Chapter 28

**| AURORA |**

The last thing I remember about the night was the self-effacing laugh of Marco and the kiss on my forehead before I fell asleep in his arms with no sense of time or place even when I roused up the next day. 

Were we at the club or the house? Nevermind.

I managed to pull myself off the bed and reach for the phone. As soon as the screen unlocked and came alive in my hands, I cursed. “Shit.” There were 31 voice messages, at least half a dozen missed calls, and a very angry best friend on the other end. 

I have almost forgotten that I had promised Sammy I would go out with her and now I was horribly late. Why the hell Marco didn’t wake me up?

And most importantly, where the hell was he?

But I had no time to speculate. Sprinting into the bathroom, I got my business done in record time. And thanks to my rash driving skills and lesser-known routes of Chicago, I somehow managed to pick her up by the skin of my teeth. But even that didn’t save me from all her pouts and eye-rolling taunts. But this was Sammy, after all. This was the woman who had no qualms accepting who I was, where I came from, or sacrificing the love of her life so she could see us together. 

“I can’t believe you were going to ditch me for sex!” She grumbled after touching up the red lips and dropped the lipstick bullet into her sling bag. 

“I overslept. I wasn’t going to ditch you.”

“Yeah, right.” Sam rolled her eyes. “So, how does it exactly work between you and Marco? I hope it’s nothing like those bad porn collections I stole for Dominic’s room when I was 14.”

I changed the gears, throwing her a dirty side-glance. “Dominic has a collection?”

“He is a man-whore, what do you think? But that’s not the point.”

“Can we not have this conversation, please?” I begged. 

“And let go of a chance to embarrass you?” Her laugh was infectious. “No way! Besides, I want to know all the kinky things I am missing out.”

“Sam...” 

“Stop.” She cut me off fiercely. “I am not a mind reader but I know what you are going to say, and I would rather you don’t. I am a firm believer of ‘sisters before misters’ but I am also a low-key snotty bitch who lives for dirty gossip. Are you getting my point?”

She also has a bipolar personality of a level-headed woman and brain-dead frat girl. I just did not know when and how she switched over to the other. 

“You don’t have to tell me that, woman.” 

Sammy retorted something and laughed, but I got entirely distracted to catch her words. Something caught my eye as I stomped the brakes, and the car screeched to a halt. In a flash, I drove back and turned around.

“What happened?” Sammy asked. 

“Is that Stef’s car?” I pointed at the steel-grey Aston Martin, one of the many gifts he acquired on his last birthday. 

“I think so.” Sammy squinted her eyes a little too disbelievingly. “But what the hell is he doing in Inglewood?”

“Beats me. Let’s find out.”

Unbuckling the seat belts, we jumped out of the car and scanned around the place. Quiet houses, deep alleys, dumpsters, and nothing else. Somehow it was not sitting well with me. 

And then, Stefan waltzed out of a corner in a navy blue hoodie and his favorite sneakers, utterly unmindful of our presence as he tucked something behind his pocket. Taking advantage of his lack of sight, I yanked back the hoodie and turned him around to face us.

“What the...!”

Before his defense was even up, I had his hand pinned. “What are you doing here?” I asked as Sammy poised to my left with her hands planted on her hips. 

“Nothing. I came here to visit a friend,” he blabbered. Jeez... couldn’t he come up with a better lie? For God’s sake, he was a Romano. 

I glanced around and caught the sight of a figure about fifty meters away. And within a second, the person dashed out into the alleys. I did not need to second guess. I know a junkie when I see one. 

“What are you both doing here?” Stefan countered, scowling at us as if he wasn’t just caught red-handed.

“That is definitely not your friend, idiot,” I drawled, dragging my eyes back to him. “What did he give you? Show me.”

“None of your business.” 

Sammy stepped forward at this point. “What’s going on? Stef, you are not getting mixed in bad business again?”

“Yeah, like you are angel, Sam,” he retorted. 

“Give it to me,” I deadpanned, extending my palm. 

“Fuck you.”

He turned around to yank the door as I heaved a sigh. “Well, in my defense, I tried nicely.”

I slammed the door shut, and before he could even turn, I had his arm pinned behind his back and frisked his pockets. And out came the thick and tightly sealed pack of smack. Not just any smack but the grade A cocaine distributed by us.

I held it up to his face. “Really?”

“I just bought it for a friend, Jesus Christ!” He cursed, twisting around to yank himself off my grasp, and managed to turn around. “Don’t act like you all have never seen it before.” 

“Yeah, your friend Jesus Christ will definitely land up in heaven if snorts an amount like this,” I sneered and weighed the bloody thing on my palm. “And this is at least five grand street value,” I told Sammy.

“How did you get the cash?” she jumped in. “I swear to God, if you have stolen it from Viktor or Paps, they will skin you alive.” 

Five grand for a Romano was a loose change, but Alessandro Romano has a rule. Neither of his sons or daughter was allowed hard cash, save aside for Viktor, and all of their bills were credited to tap on the expenses. The man didn’t mind if Sammy or Stefan splurged on nine-hundred dollars Gucci or Jimmy Choo, as long as he knew where they spent it. I never understood the absurdity of the rule until now.

“Are you both done interrogating me?” He frowned, growing visibly irritated by the second. “I told you it is for a friend’s party, ok? One snort ain’t gonna kill anyone!” 

“Stef, you know the rules,” Sammy hissed. “We are not allowed to don’t indulge in this stuff.”

Another one of Alessandro Romano’s grand rules. Just like an alcoholic can’t be a bartender, you can’t snort powder when your family is the biggest distributor in Chicago. 

“Okay, okay! I heard you, jeez.” He raised his palms up in a false gesture of surrender. “Stop nagging me now. And get out of my way!”

Stefan glared before trying to push me out of his way. But he clearly forgot that his big brother was paying me enough to deal with scumbags ten times smarter, stronger, and faster than him. 

This time, I tackled him down, locked his hands entirely, and snarled in his ear. “Here’s the thing, punkass. I work for your brother, and not you. Try shoving me again, and I will break your hands. But before that I will gladly tell your brother I caught you with a fat stash of cocaine. Do you wanna bet on it?”

“Got it,” he squeaked. “It was a mistake, and won’t happen again. Okay?”

Without another word, I let him go and watched as the car sped out in front of our eyes. “This is not good,” I muttered, shaking my head. “Not good at all. You have to tell Viktor.”

There was no way he would stop because Stefan would just find another way to make this work for him. 

“What? No, I am not selling him out,” Sammy said incredulously. “Aurora, he won’t do it again. I know my brother.”

Are you kidding me? 

“You seriously believe him?”

“Look, he just got mixed up with bad company,” Sammy tried to soothe. “We all do. If it’s needed, I will have a talk with him.” 

I stared at her for a long second and then nodded. “Okay, sure.” 

“C’mon, let’s go.” 

I looked down at my hands, holding the packet and slowly shook my head. Damn it, this kid is trouble. 

*****

**| MARCO |**

“Again! Guard up!” 

Her fists were fast, but her eyes were unfocused. Even though Aurora knew a hundred good moves, she was irrational with every single motion, and that pissed me off. Every day I pushed her, and she pushed back harder. I enjoyed that because I prided on skills. But if she thought she could give me this half-assed effort, she has no idea what was coming for her. 

“What are you doing?” I yelled, slapping her shoulder. 

“Sorry.” Her head shook, struggling to focus better. “Let’s go again.” 

The following punches that ensued were the same. Solid but ridiculous timing. 

Frowning, I sideswiped her legs and sent her flat on the ground. And before she could roll away, I was already on top of her. Not in a way either one of us would like. I yanked off the gloves and instantly closed around her throat. “What the hell is wrong with you today?”

Unlike any other day when she would try and fight back, Aurora breathed heavily and closed her eyes. “Can we take a five, please?”

Nodding, I got off her and sat down on the floor next to her. “What’s going on? You look like your mind is somewhere else.” 

Aurora didn’t reply for a long time, only nodding her head as she took off the gloves and then untied her ponytail, letting the curtain of dark brown locks sit over her shoulders. 

Damn it, she looked beautiful. Not in a delicate way with fluttering lashes, but in a wild manner with flushed skin and tangled locks. 

“Sammy and I were coming back when we saw Stef’s car parked near the Inglewood neighbourhood,” she spoke up, slowly catching her breath. 

“Yeah so?”

Then letting out a heavy sigh, her penetrating gaze lifted to mine. “He was out scoring smack, Marco.” Her voice was soft, almost like a dew of regret. “When I frisked it out of him, he said it was for a friend’s party. On top of that, Sammy actually bought his lie.” 

I would be honest; the news was surprising but not shocking. “I am not defending him, but guys of his age sometimes indulge in stuff like that.”

“Have you ever done it?”

“Yes. Once,” I admitted with a soft smirk, watching her eyes widen. “But when Ralph found out, my ass was toast. Safe to say, I have never touched that shit again for consumption.”

Aurora rolled her eyes and pushed her hair away from her face. “Surely, you didn’t buy smack worth five grand. I saw the quantity, Marco and I have seen enough druggies to know that it was not his first time. And that quality of smack is ours, by the way. Stef is smart enough to use a lackey peddler to purchase it, which means, we would never be able to trace the main buyer. So much detailing for a first timer?” 

I hated to admit that I did not like the signs too. Besides, I trust her judgment. If Aurora was worried, it was concerning. 

“You want me to talk to Viktor?” I offered.

Indecision flitted across her features. “I do, but I don’t want to jump the gun right away. Can you have any of your men tail him? I just want to make sure that he is not digging a hole far deeper than we can pull him out.”

Scratching my jaw, I acquiesced thoughtfully. “I can do that.”

“Thanks.”

“Good, it’s settled then.” Rising onto my feet, I offered my hand and pulled her up. “Now that your mind is clear, you better give me some good hits. Or, you will be the one digging the hole for yourself,” I warned.

“Ugh. I think I like you better when you spank me,” Aurora groaned, picking up her gloves.

Grinning, I started to put on mine and then smacked her ass. “I like it better, too.” 

******

**The most awaited updated so far! Nothing gives me greater joy than to write about this couple. Marco and Aurora is everything. ❤️ Their story is as beautiful as haunting and full of angst. Enjoy the ride and don’t forget to let me know your thoughts about the chapter! 

Love and hugs. XOXO **