Dead By Sundown

Chapter Twenty-three: Dinner with a view

Chapter Twenty-three

They arrived at the hotel in record time thanks to Nadia flooring it the whole way. There were very few times in her life she would be able to sit in the driver's seat of such a nice car and, much to Lorenzo's dismay, she wasn't about to pass up the opportunity to use it how it was intended.

The valet offered a hand to Nadia once they pulled up to the front of the building. Lorenzo exited the vehicle and walked to her side, arm extended for her to take, face stony and impassive, but the way his gaze kept shifting to her side told Nadia he was on edge.

There was something about standing next to Lorenzo, walking alongside such magnified power, that Nadia had never experienced before. Despite his clear apprehension—clear to her, anyway— Nadia settled beside him nicely. She held herself a little taller, felt a little more dangerous. Somehow, she knew that he felt the same.

Lorenzo's shoulders tensed considerably as they stepped out and faced the entrance to the restaurant.

Leaning into his side, Nadia whispered lowly, "Just say the word."

He smirked down at her, amusement flicking behind his eyes for an instant before his impassive mask fell back into place. "As much as I would love to see you start a fight in that dress, piccola," he murmured back, "I don't think Giovani would ever forgive me for letting you have all the fun."

"Shame," she shrugged, mischief glinting in her depthless eyes once more. "where is my favourite party pooper anyway?" She asked, scanning the room around, spotting the three other security dotted around the room, but not spotting Giovani anywhere.

He smirked down at her, subtly turning his head to the side to show her the tiny earpiece in his right ear.

"Poor thing," she cooed patronisingly, "doesn't even get a free meal out of the whole ordeal."

The pair were quickly directed to their table on the east side of the restaurant by a polite waiter. Nadia thanked him softly, taking in the room around her as they were led to their seats.

The space was wide open, the tables spread evenly throughout, topped with crisp white cloths and gold-rimmed fine china, centred with a single lit candle.

Their table was next to the glass wall that overlooked downtown Manhattan in all its glory. Nadia couldn't help the gentle smile that tugged her cheeks at the sight; the mafia man was certainly useful for getting a good seat if nothing else.

Lorenzo pulled out the seat closest to the window for Nadia as they arrived, glad to be there before their counterparts. She rolled her eyes at his chivalrous action but said nothing about it.

The Don's impassive features spaced out for a moment, most likely listening to Giovani before they creased into a look of amusement. "He sends his love."

Nadia scoffed, turning away from Leo to hide her grin. He definitely didn't send his love, if anything he would most likely be reminding Lorenzo the whole evening that he thinks it was a bad idea to take her.

Lorenzo leaned back in his seat beside her and began quietly relaying information to Giovani and the other men in the building. Unsurprisingly enough, Nadia quickly tuned him out, having already memorised the plan from the notes earlier.

She wasn't at all surprised to find out she was the only one not wearing an earpiece that evening. It didn't matter how much Lorenzo may have trusted her, there was no way in hell Gio would relay sensitive information to her, even if she was supposed to be security.

It didn't matter. She was there to look pretty and keep her mouth shut to aid a business deal, even if Leo claimed otherwise. Nadia knew her place.