Indebted to the Mafia King
The Next Morning

Chloe

After Tony and I make love in the living room, my senses start to return to me slowly, and I suddenly feel embarrassed for my behavior. It occured to me that I acted like a desperate and horny teenager. Not having sex in a while did that to me, but even so, I wished I had controlled myself better.

However, when he offered for me to sleep with him afterward, in his bed, I didn't hesitate in agreeing. I grasped at the opportunity like it was a life saver. I didn't know what to expect from the next morning, so if I could have a little more time with Tony, I'd take it.

We didn't have sex again, even though I secretly wanted to, but having his arms around me while I drifted to sleep made me feel safer than ever before. His scent calmed me immensely, and his slow breathing, close to my ear, felt like a lullaby. The first rays of sunshine beam through the half-closed curtains of his bedroom early in the morning, and I stretch lazily, turning on my back. A heavy weight on my stomach makes me realize Tony's arm is still wrapped around me. I turn to look at him and his peaceful features, his lashes beautifully curved over his shut eyelids. He seems almost ethereal when he doesn't have the weight of the entire world on his shoulders.

A faded whining echoes through the closed door and I sit up in a jolt. Thankfully, that doesn't wake Tony up, only making him grunt and turn to the other side. When I hear Ellie's crying getting louder, I storm out of Tony's room, grabbing his shirt from the floor on the way out to cover myself, and getting to Ellie's room in less than ten seconds. She is standing in her crib, holding the bars with her little hands, her face stained with tears.

"Oh, no need to cry. Mom is here now," I say softly as I walk toward her and pick her up from the crib. "Good morning, baby." I give her a kiss on the cheek, taking in her baby smell, so sweet and soft it makes me melt instantly. She cries for another minute until I manage to calm her down with shushes and murmured songs.

"All right, so, mommy is going to dress you up for the day and then we're heading downstairs for breakfast, okay? What do you want to eat today?" I ask, putting her back in the crib and walking to her closet. I choose a yellow dress with little white dots-a gift from my mom when Ellie turned one, but that only now she is big enough to wear. "Banana? Or maybe some smashed eggs?" I suggest.

"Nana," she mumbles as an answer, a cute smile plastered on her face.

"Oh, you're saying 'nana' now?" I muse, surprised, my eyes widening at her. "That's a new word!" I squeak, excited.

I quickly dress her up and go to my room to change my clothes. Even though I'd love to wear Tony's shirt for the rest of the day, I need to look somewhat presentable in case someone from the Saints drops by. I pick a T-shirt and leggings, then head to the kitchen, sitting Ellie in her high chair and setting her plate of mashed banana.

When I start preparing pancakes for me and Tony, the doorbell rings. Before I have the chance to get to the door, I hear the password being typed and a second later, my mom's voice yells from the doorway. "Can I come in?"

"Haven't you already?" I mumble to myself before answering her. "We're in the kitchen, Mom."

As soon as she shows up, I narrow my eyes at her. "This isn't your house. You shouldn't barge in like that," I scold, although gently.

It's not like Tony would be walking around the house naked or anything, with me and Ellie living here, but images from last night flood back to my brain and I fight the blush creeping up my cheeks. If my mother walked in on us like that...I'd die of embarrassment.

I have no idea if having sex again with Tony is even a possibility, but my mom needs to have some boundaries.

She tosses her arms up in surrender, widening her eyes at me and looking anything but regretful. "Sorry. Bad habit, I know. I was just worried about you." Then she scans me up and down, setting her hands on her hips. "You look well," she points out in a disapproving tone. "You didn't pretend to be sick just so I couldn't throw my party, did you?"

"Wasn't it supposed to be my party? And no, Mother, I did not. I wasn't feeling okay yesterday," I answer, rolling my eyes and turning my attention back to my pancakes, which almost burned because of her.

She clears her throat, walking toward Ellie and swiping her thumb over her chin to clean off the banana. When she gets to the chair beside Ellie, Tony barges into the kitchen, fully dressed for the day in his black suit and phone pressed to his ear. His face is stoic, but there is a slight crease between his brows that sets me on edge.

He is listening to whoever is talking on the other end while lowering to give Ellie a kiss on the forehead, and another on my cheek. The touch is brief, yet it leaves my skin tingling and asking for more. Tony nods at my mother quickly, addressing her, and then he's off to whatever he has to do today. Or whatever problem he is dealing with on the phone.

The door slamming behind him leaves a trail of quietness, my mother's shocked expression evaluating me.

"What the hell was that about?" she finally asks after a whole minute in utter silence, her brows raised so high they almost disappear under her bangs.

"What?" I play dumb. I don't want to tell her what happened between Tony and me, but knowing her, she already knows something is up.

"Don't take me for an idiot, Chloe. What was that about?" she insists, not taking her eyes off me, gesturing to the door Tony just walked through.

I sigh, turning off the heat and leaning back on the kitchen sink.

"Tony knows," I tell her bluntly.

She pales. "What do you mean he knows?"

"He knows about Ellie," I clarify.

"I thought we were going to keep it a secret, even after the wedding," she argues, her voice weak. I don't blame her. I felt the same fear yesterday when he told me he had figured it all out.

"Well, apparently he found this picture of his mom when she was Ellie's age, and they look exactly the same," I explain calmly. "I couldn't deny the obvious."

"Shit," Mom hisses under her breath. Thankfully, Ellie is too entertained making a mess with her food that I'm not as bothered as I'd be if she was paying attention to us and my mom cursed beside her. "Okay, well... You clearly have things to work out, so I'll take Ellie to spend the day with me."

"Tony just left," I tell her, even though she saw it herself. "I have no idea if he will be back before midnight."

She shrugs, getting to her feet. "I am sure he will. I'll prepare her bag while she finishes eating. And you go and get yourself more presentable. You're the queen of the Saints now. Please..."

Mom is out of the kitchen before I can think of a retort. It wouldn't be her if she didn't scold my appearance. I am at home, for Christ's sake. I don't need to be uncomfortable in a Chanel suit like she always is when there is no one around to see

it.

Half an hour later, I'm kissing Ellie goodbye and preparing to officially start my day. The house is as neat as it can be, and I don't see much to do other than put some of Ellie's clothes in the washing machine and take care of the breakfast dishes. After I'm done with those, I grab a book I'm taking longer than I'd like to admit to finish and spread myself on the couch.

Tony is not home yet, and like I told Mom, I don't think he will be back any time soon. To be honest, I'm dreading the moment he will return. Sure, he gave me a kiss before going out, but we didn't get to really talk about his discovery of being Ellie's father.

And now, we have another subject to add to our conversation-the sex last night. What is he going to say about it? Is he going to say anything at all? What if he thinks that was a mistake? He made sure to let me know last night that I was never considered a mistake to him before, but still... Everything between us is so confusing that I don't know what to think.

A knock on the front door pulls me from my reverie. I frown, wondering why someone would knock instead of ringing the doorbell. I scolded my mom about barging into the house, but I don't think she learned that quickly. She would also ring the doorbell like she did the first time, not knock in the old fashioned way.

What if this is another one of Tony's mistresses? A voice in my head questions.

I am definitely not in the mood to face another freak this morning. One time was more than enough for me. I am not someone who gets physical-in fact, I'm usually the opposite-but that woman got on my nerves in a way no one has ever managed to do.

If there's another one of her outside, I don't know what I'll do.

When the knocking gets insistent, I stand from the couch, and slowly and cautiously open the door, afraid to replace out who is on the other side.

My jaw drops to the floor as I stare at the last person I expected to see on my doorstep this morning.

"Hello, Chloe."