Bought by The Mafia Boss

Chapter 1

Show no grief, I reminded myself before plopping down on Liliana's bed. My long chestnut hair fell against my back as she spun around from her desk at the noise and then squealed. Jumping up from the seat she ran over to me and crashed into my arms.

"OMG! Aedlin!" She said and I hugged her tightly back.

I chuckled softly, masking the gloom that was currently caressing my soul. "It's Christmas! You think I wouldn't come home for the holidays?" I answered. She shook her head causing blonde curls to whip me across the face.

"I'm just surprised is all! You've been so busy with the humanitarian projects, I figured it would be one of those 'say hi to the family over a phone call again' kind of holiday!" She grinned again and giggled.

"Not this time!" I fake smiled back at her, hoping she bought the cheer that spread across my rather large and luscious lips. After four long years of working to receive funding for my humanitarian project, the money suddenly fell through. After finishing only three sites of bringing the internet to children in remote locations, I was now jobless and the rest of those kids we never got to, weren't going to be able to receive an education.

At this point, I wasn't exactly in the mood to explain to her that this wasn't just a visit, but a permanent stay until I figured out what to do next. Her blue eyes flicked from my smile to my gaze and I prayed she wouldn't press farther, hoping that my grin reached past my dainty cheekbones. Luckily, a knock at her bedroom door frame pulled mine and Lily's attention away from the truth I was omitting and there stood her father.

"I don't mean to interrupt you two girls, but I just wanted to remind you that you promised to come with me tonight, Lily." Marcus said, his sky blue eyes that were identical to Liliana's studied her, waiting for a response. Lily was a beautiful girl, the natural blonde with blue eyes and hips that showed up by the eighth grade. She was tall too, legs for days and her bubbly personality caused her to always be the center of attention.

It had also been a surprise to me when she continued to be my best friend after I didn't go through puberty quite as quickly as she did. My curves didn't come until junior year of high school and I was quieter than she. Still was. Plus, I was shorter than her so while she became a woman and received all of the male attention, I picked up lifting. While she had gotten into makeup and shopping, I dove into sports and school work. But somehow, our friendship since childhood had lasted through those horrible years of awkward teenagehood and here we were.

She clapped her hands and then gasped, swiveling to face me. "Oh, you're just in time! Thank you for the reminder daddy!" Quickly standing up, she ran to her closet and threw it open as Marcus waved at me and then left the room.

"Just in time for what?" I asked as she pulled out a new outfit from her massive closet. She changed into tight, leather pants and a fitting white turtleneck sweater. Slipping black heels on she pulled out a new handbag and then closed the doors to look at me.

I suddenly felt underdressed in a pair of simple skinny jeans and a comfy pale blue sweatshirt, but the one thing that Lily had never done was make me feel less for being different than her. And tagging along all those years had taught me a little bit about getting dolled up, so when it really came down to it, I wasn't half bad at putting myself together. This wasn't one of those moments, as I was in no mood to look cute.

She motioned for me to stand up and I reluctantly pushed myself off of the bed. "We are going shopping and you can come to the gala with me tonight!" She shouted in glee. "You are looking so tan by the way which just makes your large green eyes pop against that delicate face of yours even more. And those gorgeous curves. Even that bulky sweatshirt of your's can't hide what your mama gave you!" I shook my head, unfazed by her boldness but feeling a little more upbeat from the kindness of my best friend.

"Why do we need to go shopping? Don't you already have a dress?" I asked her, silently begging her to let me sit back down. I had just traveled halfway across the world and was exhausted and hungry from the long flights. Plus, my layover had been short so I hadn't had time for much food. And dress shopping with Lily was, a lot.

"I already have tons of dresses, but seeing as you stand at like five foot three, we should go see if we can find a dress more suited to your height." She explained and her cheekbones lit up a rosy pink right before she whizzed out of the room, leaving zero room for protests.

Lily had been raised with money, a lot of it while I, on the other hand, had to pave my own way to even have the simplest of necessities. Her father had provided her with the finest of everything that she needed and wanted, which allowed her to live this life of luxury and never worrying about where her next meal would come from. Many times growing up, people would ask if I was jealous but I never had been. Lily and her father had treated me as if I had been another daughter of his, so it was sincerity and gratefulness that I felt, never jealousy.

My stomach grumbled, reminding me once again that I hadn't eaten since the airport as we left the lushly carpeted room and entered into a hallway with real wood floors. The entire Johnson mansion had real wood floors except the bedrooms. The bedrooms all had unique and very expensive carpet. Three maids cleaned the massive house, sweeping and dusting all day long.

"We will grab some food along the way because you sound hungry!" Lily said over her shoulder as we turned to the left and the grand staircase lay before us. A massive sparkling chandelier lit up the entranceway that the stairs spit out at. The ceiling was vaulted so high that I still didn't know how they kept the chandelier as clean as they did.

We descended the dark wooden stairs, her heels clicking against the floorboards and found ourselves on the landing. The entrance to this mansion stood before us, two thick wooden doors with massive brass handles. A butler stood waiting and pulled them open as Lily strutted through them.

"Thank you." I said as I passed underneath the giant doorway. The yard was just as impressive, the stone driveway rounded a huge oak tree that stood as a centerpiece. Twelve garage doors were to my right and Lily clicked the button to one; it barely made a sound as it opened to reveal a red lamborghini. How I ever ended up earning this girl's friendship still baffled me.

No matter how many times I came to her home, I was continually baffled by the enormity of it all. No matter how long I lived here, I was continually enthralled by its beauty. The one time my parents had joined her family for dinner they had barely been able to speak with the grandeur of it all. This brick house was absolutely gorgeous inside and out.

I slid inside the passenger seat of the Lambo, and pulled the door down before buckling myself into place; wondering one more time how I let myself continually get dragged into things by this best friend of mine. Lily put it into gear and we were passing through the archway onto the main road within a matter of seconds.