Married to the Mafia Boss

Sofia

I feel like I’ve won a battle in the greater scheme of things but not the war. I still have to answer to Dominic, which isn’t ideal, but I’ll let it go for now. I’m getting the job, and I am getting into the university I want to get into.

As much as I hate to admit it, it was a stupid move to update with my exact address. I basically lit a homing beacon on my location and said, ‘please come kidnap me’.

I won’t ever tell Dominic he was right because I know he will laud that over me for all the time I’m with him, but I will do as he says and run things past him, for now.

We’ve reached a level of civility with each other that makes a living on the estate a touch less awkward and tense. We greet each other but don’t speak much. Sometimes I cook for him if he’s home for lunch, but he is seldom back for dinner, so I just put a plate for him in the oven. It’s never there in the morning so he must enjoy my cooking.

It’s Friday, so I come downstairs to make bacon and eggs for breakfast. I’m not sure if I want fried tomato or not, but I’m distracted when I walk into the kitchen to find Dominic making pancakes.

“What’s this?” I ask curiously, pausing at the door.

Dominic glances at me. “I felt like pancakes.”

“I didn’t know you could cook,” I comment, sitting at the island where everything we could possibly put on pancakes is already set out.

He chuckles. “Who do you think fed me when I lived alone.”

“Honestly, your mom,” I smile. “Isn’t that generally how that works? Mom’s make sure the family is fed.”

He shrugs. “Sometimes I would go to my parents for dinner, but that’s for specific nostalgic meals that I want.”

He brings over two plates of pancakes, setting one in front of me and one next to me. “Dig in. I’ll pour the coffee.”

I’m not sure why he’s being so polite. I don’t trust it. He must have bad news for me, but my stomach rumbles, and I reach for the syrup, pouring on a thick layer over my pancakes.

He sits down, sets a coffee mug in front of me, and puts one by his plate, filled with a creamy cappuccino.

“Okay, what’s wrong? Why are you spoiling me?” I ask, looking at him thoughtfully.

“Relax,” he says with a cheeky grin, “I’m not spoiling you. I wanted something, and I just made some for you too. Enjoy it.”

I side-eye him but start to eat. These are the fluffiest pancakes I’ve ever eaten. They are divine. I moan softly as I take another bite, stuffing my face.

He chuckles. “Don’t choke, Princess. I don’t know CPR.”

I nod, grinning at him. I swallow. “These are the best pancakes I’ve ever had.”

“Thank you. It’s my sister’s recipe.” He starts to eat, and a comfortable silence falls upon us.

“Dominic,” I say, “Can I ask you something without you just saying no off the bat?”

He raises an eyebrow but doesn’t look at me. “What do you want?”

I fiddle with my fork. “I want a car to drive myself to work.”

He sighs, and I quickly say, “Please, don’t just shoot it down.”

“From a security point of view, it isn’t viable right now,” he looks at me, “But I promise as soon as it is, I’ll let you buy whatever car you want.”

“What if I learned to drive defensively?” I say quickly. “So I can get myself out of situations.”

“Come on, Princess, just use my guards and drivers for now, and I promise, I’ll get you a car as soon as Jose is overthrown. It’ll be a celebratory gift.” He gives me a small smile, and I nod.

“Fine,” I say quietly, going back to my food.ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

After I’ve eaten, I load the dishwasher with all the dishes and put it on, before going to curl up in the living room to watch a movie. Dominic walks in shortly after I sit down. “Get dressed in something comfy and sneakers.”

“Where are we going?” I ask curiously.

“It’s a surprise, nowhere fancy. Just get dressed in a tracksuit and sneakers.”

I get up and do as I’m told, coming back down quickly.

Dominic leads me to the car, and I get in. We drive for what feels like forever until we come to a national park. Dominic pulls over and climbs out of the car.

“Am I getting murdered?” I ask as he opens my door.

“Jump into the driver’s seat,” he says. I climb over the middle console and into the driver’s seat. He’s taller than me, so my legs just miss the pedals.

“Adjust the seat and buckle up,” he says, putting on his own seatbelt.

“What are we doing?” I ask, but I’m already kind of excited.

“We’re going to drive fast,” he says. “So we can get that out of your system.”

I grin at him. “Okay!” I put the car into drive and slowly push the gas pedal, so we crawl forward.

“Give it gas. We’re in the middle of the park. No one’s going to arrest you,” he chuckles.

I nod and give the car some more gas, speeding up. Soon the scenery is flying past me, and Dominic is telling me how and when to brake to take corners so we don’t roll the car. My blood is pumping, and my heart is beating so hard I think I can hear it outside my chest. I’m sure Dominic can.

Only when the tank gets to a quarter does Dominic say, “Okay, we need to turn around and go back now. Do you want to drive home?”

“Yes,” I say a little too excitedly.

“Go on then,” he says, resting back. “But keep to the speed limit now. You haven’t got your license and don’t want to get caught.”

I drive us back through the park. “You know, I think I am a pretty good driver,” I say, picking up speed again. “I don’t think we have anything to worry about… Squirrel!” I shriek and slam on the brakes, and we both get caught by our safety belts as the gray fluffball runs across the road.

I wait, knowing Dominic will completely lose his shit with me for being spooked by a damn squirrel.

A moment passes, and Dominic starts to laugh. I’ve heard his chuckle before, but his laugh is something surreal. It’s a hearty, full-belly laugh, and he slaps his knee. “Oh, Lord. You should have seen your face, Princess. This happened to Arianna once. She totally had the same look.”

I blush crimson. “Maybe you should drive home.”

He sighs. “Ah, maybe. Just for the future, if there’s wildlife on the road, just drive straight. Don’t swerve because they’ll move out the way, and you’ll probably hit them anyway.”

I nod and climb back into the passenger seat as he walks around the corner. “Shoo, that was seriously funny. I’m going to have to tell Arianna it’s a woman thing, to be afraid to drive over squirrels.”

“Hey,” I pout. “Squirrels are adorable and shouldn’t die just because people can’t drive.”

He chuckles. “Yup, Arianna said something along those lines too. Come on, Princess, let’s get you home.”