Claimed by the Sicilian Tycoon by Emma Shortt Page B

be
delivered to the apartment.”
    He
closed her fist around the cash, and with his other hand lifted her chin. “No,
what is embarrassing is you starving all day and me not even considering the
fact.”
    “I’d
hardly call it starving, and besides I’ve gone way longer without a decent
meal.”
    “As
have I,” he said, and she could see from the look in his eyes that he was not
joking. Her very early research on Andros had not given her much. A self-made man,
he had come from humble beginnings, that much was reported, but as he himself
had said, the media did not pay much attention to him. Maybe because he owned a
whole lot of it? “And it will please me for you to have cash on hand,” he
added.
    The
idea of being able to go and buy some groceries was persuasive, making Lyra’s
embarrassment wobble a little. The kiss he then planted on her lips wobbled it
even more.
    “Take
the money,” he insisted when he pulled back.
    “But—”
    “You
can buy us dinner. How does that sound?”
    It
was easy after that to simply nod her head, and hand in hand they walked up the
alley to Benny’s. Lyra wasn’t sure what made her turn around, but she did, and
Andros’ driver was right behind them.
    There
was a queue in the shop. Late night revelers, people just grabbing a takeaway.
A bunch of the woman turned and gave Andros admiring glances, but few of the
men turned to her. Rich men, that was what she attracted. For some reason her
looks worked on them, especially the blue bloods. But everyday kind of guys,
like the ones in the queue? Like the ones on her estate? They barely gave her a
second look. Either they thought her too out of their league, or they were put
off by her beauty.
    It
was something Lyra had lamented to her sisters more than once. How was she
supposed to get herself a boyfriend when no one tried to chat her up? And oh,
she had so wanted a boyfriend for so
long. A settled kind of guy who would excite her, look after her, cuddle her
when she was cold, rub her back when she had her period.
    Before
the mission and Andros, she’d made every attempt to find someone, but nothing
had ever come of it. Perhaps that was why she’d been so intent on changing her
mission parameters and having some fun with the Sicilian. Because she’d known
he would fancy her. Because he was rich, because he was arrogant, and fit
enough himself not to be daunted by her.
    That
was something to think about at some point.
    They
made it to the front of the queue after a minute or so. Lyra eyed the menu
greedily, her stomach flipping in knots as she planned what to get. “Do you
want to share a bucket?”
    “A
bucket?”
    “Yeah.”
She pointed to the top of the menu glowing on the wall. “Look, it has twelve
pieces of chicken, beans, gravy, fries and corn on the cob.”
    “Twelve
pieces of chicken?”
    “Yes,
but I warn you, I’m going to want at least half of them.”
    “Whatever
you want.”
    Lyra
ordered the bucket, paid for it with Andros’ money, and led them over to one of
the bar tables against the window. Andros carried over their drinks, two cokes,
and she the bucket. Once they were seated, she pulled the food out and spread
it before them, the delicious smell of chicken making her feel ever so slightly
faint.
    She
did not pause before eating, and did not stop until her stomach was near bursting.
Andros seemed to be equally as content to simply tuck into the fried chicken,
and as Lyra watched him, she couldn’t help but be struck by how odd the
situation was.
    Andros
Casstellini, Sicilian tycoon, billionaire media magnate, sat in a fried chicken
house with the woman who had schemed to become his mistress. It was so fucking
surreal.
    “I
will be visiting here again,” he proclaimed the moment the last of the chicken
was gone. “In fact I am already considering how I can move this business closer
to my home.”
    “Leave
it where it is,” Lyra scolded. “Lots of people like eating here. It’s not just
for