Ugly Ronney: mafia romance [English]

Chapter 14-3

Peter was meticulously tying my pumps while I tried to stand.

"Why are you trying to teach me to walk in these shoes? You've been wasting your time with me for months."

Peter straightened up and briefly glanced at me. He made an evasive gesture before answering in a monotone voice, "As if I had a choice!"

I pursed my lips in annoyance. The poor man was forced to endure these sessions with as much joy as me. We were less than two weeks away from Thanksgiving, and both he and I had more pressing things to do. Unfortunately, the Khan daughters insisted on believing that I could, one day, walk on these stilts.

"Let's hurry before Mr. Khan sees us," said Peter.

He grabbed my hands to help me walk to the middle of the room. I felt as if my legs were going to give way under my weight because they were so arched. Peter cleared his throat.

"Our lord has been in a terrible mood since this morning. I've never seen him so..."

Peter searched for a word to describe Yeraz's behavior.

"Despicable?" I finally said.

"You're the one who said it. I would have never dared."

I smiled at Peter, who could hardly hide his smile. He let go of my hands and moved away to observe me.

Camilia's assistant had known Yeraz all his life. He could certainly answer my questions. I had spent all of Sunday rewinding the evening before without understanding anything about his sudden change of behavior.

I gathered all my courage and asked in a falsely detached voice, "Has Yeraz ever had a long-term affair or relationship with a woman?" With a raised eyebrow, Peter invited me to continue. I stammered, "Maybe he wouldn't be so... If..."

"No!" said Peter. "Mr. Khan is a ladies' man, but none of them have won his heart. He's a sworn bachelor who refuses any serious relationship in his life." He paused for a moment before adding with a sorry look, "I don't want to hurt your feelings, but Mr. Khan likes beautiful women. I think you can try being a good friend."

"Yes, a good friend."

My words were only a slight whisper. There was a sense of absolute despair coming from me. Peter, stunned, suddenly stopped tilting his head one way and the other and froze.

"No, Ronney! You can't, you mustn't fall in love with him. He will destroy you."

"He destroyed me the day he laid eyes on me."

The breath of my words hung in the air. For the first time, I saw in his little brown eyes compassion for me, mixed with a terrible sadness.

"Camilia must not find out about your feelings for Mr. Khan. You have two months left. Don't ruin everything, especially for him. Yeraz knows only violence, the taste of blood, darkness. He's close to death and the devil, but he's afraid to love a woman. It would make him vulnerable, and in this environment, that's unforgivable."

I gave him a smug smile to hide my despair. Peter stifled a sigh before shaking his head.

"Okay, we still have a lot of work to do! Follow the straight line to the window. Try not to fall, because I assure you, Ronney, it will be even worse afterward. I'm not kidding."

I nodded, then turned around and held my head upright as Peter had taught me.