I'm Nothing (The Family Book 2) Read Free Page B

just
pizza.
    There was a time she’d loved pizza, but now she
couldn’t stand it. The taste made her sick, and the scent made her hate it. She
kept on working because she knew her father would be proud of her.
    “Your turn?”
    “I work at the family casino, and sometimes as a
bouncer.”
    “At nineteen, that’s a lot of responsibility.” She was
afraid to ask about the rumors.
    “I grew up fast.”
    Licking her lips, she gasped as the waitress placed
their coffees and buns in front of them.
    “I don’t recall seeing you much around school,” he
said.
    She smiled. “I wasn’t exactly the kind of girl you
paid attention to.”
    “Kind of girl?”
    Zara wasn’t beautiful. She was plain. No one paid
attention to her. It was why guys like Tonio copied from her work without even
knowing her name. She didn’t mind. Zara had accepted that she wasn’t pretty.
    “You know, pretty. Startling to look at in a sexy kind
of way.”
    He took a sip of his coffee, while she bit into her
cinnamon bun. “You’ve got a very low opinion of me.”
    “I don’t know you. I just remember the girls you were
always with.”
    “Ah, the school sluts.”
    She choked on her bun and had to take a quick sip of
her own coffee to help swallow it down. “Wow, that’s what you call the girls
you sleep with?” She didn’t expect him to be charming, but that was just plain
rude.
    This was why she never tried to get to know the guys.
    Drinking her coffee, she wondered what the protocol
was to leave someone. Tonio wasn’t a nice person.
    “The way I see it, women are divided,” Tonio said.
    Wow, he’s really going to try to make excuses for his horrid behavior.
    “Divided?”
    “Yeah. There are women that you fuck, and then there
are women that you take home, and are the mother of your children.”
    Her mouth had to be hanging open. She was totally
blown away, and shocked. “Wow!” Glancing at the table, she saw that there was
still half a cinnamon bun left on the table. “Erm, I think I should go.”
    “Wait, why?”
    She frowned, seeing the total confusion staring back
at her. Didn’t he have a clue about how insulting he was being?
    “I can’t believe you just said all of that stuff.”
    “Look, I’m blunt. This is the kind of guy I am. I have
no interest in offending you.”
    “You’re not trying to make me uncomfortable?”
    “No.”
    Sitting back, Zara frowned as she stared at him.
“You’re strange, you know that?”
    “Strange? I can handle strange.”
    She chuckled. “This is good coffee.”
    “So, you’re working in a pizza place that you hate, and
I’m working with my best friends.”
    “Do you hate it?” she asked.
    “What?”
    “Your work, do you hate it? You don’t exactly sound
thrilled about your work.”
    “I guess I’m not really excited about it, but it’s the
work I was destined for.” He gave a little shrug. “We all have fucking crosses
to bear, don’t we?”
    Folding her arms, Zara stared at him, wondering what
his game was. “So, the girl you were seeing, who was she?”
    “Do you remember Luiz?”
    She nodded. Yep, Luiz, Tonio, Donnie, and Jake, four
deadly friends.
    “It was his sister. She was the love of my life, or at
least, I thought she was.”
    Zara frowned. “Maria?” She remembered her now. “Didn’t
she get married to someone?”
    “Yep, some fucker who didn’t deserve her.”
    He took a large swallow of his hot coffee, and she
winced. That had to have burned.
    “Can I ask for a do-over?” he asked.
    “Sure.”
    “The name is Tonio Guzman. I’m an asshole, but most of
the time, I’m just trying to survive.” He held out his hand, and she stared at
it.
    “You do realize I haven’t got a clue what is going
on.”
    “Introduce yourself. We can start over.”
    Gripping his hand, she gave it a shake. “Zara Summers.
I work in a pizza shop, I’m bored with life, and I’m not in college.”
    “You’re bored with life?”
    “I cook pizza for a living.