The Maid: Mafia Romance (Series)

Calling for Attention

There was an air of mystery and anticipation at the dining table that morning. I could sense it because the guys were eyeing me weirdly as they were sipping their coffee. Under their little pretense of chitchatting about nonsensical things, they were brimming with energy. But the one who was flouncing around with excess energy to spare was Giovanni. The reason was simple. He’d literally sucked out all my energy from last night and this morning. All under the guise of morning exercise. I was so exhausted right now; I didn’t think I could perform well on my exam today.

Three times, we did it. Three times!

What else must I do as lover to the mafia boss?

Cooking, cleaning, making coffee, I was an expert in these fields when I was his maid, but this…

Damn! What had my life turned into?

Just a few days ago, I was a virgin. I didn’t even know what a kiss was, let alone experienced one. Now, not only was I kissed and grabbed in inappropriate places, but I also was thoroughly made love to by the mafia boss, almost every morning and night. How long can my strength prevail?

“Haha. Looks like Jenny and Boss seem to be getting along fine.” I sent Bobby the evil eye for laughing at me just because Giovanni had me sticking to his side like a freaking ham sandwich.

“I have an announcement to make.” Giovanni’s baritone boomed across the dining hall, silencing us all.

All four pairs of eyes were immediately on him.

No. They were actually on me.

I grew flustered and shrank back behind Giovanni.

I’d never really liked being the center of attention, and so, while Giovanni was busy announcing whatever announcement he was about to make, I took the liberty to flee from the scene.

But Giovanni and me, we were like magnets. The more I pulled back, the more he pushed into me. And that was essentially what happened. When he sensed me pulling back, he pushed forward, and I ended up colliding into him. In the end, I lay flat on his lap.Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

The guys laughed.

And I just completed the perfect act of a fool.

How embarrassing!

“Boss, what the hell. Let me off. Let me off.” I fumbled, trying to get off him. But I was literally caught. Hook, line, and sinker.

“Ah-hm! Now for my announcement.” Giovanni cleared his throat, completely ignoring my request and instead, grabbing me and repositioning my body until I was sitting on his lap, like his perfect little lover. “From now on, Jay is my lover. You louts can’t demand her to do anything, and especially chores. Nor can you touch her. You got that? If I see any one of you so much as touch a single strand of her hair, you’ll be dead meat.”

I gulped back my fear. This wasn’t some form of announcement. This was more like a death threat to the guys.

But the guys seemed to take it in full stride. They laughed and chuckled at each other, congratulating their boss.

“About time, Boss,” Finnie said.

“I knew something was up when Boss went mental the other day when Jenny disappeared,” Jonny added.

I switched my attention to Giovanni. “Did you go mental when I disappeared?”

Slap! Giovanni gave his love to Jonny with a slap on his head.

“Sorry, Boss. Shouldn’t have said that,” Jonny muttered and went back to his breakfast.

“Damned right, you shouldn’t have.” Turning back to me, he said, “I didn’t go mental. Just pissed that my coffee machine ran off.”

“So, now I’m your coffee machine again.” I watched him through shrewd eyes. I loved seeing his pissed-off face, because I knew in this little fight between us, I was winning.

“You sure know how to talk back, Jay. Let’s make that mouth of yours do something useful.” He pinched my chin and inched forward.

“You’re right, Boss. Here, have some toast.” And with that, I jammed the toast in his mouth before he could do anything more embarrassing in front of the guys.

Giovanni’s eyes lit bright with black fire. I knew he’d have his revenge with me tonight for disobeying him. But at least I could have my fun with him now. No way was I presenting this mouth to him so he could chew it off again. This morning’s kiss had left my mouth all swollen.

“Great. Jenny’s been upgraded from maid to lover. Boss, when are we going to get upgraded, too?” Bobby asked.

“Enough, you numbnuts,” Giovanni barked at his underlings. “Now, get moving. Time’s ticking. Go make me some money.”

The men scrambled out of their seats and out the door. This alerted me to my own problem, too.

It was almost nine a. m. My exam started at eleven a. m. I had to get my butt moving or else I’d be late for it. And who would be to blame but me. I might even have to repeat a year if this kept going.

“That’s a good point, Boss. Well, then, I have to go now. Or else I’ll be late.” I scrambled off his lap.

He caught my hand before I trotted off, held it, and led me outside to his sports car. When I gave him a querying look, he said, “You’ll be late if you take the bike. I’ll give you a lift.”

“Oh, how kind,” I said, getting into the car. He followed suit. “But only up to the bus stop. Your car is too flashy. I don’t want to bring attention to myself.”

“Why don’t you like attention, Jay?”

“It’s not that I don’t like attention, it’s just that I don’t like that kind of attention. You know, the kind when all eyes are on you because you have materialistic stuff. Then everyone wants to be your friend. That’s all fake. It’s not real. I don’t want that kind of attention.”

“You’re my lover now, Jay. You’ve got to get used to it. That’s the privilege of being rich. It brings that kind of attention.”

“Like I said before, I don’t want that kind of attention.” I emphasized my point again. “I want to ride my bike to school like before, do all the normal things like before. Just because I’m your lover, it doesn’t change anything. Just because you’re rich, it still doesn’t change anything. I’m still me. I’m just grateful that I have a roof over my head and food to feed my belly. Living every day like this, getting to smell fresh air like this, it’s enough for me.”

Giovanni scrutinized my every word. “So, you are saying that you’re the kind of girl who doesn’t seek attention, who doesn’t thirst for money?”

“Well, it’s not like I don’t seek attention and I don’t thirst for money. Money is just a monetary value, isn’t it? If I have enough, I’m happy. I don’t need truckloads. There are other people in this world who need it more than I do. For me, I’m happy with just having enough.”

Giovanni leaned forward and cupped my face. With slow precision, he caressed my cheek and spoke. “I have a lover who doesn’t seek attention, nor does she thirst for money. Here’s a question I’d like an answer to, Jay. If you are none of those things, then what do you want? What kind of attention do you seek?”

“You. I want you and your attention.”

Giovanni was taken aback by the simplicity of my answer.

But it was true. Right now, nothing could make me happier than just having him by my side and basking in his attention.

“You want me and my attention?” he asked again, to confirm that this was what I wanted.

“Yes.” I nodded.

When he fully registered the meaning of my words, he grinned until he couldn’t contain the joy anymore, then he threw his head back and laughed.

“Oh, Jay. You sure have a way with words. Every day you grow more adorable. Do you know what I want to do to you right now?” he asked, his eyes intensely staring into mine.

“What?”

“I want to kiss you. I want to give myself to you. I want to give my full attention to you. Do you want that?”

“No. Not right now.” I jerked back to fasten my seat belt.

“Why the hell not?” He growled, disappointed that I had changed my mind. “Didn’t you say you want my attention?”

“I have a perfectly logical reason for my answer, Boss. So, don’t go pissy on me.”

“What is your damned logical reason then? Care to explain?”

“It’s because if you start to kiss me, then it’s going to go on for ages, and then I’ll be late for my exam. And I don’t want to be late for my exam. So, no. I don’t want your attention right now.”

“Fine. I’ll make sure you get enough attention tonight,” I heard him muttering under his breath. He turned the ignition, pressed the foot pedal, and the car zoomed to life.

Ten minutes later we were stuck in a traffic jam. I was counting down the minutes. If the car wasn’t moving soon, I’d be late for my exam. Luckily, it started moving again, and by the time we reached the bus stop, a block away from my exam venue, I was happy that we had plenty of time to spare.

“Thanks, Boss. See you at home.” I grabbed my things and was about to bolt out the car door when Giovanni called out.

“Jay, wait. You forgot something.”

I stopped in my tracks and turned back to him. “What did I forget?”

“This.” And Giovanni kissed me.

I was so dumbfounded; all I could do was sit there like a mannequin, with my backpack slung over my shoulder while he had his way with me.

Teeth against teeth. Tongue colliding with tongue. His fingers thrust into my hair, while his palm cradled the back of my head like a precious doll. Then he manipulated my head to angle our kiss even deeper.

Oh my Lord. This was my drug. I was literally sucked into this spellbinding kiss which Giovanni had bestowed upon me. I clung to him for dear life, because, my God, I knew I’d fall if I didn’t.

The kiss left me flushed and blushed, not to mention my lips were now all bruised.

“That’s what you forgot, Jay. I’ve given you my full attention. Now, get out of here. And make sure you pass that damned exam.” He pushed me out the door.

That damned brute. Kissing me then kicking me out the door, leaving me all agitated and flushed. Now how was I to concentrate on my exam today? But I was still happy, because when I called for attention, I got it.