The Claim Read Online Free

didn’t break his heart, I have to not like you.”
    Anna’s gaze burned into his for a brief moment. “Your Rocky needs to tell you the whole truth, so help him God.”
    “My Rocky never lies to me,” Nonna declared with pride, getting to her feet.
    “Good for you,” Anna murmured. “Close the door on the way out, please?”
    Nonna headed to the door, and Rocco put his phone away. “One of these days, you and I really should talk.”
    “What about you sleeping with another girl do we need to talk about?” She breathed out harshly, tucking stray curls behind her ears. Ah. She was still on that outdated practice note, but at the very least, she’d given herself away.
    “All of it,” he insisted. “When you’re ready.”
     

     
    Nonna was on her mobile, glasses at the top of her salt-and-pepper head. Met her.
    And? Don’t keep us in suspense — is she good enough for Rocco?
    She’ll educate him thoroughly if he gets out of line. Trust me, she’s more than good enough .
     

Chapter Four
     
    There was no honour in being the girlfriend who walked away from a cheating partner. All the reality TV shows that held it as some sort of medal of survivorship just proved to Anna that she needed to watch less TV and read more books. When it happened, she didn’t tell anyone. Not a single soul. Her mother didn’t count, but then her mother rather liked Rocco, so she needed to be informed just so she would shut up about him.
    Anna simply cut Rocco off. Blocked his number, refused to see him or speak to him. This was a stretch when they were both attending the same college. Why would she fight him and advertise how he’d humiliated her?
    People had the audacity to interfere in her pain, asking her what was wrong, what was going on, why wasn’t the star couple together any more, just before their exams hit. Once the first person was told promptly to mind their own fucking business, the whispers slowly faded away. Anyone who had a hint of anything different to the standard story—that Anna didn’t want to be in that damned relationship—did not deviate from the official line, or else risked a loss of life. Hell, when they all had to complete their elective examinations, no one had room to do anything but revise and pray they’d done enough to pass. Despite spending her days on automatic and her evenings in some sort of distress, Anna was one half percent away from full marks in every single examination and was given a congratulatory award by the college and featured on the Law Society Website.
    On a beach in Greece, Anna basked in the sunshine and her own bikinied allure to other holiday makers. As far as anyone else knew, she got over it. So what, she’d been some guy’s piece of fluff for a few (eight) months. Who cared? And he couldn’t keep it in his pants, what a surprise! She’d never expected much of men, not when she realised that her dad was picture perfect, and a complete one-off. In all honesty she could say to herself that it was bound to happen. Rocco Mamione, Mr. Strolling Through Life Like He Was In A Perfume Ad, was a cheater. Standard male issue.
    Playing it back in her mind, she knew when things became different. He didn’t call as much. He was quieter, edgy. Admittedly, he’d never snapped at her, or been rude to her. But when a man spends a good eight months crawling all over you and the electricity supply gets cut? You know there’s something wrong.
    The day of disaster started with a phone call. It was his mother who called her. “Anna, is Rocco with you?”
    How his mother had her number was inconsequential to the fact that his mother didn’t have a four square check in for him for once. “No, Mrs. Mamione. Why?”
    “I think, I don’t know why, but I have this terrible feeling that he’s been arrested.”
    “I’ll call you back.” She ended the call, absolutely trusting his mother’s maternal instincts, and called Beppe. “Where is he?”
    “Annie, he’s been there for