her door and the frame. There was no way she would be able to close it.
“Sienna wants to ride with us,” Mandy said with a cheeky smile. “You can follow us behind with her car, right?” She reached out to me with an outstretched hand. I dropped my keys on her palm, and Mandy offered them to him.
“Where are you going?” he asked cupping my keys in his hand.
I leaned into the backseat with my arms across my chest and my face turned away in annoyance. Something about him set my teeth on edge. He always behaved as if I was a bratty child he was minding.
“We’re not sure yet,” she said. “We’re just going to head downtown to do some light shopping and maybe get something to eat. Then we’ll come back.”
He kept his eyes on me as he listened to her.
I felt like I couldn’t breathe … like his gaze was boring holes into my skin. I kept my head turned away. Seconds passed. I could feel the tension coming from him. Crazy, fantastical thoughts galloped through my mind. He would drag me out of the car. If that happened my stellar plan was to scream that he was a molester and pray people would come to our rescue. In the ensuing confusion, I would slip away. Or … maybe he would call my father. Oh God!
Suddenly, he removed his hand from Mandy’s door and walked away to the car.
I was shocked. My heart stopped beating.
Both girls released shaky breaths.
“Holy fuck, he’s intimidating!” Christine exclaimed, her hand on her chest.
Mandy waved her hand in front of her face. “I swear for a moment there, I thought he was going to pull the door out of its hinges and rescue you. Jesus Christ, that’s one hot man.”
“Let’s go,” I muttered, unwilling to waste even a second more.
Christine started the engine and put the car in motion. We drove out of the lot and I glanced behind to see that he was following us. “Damn, is that your car, Sienna?” She turned to me, her face filled with wonder. “What does your father do for a living?”
“He’s a Sicilian Mafia don.”
She cracked up laughing. “Get out of here.”
How I wished that it were a joke.
“Do you know if Angelo is an LA native?” Christine asked.
“No idea, but judging by his accent, I don’t think so,” I replied.
“Buckle up, girls. You never know. We might be on a bit of a car chase.”
“Don’t you dare,” Mandy said, her voice rising with alarm. “I have plans that don’t include getting whiplash.”
“Don’t worry. I’m a good driver,” Christine responded confidently as she glanced into the rearview mirror.
“What happened to our plan of going to the mall and losing him there?” Mandy whined.
Christine shook her head. “Well, now that I’ve seen his eyes up close, I don’t think that plan is going to work. He’s too sharp. So we’re going to—”
“Going to get into a car chase with the latest, high-performance Mercedes Benz?” Mandy cut in incredulously.
“Have some faith,” Christine said calmly as she drove us into the Freeway heading north towards Downtown. “My plan is a lot more diabolical than that.”
“I can’t wait to hear it,” Mandy said sarcastically.
“My plan is not to give any indication of taking one of the upcoming exits, but at the very last moment to swerve into it. It would be impossible for him to stop or change direction at the speed we’re doing and he would simply have to remain on the freeway and zoom past us.”
“Jesus, Christine. That’s one dangerous plan.”
I frowned. Mandy was right. It was a highly risky plan and I did not want to put my friends in any danger.
“How about this exit?” Christine asked.
Mandy shook her head. “No, there are too many cars on it. It’s way too dangerous. We need one that is somewhat free, and we also need him to speed up, otherwise he could swerve in time with us. Christine, step on it.”