Book 1
Gia Salvatore does not like to feel tied down. Tired of answering to her controlling father, she ran away the night of her high school graduation and moved in with a secret older boyfriend, glad to cut ties with her toxic family.
But four...
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Oddly enough, Gia realized she didn't feel worried or anxious as she left Neighbor's Grocery. Instead, she held her head high walking through the sliding doors, the early afternoon sunshine hitting her face.
This was a blessing.
She didn't want to work at some run down grocery store all her life. This was perfect timing to usher in a completely new chapter of her life. A new family and a new career. She could try to find a job with medical benefits. Maybe even vacation days. And before she started showing.
Grateful to be back outside, she inhaled a deep breath of the fresh air, gathering her thoughts before pulling out her cell phone to dial Robert. If he had hit any traffic, it might not be too late for him to turn back for her. She had been inside for less than 30 minutes so Gia was surprised when his phone went straight to voicemail. She tried again, thinking he might be on the other line but yet again, his answering service picked up.
He hangs up and quickly texts him "Call me" before pulling up the web browser to check for the next bus.
Trey comes around the corner of the building, laughing with a young girl who had only just started cashiering at Neighbor's. Gia couldn't even recall her name.
"You're on time for once," Trey says, stopping his conversation and silently offering Gia the final drag of his cigarette.
The girl hesitates, taken aback by Trey's quick shift in attention but she shrugs him off and goes inside alone.
Gia resists the urge to take a drag from the cigarette in front of her face, thinking of her baby she refuses him.
"On time to get fired," she snarks.
"You're shitting me," he says finishing the cigarette and flicking it into the parking lot.
"No, and your next on his hit list... His words not mine," she elaborated.
"Fuck him ," Trey says throwing up both middle fingers towards the building. "He shorted me for overtime two paychecks in a row!... and cut my hours back for these summer hires," he said nodding his head angrily at the girl he had just been flirting with.
Gia laughs, looking back at her phone.
"Damnit," she curses. She looked up toward the highway where she had just missed the bus she needed.
"Need a ride," Trey wagered, following her line of vision.
He pulled his car keys from a ring around his belt and pressed an automatic start button on the dongle. A white mercedes benz sprung to life at the far end of the parking lot. It was always strategically parked away from cart corrals and purposefully took up two spaces. Gia had always assumed it belonged to Miles.
"Uhh..." Gia hesitated, wanting to accept the offer. "You're working."
She stared at the glistening vehicle, wondering how Trey was able to afford it. He must have had another job and just never mentioned it.
