The next portion is up, review for me please!

Chapter One: Mafiosos

You know how in movies and in books and such, the protagonist always says that one line that completely dooms them? Everyone knows the line and as soon as the character says it, everyone in the theater shakes their head sadly and thinks, "That poor stupid bastard, they're going to get it now."

Yes, we all know it. That one damned line. "It can't get any worse than this."

Well I decided to change it up a bit and make it into a question. I was betting that the asking of a question instead of the posing of a statement would appease whatever asshole is in charge and not obligate him to prove me wrong.

Lost that bet.

Now, not only am I tied to a chair with half of the skin on my wrists and ankles rubbed off by this damn rope but I'm getting the eye from a guy that's making Boris and Ivan quiver in their ugly black shoes. He's turned sideways and I can understand the grunts' reaction.

He's got guns underneath his jacket.

I bet they're loaded.

Shit.

I am going to kill Antony. That jerk off. I'm going to pull out his stupid tongue that he just had to put down my throat and chop it into tiny little pieces and feed it to his damn cat. Hopefully Antony will die from blood loss and his cat will die from eating such a horrible part of that man's anatomy.

Not that the kiss was bad. Or his tongue for that matter. Both were actually quite good. More than good. Borderline fantastic. If I hadn't been sitting down my legs probably would not have held me up for the duration of the fluid swap.

It was a great kiss.

But Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. The man has the worst timing any human has ever been gifted with! And that borderline fantastic kiss will not make up for him putting me in this situation.

It would take at least two more kisses and he'd have to be shirtless.

I was dragged forcefully away from images of a shirtless Antony when the scary Mafioso pulled up a chair and sits in front of me. Uh oh. I've seen the movies, I know what happens next. The boss guy always sits in front of the hero for a 'talk'.

Except these 'talks' involve a lot of blood.

And I'm not a hero.

I'm a chemistry major for God's sake! I want to be a surgeon, not a secret agent. That's Antony's shtick, not mine.

Of course if I were a secret agent like Antony then I probably wouldn't be in this situation to begin with. I'd have been trained to know when someone has their nose pressed to my window during a private moment.

Although, Antony is an agent and it's not like he knew there was someone out there.

But looks who's tied to the chair and look who's not.

Stupid roommate.

I never should have been his roommate to begin with. I should have walked away as soon as he told me he was an Americanized twenty first century James Bond. I mean, honestly, who does shit like that?

No one you should room with, that's for sure.

"Ms. Montgomery, I have a few questions to ask you," the scary man said. His voice was quiet with the lightest accent. I got the feeling that his steady voice did not mirror a steady personality.

I kept my mouth shut and waited for him to start. One thing I learned from living with Antony was that there was no rushing men. They get pissy if you do.

Loaded gun and pissy are not a combination I'm willing to put together.

He looked me over slowly, taking in the bruise on my cheek and my pajama clad body with a blank face, "You seem to be taking this all very well, Ms. Montgomery."

"I'm a fast learner."

His sharp black eyes again moved to my bruised cheek. It hurt like a bitch. FYI to anyone that ever happens to get into a position similar to mine: screaming is not a tolerated course of action and Russians have very big hands.

He shook his head but I couldn't detect a hint of remorse in his demeanor, "That's good to hear. Ms. Montgomery…may I call you Lana?"

"Doesn't look I'm in a position to stop you."

He raised an eyebrow, "You're not in a position to be saucy either. Try to curb your tongue."

Oh great. Managed to piss off the only one in this conversation with a weapon. So early, too. I think I've outdone myself. La de freakin da.

Mob Guy waited for me to say something back and, when I didn't, his face smoothed out to its earlier calm expression and he continued. "Now Lana, I understand you have a personal relationship with a common acquaintance."

Why do they always pose questions like that? Common acquaintance? What the heck is that? And he understands that we might have a 'common acquaintance'? Like he isn't completely sure if we do or not? We sure as hell better have a common acquaintance because I do not want to be here if we don't.

But I exercise some discretion in my answer. Loaded gun and pissed off is not a good combo either.

"If you mean Antony then no. I don't have a personal relationship with him."

That eyebrow shot up again, "You live with the younger Romano brother, do you not?"

"Yes, but it's not personal. I'm just his roommate."

The eyebrow was still up, "Why would Mr. Romano need a roommate? He makes more than enough money to live on his own."

"He doesn't want the house empty when he's on his business trips." Business trips…right.

Now both eyebrows were up. "Understandable. But I am still a little unclear on your relationship with Mr. Romano. You kissed him, yes?"

"No."

This man must have some strong eyebrows what with all this action they're getting. Now they were down and drawn together, "I have pictures stating otherwise."

"I didn't."

He leaned forward and put his hands on his knees, "Lana, this talk is not going to go well if you lie to me."

I have never in my life heard anything more terrifying than that.

I decided to come clean, "I didn't kiss him. He kissed me."

He leaned back in his seat and my throat opened up enough that I could breathe again. "Who initiated this kiss does not matter. What does matter is that he cares for you enough to kiss you. How long has this been going on?"

"Just yesterday."

There goes that eyebrow again. Good Lord, the man needs to put some more variety in his facial expressions. "You have been living with him for how long?"

"Three years in June."

"And he hasn't made any sort of move towards you during that time."

"Nope."

He made a skeptical noise in his throat, "I do not believe you."

Okay, strike all previous comments. That was the scariest thing I've ever heard in my life.

"It's true," I reassured him.

"Lana, your Antony and I are very much alike. Men like us do not develop a taste for something after having it within reach for almost three years. If we do see something we want we go after it as soon as we see it. Thus, the only options in solving this conundrum are that you and Mr. Romano do not have a personal relationship or you are lying to me. And since I have pictures of this relationship…" he faded off, with a wave of his hand.

My eyeballs were about to pop out of their sockets, my eyes were so big. "I am not lying to you! I very much enjoy having all parts of my body attached and working. I have nothing to gain and appendages to lose if I lie to you. Why does this even matter? Why do you care if Antony and I kissed?" I was having a panic induced fit brought on by this guy's pessimism and bullets.

He leaned forward again and this time placed his hands on my knees. "Because, Ms. Montgomery, I need to know how eager Romano is to get you back. He will not work as hard to get back a roommate as he would for his woman. Now why don't you start at the beginning and tell me how you met Romano and I will decide for myself your worth."

Hope you guys liked this chapter, I had a fabulous time writing it. To my most excellent reviewers:

Kura-sai: Thank you, that was exactly what I was going for! I hope this was fast enough for you but I must warn you that I don't usually post this fast. Usually once a week. Thanks again, and tell me what you thought of the Mafioso in this chapter!

Heather: I started writing this knowing that I was writing such an overused plot that it had become clichéd. I tried to switch it up a little and I thought I added enough flair to make it interesting but you've no idea how relieved I am to see that you think so as well! Thank you for reading, much appreciated.

Just Another Tragic Story: Yay! I love it when people actually like what I wrote instead of just reading because they have nothing better to do. Thanks so much and tell me what you thought of this chapter!

Reviewing would totally make my day, so please do!