A ONE-NIGHT STAND WITH THE MAFIA BOSS

Jean's POV "Dante Perez is here." "Oh, my goodness! It's really him." "He is smoking hot!" "I'm so scared of him. Does he ever smile?" The whispers from the other teachers behind me caused me to turn my head and cast a look at the person they were referring to. Walking into the PTA meeting with so much grace and confidence was a man dressed in a black tuxedo. Walking closely behind him was another man in a dark suit, looking like his bodyguard. It was Dante Perez; New York's most dangerous mafia lord and drug pusher. It was my first time seeing him in person and I could see that he was just as everyone else had always described him. He looked 6ft and a few inches tall and he had a toned, muscular body. The sharp, handsome features of his face was enough to grip anyone by the heart. His facial and body features were absolutely breathtaking. "Long time no see, Mr. Perez." Our school principal; Mrs. Hathaway hurried over to him with a large, welcoming smile on her face. She held out her hand for a handshake but Dante Perez pretended not to see her hand. His eyes were locked to her face and they were unsmiling. He did not look happy and I concluded that perhaps this was how he looked most of the time. "Jean Faxon." He said instead and for a minute, I forgot that was my name until Mrs. Hathaway repeated my name for the second time. She had the same surprised look on her face just like everyone else in the meeting, including me. "Jean Faxon?" "Mia's homeroom teacher. I need to see her." He confirmed his words and Mrs. Hathaway darted a look at my direction, puzzlement and confusion on her face. Nevertheless, she camouflaged her shock behind a fake smile and excused herself from him. "Give me a minute, Mr. Perez, while I go fetch her." She hurried over to where I was seated and searched into my eyes suspiciously. "What have you done, Miss. Faxon?" I frowned slightly. Everyone in the PTA meeting had their eyes on me and the whole hall was as silent as a graveyard. It was crazy how just one man could hold so much power over so many people at once. "Nothing." I replied to her and she nodded her head even though it didn't look like she believed me the tiniest bit. She glanced at him quickly and looked back at me again. "Go to him. He wants to have a word with you." "Can't it wait till after the meeting? The other parents are waiting..." I tried to be as cordial and logical as I could be but the expression on Mrs. Hathaway's face stopped me mid-way. She shot her eyes wide open, staring at me with a horrific expression as though I had gone insane. "You cannot obviously keep Mr. Perez waiting, Miss. Faxon. He is..." "New York's biggest mafia lord and most renowned criminal." I raised a brow at her as I completed her sentence. Her eyes widened even more and I feared that they could pop out of their sockets soon if she did not stop doing that. "Jean Faxon, are you insane?" Whenever she called any of the teachers by their full name, one thing was for sure. She is furious. Extremely furious. "That man you call a criminal is the same man who funds ninety percent of our school's project and resources. Without him, you would barely make enough as a teacher to fend for yourself. Now, get out there and go talk to him before I lose my cool." With a sigh of surrender, I got up from my seat and walked past her, heading towards his direction. As I advanced closer to him, his siren shaped, ice cold, green eyes watched me like the way a predator would watch his prey. Even though I was a little intimidated by his stare, I did not show it. I faked a smile as I stood in front of him and extended a handshake towards him. "I'm Jean Faxon. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Perez." But just like he did with Mrs. Hathaway, he only stared at my hand briefly and looked back at my face, leaving my hand hanging. I felt a little bit of embarrassment but again, I did not show it. I dropped my handshake. "I need to have a word with you. Come with me." And just like that, he turned his back against me and walked out of the hall without a backward glance. I was hit by another wave of embarrassment and I gritted my teeth, shooting glares at Mrs. Hathaway for putting me in such a situation before I went after him. We reached outside the school building and there was a dark limousine in front of us. Dante Perez was the first to go in and the bodyguard opened the door for me to join him in. I hesitated for a moment, doubtful. What did he want with me? Was he planning to kidnap and sell me off to his Italian Mafia friends? "Come in. I won't eat you." He spoke from inside of the limousine, his eyes glued to his phone. Summoning all the courage in me, I joined him inside, to be greeted by the soothing scent of sandalwood cologne. Pretending not to take notice of the beautiful interiors of the car and ignoring the fact that this was my first time in a limousine, I headed straight for business. "Of what help can I be of you, sir?" "I am sure that by now, you must be aware that Mia is my daughter." He started, his eyes never leaving his phone for a second. "I guess so..." "She's been slacking in her studies greatly. She's always aced her academics until she became a student in your class." His tone sounded accusing but I decided to act professional and shove it aside. "About that, I was going to contact you through Mrs. Hathaway..." "It doesn't matter now, does it? I don't like too much talking or cutting through corners, Miss. Faxon. My bodyguard will sort you out." I frowned in confusion again as he said those words and just as he finished speaking, the bodyguard picked a briefcase from an empty seat and opened it to reveal stacks and bundles of dollar notes. The sight took me off guard and I was puzzled even more. Was he trying to bribe me? "Make sure you give her better grades, Miss. Faxon. I'll send you more if these are not enough." He still did take his eyes off his phone and his tone sounded nonchalant and bored. It was as if this was not his first time trying to bribe a teacher to pass his daughter. If he thought he could have his way with me like he did with the other teachers, then he was in for a big surprise. I scoffed and stared at him, crossing my arms over my chest. "I am sorry, but I cannot accept this, Mr. Perez. I do not accept bribes to pass my students." This time, he looked away from his phone and turned his eyes to me. His eyes were still as intimidating as ever but I did not waver. There was a small knot across his brows and he seemed to be surprised by my response. It was obvious he had never been turned down before. "What did you just say?" He asked me and I maintained my grounds. "That I cannot accept your bribe, Mr. Perez. I do not accept bribes, nor do I favor one student over the others." The look of surprise on his face was more evident now I continued to clarify things. "Mr. Perez. What I do is help my students do better in their studies than they currently are. I am sorry to inform you about this but Mia has some challenges with her academics and on top of that, she has a bad relationship with her classmates. She bullies..." "I don't care about any of that, Miss. Faxon." His reply cut me off guard and I blinked my eyes at him in disbelief. He didn't care that his daughter is a spoiled brat? Was this supposed to be some sort of joke? "I am fully aware of my daughter's academic challenges and that is why I am here to see you. If you think this amount isn't up to your standards, name your price and I will give it to you." Again, I sighed. I was beginning to get annoyed now. It was more annoying to think that a man this good looking would have such a dark soul. "Are you kidding me?" "What is your price, Miss. Faxon?" He asked me again, looking serious and impatient as though he did have any more time to spare with me. I did not have the time to spare with him either. "Like I said, I do not accept bribes. So, you can keep your money. Now, if that is all, I have to get back to the meeting. Excuse me, Mr. Perez." I finalized and hopped out of the car but as I made to walk away, he unwinded his window and stared at me, with barely any emotion in his eyes. Still, it was a deadly stare. One that can weaken anyone by the knee. "I always have my ways, Miss. Faxon. And I always get what I want. You best be aware of that." "All the best, Mr. Perez." I answered and faked another smile at him before walking away and back to the meeting again. It irked me to think that he had brought his dirty business into the school too. I hope this would be the last of him that I would see. Hopefully.