Chapter 13
Zo leaned back. He picked up the medical bills and dropped them into the heavy brass wastebasket beside his desk. Tessa’s head snapped upward. “What are you doing? I need those for my records.” “You don’t need them anymore.” Zo cut her off. “The balances are zero.” Tessa froze. “The collection agency has been paid in full. They will never contact you again.” The air left her lungs sharply. She stared at the wastebasket. Then at him. Her mind visibly rejected the information. “I—I don’t understand.” “Paid by who?” “Me.” Panic entered her eyes. Sharp and immediate. In her world, and especially in his, nothing was free. A $40,000 debt paid by a mafia boss did not feel like charity. It felt like a purchase. “I can’t pay you back.” She stepped away. “I don’t have that kind of money. I don’t have anything you want. Please, whatever you think I can do to work that off—” “Stop talking.” The command was firm, but the cruelty she expected was absent.
Zo stood and moved around the desk. He stopped several feet from her. “You don’t owe me money, Tessa. You don’t owe me favors.” He paused. “Consider it a signing bonus.” “A signing bonus?” “Your hours are changing.” Zo slipped his hands into his pockets. “You no longer work the general floor rotation. You’re assigned directly to the third floor. My private quarters. You clean my office, my suite, and the private gym.” Tessa stared. “The pay is tripled.” Her mouth opened. Nothing came out. She swayed slightly. Tripled pay. No debt. “There are new rules,” Zo continued. His voice became unyielding. “Rule 1: you eat lunch and dinner in the kitchen. Not in the bathroom. Not on the floor. On a chair, at the table.” Tessa remained silent. “Rule 2: you do not carry that green canvas bag anymore. If Mia needs food, Carmine will pack it for you in a proper cooler before you leave.” He watched her absorb each word. “And Rule 3.” Zo’s voice softened. “The most important one.” Tessa looked at him. “You don’t leave Mia alone in that apartment anymore. After school, she comes here.”
