Chapter 5: A Deal with the Devil

“Dude, let go,” I snapped once Gio and I were far enough from the others, yanking my wrist free from his grip. I had to make him let go, just in case I got the wrong idea and started thinking he was pulling me away for a date or something.

Shut up, Alli. You’re a guy right now, I scolded myself in my head.

“Can you shut your fucking mouth in front of them about what happened in your house and that damn hospital?” he finally barked.

I rolled my eyes, not even hiding the irritation. Oh, now he talks? A few minutes ago, he was basically mute, and now here he is, back with his sharp tongue and attitude like nothing happened.

I stared at him for a second, narrowing my eyes. I tried to calm myself down because God knows what might come out of my mouth if I let loose. I had to remind myself, I’m in his territory now, and that’s dangerous.

“What exactly do you need from me, huh? Why can’t you just say it straight to my face instead of making other people speak for you?” I started, already feeling the heat rising in my voice. “And another thing, weren’t we already together earlier at your house? Why didn’t you say anything then? Why go full dramatic and have me kidnapped? Do you even realize I have a job? Are you going to pay for the workday I just missed?”

I fired off those words without a single breath, watching his face darken with every sentence I threw. He looked more and more annoyed, but honestly? He’s lucky I held back. If I hadn’t, I could’ve gone on a full-blown rant and really pushed his buttons all day.

“Can you maybe talk and ask one question at a time?” he snapped, clearly irritated. “I can’t even follow what you’re trying to say.”

“Fine. First of all, what do you even want from me?”

“If you were actually listening earlier, you’d know I plan to make you my personal nurse,” he replied flatly, like he couldn’t care less.

I narrowed my eyes at him, clearly not satisfied. “And why exactly do you want that?”

He looked away, and I caught the slight bob of his Adam’s apple as he swallowed. “Because I want to. That’s it,” he muttered, still avoiding eye contact.

But then his gaze snapped back to mine, sharp and intense. “And you can’t do anything about it, even if you say no. Because a ‘no’ to what I want… means death.”

This time, his voice was cold, and his eyes burned into mine like he was more than ready to back that threat up with a knife to the gut.

I secretly rolled my eyes at his threat, honestly, who wouldn’t be scared when someone pulls the death card like that?

I couldn’t answer right away, still processing what he just said. Then he threw another bombshell, “If your job’s on your mind, consider yourself fired. My people already handled the paperwork to get you out. And your salary? I’ll pay you triple now, if you want.”

I didn’t know whether to feel angry because they actually resigned me without my consent or happy because my paycheck was about to triple.

But hey, I chose to be happy about the triple salary. This is money, after all. And if he could triple my current pay, maybe I could even trick him into giving me an even bigger raise once I start working for him.

Still riding the high of that juicy salary offer, I decided to push my luck a little further. “So… about my salary?” I asked, testing the waters, one eyebrow raised in challenge.

“Fifty thousand dollars per day. Even if you don’t do anything,” he replied coolly.

My eyes widened. My ears practically started clapping in joy. I was about to do a victory dance in my head, until he kept talking.

“And about your mom… since she’s confined in our hospital, your bill’s on us. Free, until our contract ends.”

Just like that, the smile on my face dropped. The joy drained out of me the moment he mentioned my mom.

“What else do you know about me?” I asked coldly, my voice suddenly serious. I saw him flinch just slightly, probably from the sharp change in my tone.

“For now… that’s all I know,” he said, holding my gaze like he was trying to dig something out of my soul.

“Okay!” I chirped suddenly, forcing the smile back on my lips. “You’re part of a mafia, right? The group’s name is Kards? Maybe you’re even the leader?”

His expression darkened this time. “How do you know that?”

“Well, last night when I was changing your clothes, I saw the tattoo on your back. A king’s crown with a ‘K’ under it. Same symbol I’ve seen in the news. They say to avoid you people. I don’t know why the government just warns us instead of doing something about you. Like, are you untouchable or something? What did you do to them?”

He just gave me a smirk and shook his head. “You’ll never know… unless you become one of us.”

“Oh really? That’s how it works? Deal! Count me in,” I said cheerfully. “I mean, gossip and money are basically walking up to me, why would I say no?”

Gio frowned, clearly weirded out by my reaction. And honestly? I couldn’t blame him. It was kind of strange to be grinning in the face of death like it was an old friend offering me a business opportunity.

But hey, can you really blame me? I need the money. Not for me, but for my mom.

And if playing nurse for a grumpy mafia boss is what it takes, then so be it.

Gio stepped away for a moment and returned holding a piece of paper. A contract.

I skimmed through it quickly, who reads every word, right?, yhen signed it with the biggest smile on my face.

Handing it back to him, I grinned. “Don’t forget, you owe me some juicy secrets. And my salary, non-negotiable. It can go higher, but never lower than fifty grand a day. We had a deal, remember?”

He nodded without a word, while I clapped my hands like a kid handed a golden ticket. I mean, come on, who wouldn’t be thrilled? Getting paid $50,000 a day for doing practically nothing? I just won the mafia lottery.

“Stop talking already. You’re giving me a headache,” he muttered, rubbing his temples with clear irritation.

“Be ready for tomorrow,” he added coldly. “I’ll give you the list of do’s and don’ts as a Kards member. Following the rules isn’t optional, it’s life or death. So don’t test me.”