Chapter 2 - A Job Offer with a Warning
The next morning, I woke up to three missed calls from my landlord.
I stared at the phone until it stopped ringing.
My shift at Bellarosa did not start until five, but I had spent the afternoon cleaning apartments in Park Slope for cash. By the time I returned home, my back ached, my feet still hurt from the night before, and I had exactly forty-three dollars left in my wallet.
The business card remained on my kitchen table.
Antonio Russo.
If you ever need anything, call.
I had told myself I would throw it away.
Instead, I kept looking at it.
At four thirty, just as I was leaving for work, my phone rang from an unknown number.
“Hello?”
“Miss Sophie Bennett?” a woman asked.
“Yes.”
“My name is Elena. I work for Mr. Antonio Russo.”
I stopped halfway down the stairs. “Is something wrong with Maria?”
“No, Mrs. Russo is well. She asked about you this morning.”
I relaxed slightly. “Oh. That’s good.”
“Mr. Russo would like to offer you a position.”
I blinked. “A position?”
“As a private companion and medical assistant for his mother.”
“I’m not a nurse.”
“You studied nursing.”
I went still.
“How do you know that?”
There was a pause.
“Mr. Russo makes it his business to verify the background of people he brings into his family’s life.”
The answer should have scared me.
Instead, it irritated me.
“You investigated me?”
“Only enough to ensure you were safe and qualified.”
“That doesn’t make it less strange.”
“I understand,” Elena said calmly. “Mr. Russo anticipated you might feel that way.”
Of course he did.
“What exactly would this job involve?” I asked.
“Assisting Mrs. Russo with medication reminders, attending medical appointments when needed, accompanying her during the day, and helping coordinate with her doctors. The hours would be reasonable. The salary would be significantly higher than restaurant work.”
My throat tightened.
“How much higher?”
When Elena told me the number, I nearly dropped my phone.
It was enough to pay my rent, clear my overdue bills, and possibly return to school part-time.
But the warning from Marco echoed in my head.
People around Russo always end up owing something.
“I need time to think,” I said.
“Of course. Mr. Russo would like an answer by tomorrow evening.”
After the call ended, I stood on the stairwell for several minutes.
Then I went to Bellarosa.
Marco took one look at me and said, “You look terrible.”
“Thank you.”
“You know what I mean.”
“I had a long day.”
“You always have a long day.”
That was true.
Around eight, the restaurant doors opened.
Antonio Russo entered alone.
The room reacted instantly.
Marco hurried over to greet him, but Antonio did not look at him.
He looked at me.
My heart began to beat too fast.
He crossed the dining room with the same controlled stride as the night before. Every customer at the surrounding tables suddenly became very interested in their food.
“Sophie,” he said.
“Mr. Russo.”
“You received Elena’s call.”
“I did.”
“And?”
“I haven’t decided.”
His gaze settled on me. “Why not?”
“Because I don’t know you.”
“That is wise.”
“And because I don’t want to take a job just because you feel indebted to me.”
Antonio’s expression remained unreadable. “My mother needs someone trustworthy. You need work that pays you what you are worth. This is not charity.”
“It feels like charity.”
“Then name your conditions.”
I stared at him.
“My conditions?”
“Yes.”
He pulled out a chair at an empty table near the window. “Sit.”
“I’m working.”
“I spoke to your manager.”
I glanced toward Marco, who was standing near the bar looking nervous.
“You spoke to Marco?”
“He agreed you may take a ten-minute break.”
Marco gave me a quick, stiff nod.
I sat carefully.
Antonio remained standing for a moment before taking the chair across from me.
“My mother has early-stage Parkinson’s,” he said quietly. “She is still independent, but some days are difficult. She refuses to let most people help her. She liked you.”
My irritation softened.
“How long has she been dealing with it?”
“Three years.”
“And she lives alone?”
“She lives in my family home with staff, but she values privacy.”
“That makes sense.”
Antonio watched me closely. “You understand this.”
“My grandmother had arthritis and heart problems. She hated needing help. She thought accepting it meant losing herself.”
“And what did you tell her?”
I looked down at my hands.
“I told her letting people care about her didn’t make her weak.”
The silence between us changed.
Antonio leaned back slightly.
“You should have finished nursing school.”
The words hit me unexpectedly.
“I wanted to.”
“What stopped you?”
I almost told him it was none of his business.
But there was something in his voice that made honesty feel possible.
“My grandmother got sick. Her insurance barely covered anything. I took extra shifts, then dropped classes. I thought I could go back after she got better.” I swallowed. “She didn’t.”
Antonio looked at me with an expression I could not understand.
Then he said, “If you accept this job, your school schedule will be respected.”
“I didn’t say I was going back.”
“You should.”
“You make it sound simple.”
“No,” he said. “Simple is not the same as possible. But it is possible.”
I studied him.
“Why do you care?”
His eyes darkened slightly.
“Because someone once helped my mother when they had no reason to. And because I know what it looks like when a person has been forced to put their dreams aside.”
Before I could respond, a sharp crash came from the kitchen.
Marco shouted at one of the dishwashers.
Antonio’s jaw tightened.
He looked at me again. “No one should speak to you the way your manager does.”
“I can handle Marco.”
“I’m sure you can. That does not mean you should have to.”
He stood.
“Tomorrow evening,” he said. “My mother will be at the Russo residence. Come meet her. No commitment. No pressure.”
Then he placed a folded piece of paper on the table.
It was an address.
As he walked away, Marco rushed over.
“What did he want?” he asked.
I folded the address into my apron pocket.
“Nothing,” I said.
But that night, I knew I was lying.
May you like
Because Antonio Russo had offered me a door out of the life that was slowly crushing me.
And I was terrified of what might be waiting on the other side.
