Chapter 2
Siena
“W here the fuck do you think you’re going, Siena?” my dad screamed as I was walking toward the door. “You have shit to do around here, and you haven’t made my breakfast.”
Visibly shaking, I turned around to face him. “I’m sorry, Dad. I have school, and I can’t miss today because of a final in Calculus.” He was drunk, and I cringed internally at what I knew his reaction would be.
“Oh, look at you. Miss high and mighty, going to school to take your Calculus test. You think you’re better than me, don’t you, Siena? That you’re smarter. Well, I have news for you, you little whore. You’re not.”
Even though I was half expecting it, his fist caught me off guard and I flew back against the door, crying out as the knob dug into my spine. Fighting the tears that filled my eyes, I took a deep breath and righted myself. “No, I don’t think I’m better than you. I’m just trying to finish school so I can get a better job and start helping out more around here.” That was a lie, but there was no way I was going to tell him I was saving up to get the hell out of Murphy and put as much distance between him and me as possible.
As my cheek throbbed, I wanted nothing more than to reach up and rub it, but I resisted. He wasn’t done with his rant, and I knew from experience that any sign of weakness would only make it worse. Standing in front of me silently, he glared at me as he waited for me to say something else.
“You’re a worthless piece of shit!” he shouted after a minute, closing the distance between us. “You’ll never be good for anything but cooking and cleaning like the pathetic little whore you are.” He moved, and though I tried so hard not to, I flinched. “No one wants to hire a murderer. You can do as well as you want in school, but this whole town knows that you killed your mother, and they don’t want anything to do with you.”
Tears streamed uninvited down my cheeks at his words. I never knew my mother, but that didn’t stop me from wanting to...or missing her. I would never get that chance, though, because he was right. I may not have killed her with my own two hands, but she died giving birth to me. My father never forgave me for that, and took it out on me every chance he got.
I pressed myself harder against the door and closed my eyes, waiting for the next blow—the one that would knock me out cold. It always came; it was only a matter of time.
It had been three weeks since my first dance at Cherries, and I’d managed to avoid Ryan for the most part. When I’d walked back inside that first day, I had every intention of telling Carlo the job wasn’t the right fit for me and walking away. I had thrown my clothes on over the outfit I was wearing, grabbed my purse, and then went to put my tips in my wallet.
When I realized I’d made over four hundred dollars, plus the grand that Carlo had promised me for even coming in, I started to rethink things. Being on the run, moving from city to city every few months, was draining both physically and financially. I had been able to do things like waitressing, but the pay was minimal and the tips were shit. An opportunity to save up some money wasn’t something that should be taken lightly, and I had decided that I couldn’t pass it up. I justified it by telling myself that it shouldn’t be too hard to avoid Ryan, even if he was the manager of the club. The last thing I needed or wanted in my life was a man like my sperm donor.
I had just come from the stage and was making my way to the dressing room when Tony approached me. Carlo had introduced him as Antonio, but apparently he was the only one who called him that. Tony had been watching me every chance he got, and had asked me out a few times. The way he looked at me still made my skin crawl, but I did my best to ignore it.
“Hey there, sexy. Are you ready to let me take you out on that date yet?” he asked for what seemed like the hundredth time.
I tried to hide my uneasiness with a laugh as I playfully swatted at his chest. “Come on, Tony. I told you before that I can’t date you. You’re the boss’ son, and doing so could potentially cause a lot of problems.”
He stepped closer to me, pinning me to the wall with his hips. “I’ll be a perfect gentleman, Trixie. Besides, I already talked to my dad about it. He said as long as it doesn’t affect how you dance or the money you bring into the club, he’s fine with it.” I had to fight hard not to flinch when he reached up and tucked a sweaty strand of hair behind my ear. “Please? Just one date, and then if you don’t want to go out with me anymore, I promise I’ll leave you alone.”
“One date?” I asked, looking at him skeptically. “And then you won’t ask me out again?”
“Just one date,” he confirmed. “And if we don’t hit it off, that’s it.”
With a heavy sigh, I reluctantly agreed. “One date. But that’s it!”
He smiled widely. “You won’t regret it. I’ll pick you up tomorrow night at eight,” he said before turning to walk away.
“Tony!” I called after him. When he turned around, I continued. “I can’t do it tomorrow. I work until midnight.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll let Ryan know you’ll be with me. It’s all good, trust me. See you tomorrow, sexy.” Without giving me a chance to respond, he turned around again and sprinted down the hall into the back room of the club.
I changed quickly, grabbed my stuff, and was making my way out the back when I heard shouting coming from Ryan’s office. Stopping just outside the closed door, I listened for a moment, shocked when I realized that Ryan and Tony were having an argument.
“What makes you think you can walk in here and inform me that one of my dancers won’t be in tomorrow night because she’s going out with you? That’s bullshit, Tony, and you fucking know it! Wait until your father hears about this!”
“You’re a dumb motherfucker, Ryan. Face it, Trixie wants me, not you. You said it yourself, she’s been avoiding you ever since her first day here. And my father already knows. He gave me his blessing, which means she’s off limits to you, brother . She’s fucking mine!”
That bastard had another thing coming if he thought he could claim me like that. Without waiting to hear the end of the conversation, I quickly made my way into the alley and pulled out my smokes.
I found an old milk crate on the side of the dumpster and took a seat, knowing I wouldn’t be seen. I didn’t want to talk to anyone, and I didn’t want to be bothered. As I took a deep drag of my cigarette, I heard the back door open and then some girls started to talk. I wasn’t positive, but it sounded like that blonde bimbo, Barbie, and her skanky friend, Bambi.
“Can you believe Tony? What the hell does he see in that mouse anyway? I mean, what does she have that I don’t?” bimbo one whined.
Bimbo two laughed. “Nothing, hun. And at least you have bragging rights. As far as I know, Trixie hasn’t sucked his cock or fucked him. God, she doesn’t even do lap dances from what Libby said. All she does is strut around that pole like she owns the place.”
“True,” the first one laughed. “What a fucking bitch. That’s okay. Tony will take what he wants from her and then come crawling back to me. He does every time. And one way or another, I’ll worm my way into that family. I’ve always wanted to be a mob princess.”
At her words, my breath stuck in my throat. Mob princess? Did that mean that the Valentis were a mob family? As the thoughts swam through my head about a million miles a minute, it all started to make sense. The bodyguards...the men in suits...Ryan beating up that guy in the alley my first day here.
I was fucked and I knew it. If I tried to tell Tony that I wasn’t interested in dating him now, he would know something was up and would start asking questions. Hell, if I told him I changed my mind, he was likely to shoot me right on the spot. At least, that’s what my mind kept screaming at me.
I stayed tucked behind the dumpster for another ten minutes while I waited for the blonde bimbos to go back inside. When they did, I stood on shaky legs and accepted my fate. Until I could afford to get out of Chicago, maybe even out of the country, I was stuck. A person didn’t say no to a mob prince and live to tell about it.