My Mafia Babysitter

twenty-four

"So, there's a girl?" I questioned, scanning over Liam as he smiled down at his phone. Not even bothering to glance back at me, he shoved his phone in his pocket and avoided my question. "Oh, c'mon. You know about my secret love affair, am I not entitled to know yours?"

"No, you're not." He stared ahead at the large theater screen.

"Ah, but there is a love affair!" I giggled, clapping my hands together excitedly. Liam sighed heavily, running his fingers through his hair. Glancing around at the empty theater, he leaned in slightly to whisper. 

"There's a girl back home, yes, but she's been my best friend for years and I've kept my feelings to myself. She doesn't know anything about the business  or the family and I intend on keeping her out of it." He gave a slight shrug as if the entire situation was fine. I gaped at him, and despite his cool outward demeanor, I knew keeping this a secret bothered him. 

"She has no idea you like her?" I questioned softly, trying to get more information. 

"No idea," He nodded, "I've been in love with her since middle school, but even then, I knew it would never work out. I would never want to push her into this life, I mean, I'm a trained assassin and don't make an honest living, but here I am at twenty-five years old with millions in my bank account that I can't justify for having. It kills me to see her dating, to see her live her life thinking of me as her friend. But it is what it is."

"It doesn't have to be that way-" I tried to amend, but Liam sent me a look of warning and I deflated against the back of my seat. It had been over a month since I had reconnected with Niklaus over the phone and started 'publicly dating' Liam. We had gone to the aquarium, a retro-arcade, out for a winter walk in Central Park, coffee at a small cafe in The Village, and for a ferry ride up-state. All of our dates were highly publicized due to my father's laundered business as a big-time CEO and president of Maddox Construction. An outsider's perspective on my father was one of rags-to-riches, as my father came to the United States as an immigrant from Ireland at the tender age of seventeen. Finding the love of his life and starting a family, my father built Maddox Construction from the ground up, earning me the title of heiress to a large inheritance. What outsiders didn't know was that the company was actually built with dirty money laundered from my father's underground business of assassinations, drugs, illegal weapons, and so much more. I could understand why Liam didn't want his secret love to stay away from this life, you lived a lot longer if you lived mundanely. After the movie had finished, Liam linked arms with me and ushered me out of the theater. Our fathers waited just outside the doors, large smiles upon their faces. 

"How was the show?" My father was first to speak, kissing my forehead softly. 

"It was nice." I nodded, looking up at Liam in a show of adoration. Liam smiled down at me in his own act of feigned affection. 

"With a date as beautiful as mine, any movie is a great one." He chuckled softly and his father clapped him on the back happily. Liam helped me into the car and the ride back to my family home was a quiet one, however, my new boyfriend had promised me a phone call with Nik as soon as we got home and my stomach tied in knots of anticipation. As he helped me out of the car, Liam smoothly placed his cell phone in my hand and I slid it up the sleeve of my shirt. Excusing myself to my bedroom to freshen up for dinner, I quickly closed the door behind me and filtered through Liam's contacts until I reached Nik's. The number rang once before he accepted the call, his voice bleeding through the quiet air. 

"Malishka." He called softly, his rough voice serenading the pet-name he had assigned to me. 

"Hey," I replied breathlessly, biting my lip. It had been almost a week since our last phone call and it was nice to hear his voice again. "I miss you."