I watch her bite into the sandwich, and she looks at me, surprised. After she swallows, she beams at me. “This is delicious.”
“I’m glad you like it.” We get comfortable, and around eating my sandwich, I ask, “So tell me about your studies and what you do for fun.”
Kira doesn’t miss a beat. She swallows the bite in her mouth. “My father picked my degree. He wants me to be an accountant. I would have preferred to study to be a chef. I am very food motivated.”
“I can tell,” I chuckle, passing her a napkin.
“As for what I do for fun, it’s mostly the usual things. Get my nails and hair done, cook and bake, eat out…things like that. I have a rigid schedule, so I try to use my time as best I can.”
I nod, and she inclines her head to the side. “What about you?”
“Studying business economics because my father wants me to take over the family business,” I say offhandedly, as I don’t want to mention we’re a mob family. She can find out later. “For fun, I like to party with my frat brothers, but honestly, I like quiet activities like reading, stargazing, and eating out.”
“We have something in common then,” she grins as she finishes her sandwich and reaches for her drink. She sips it and then holds her hand out. “Hand over the brownie. Let’s see if it’s any good.”
“It’s great, but it is store-bought.” The admission makes me blush slightly. “I’m afraid you’d have to teach me how to bake actual brownies.”
“They’re easy, but I like brownies with Oreos in the middle. And they mustn’t be dry. I hate dry brownies. They must be gooey.”
I chuckle. “I’d definitely eat those.”
She bites into the brownie and nods, pursing her lips. “Yeah, it’s not bad.”
I grin and bite into my own. “Not bad at all.”
We talk idly about our professors and where our favorite places off campus are to eat. She mentions a bistro on Fifth Avenue. It sounds familiar, but I can’t quite place it. For some odd reason, it seems important to me that I know what this place is.
Once the food and drinks are done, she flips her hair over her should and gazes at me.
“So,” I say, “is there a chance for a second date?”
She shakes her head, and I panic slightly, but a wry smile plays over her lips. “Maybe, I’ll have to think about it. You did a good job today.”
She gets to her feet, and I get up quickly too.
“Thank you for lunch,” she says. She leans up and kisses my cheek before she turns and leaves the gardens.
I can’t stop smiling to myself.
Present Day
I glance up as Lyle walks in, he looks worried, and that’s a problem.
“What is it?” I ask, pushing my plate aside. Her plate is still there, on the opposite side of the table. So far away.
“Sorvinos have struck our operation near East New York,” he says hurriedly. “They let our people go but dumped all our cocaine into the Hudson. They left a message with one of the guards that if we don’t return Kira, they will hit all our operations.”
I stand and brush off imaginary crumbs from my shirt. “Then we’ll just have to send a message of our own.”
Chapter 13 - Kira
I’m fucking starving.
I can walk better now, it is only a dull ache, and the painkillers help a lot. I go to the door and bang on it, shouting, “Hey! I haven’t had food the whole day, assholes!”
The door unlocks, and I step back to see the guard, whom Miguel called Jarred, glaring at me. “You’re not washed and dressed to eat with Don Rossi, so you don’t get food. The next meal is at dinnertime. If you’re dressed and ready, you can eat.”
“I fucking won’t,” I snap at him. I’m not playing Miguel’s little game.