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“It’s not morning!” I yell back, feeling wetness at my feet. I look down. Pumpkin has pissed on the floor, and I am standing right in it.“Grr.”
I grudgingly grab some toilet paper to soak up the pee. What did I expect? The poor cat has been locked in the bathroom for God knows how long. I run a shower to wash my feet and change into a fresh pair of jeans and my Yankees t-shirt, finally emerging from the bathroom to find Luca standing by the window talking on the phone. He is dressed, and there is a cup of coffee on the table with a box of donuts. He must have snuck out for them while I was showering.
Hearing the bathroom door, Luca turns and looks at me. His eyes frown when he sees my t-shirt. I’m taking that as he is not a Yankees fan. He ends the call and points to the donuts and coffee.
“Eat. We leave in five.”
“What time is it,” I ask, looking around the room for a clock but not finding one.
“Time to go.”
I frown at him. Prick!
Man of his word, five minutes later, we are out the door of the motel and back in the car. Pumpkin objected to the box and scratched Luca’s arm. I can’t help but smile every time
I look at it. It serves him right.
It’s three in the afternoon, meaning we only slept for five hours. It felt so much longer than that, though. Again, Luca refuses the radio, so we drive in silence for three hours before his phone rings. It comes through Bluetooth in the car. Nicolai’s name lights up on the display. Luca hangs up before his brother has time speak, and a few seconds later, it rings again.
Cursing under his breath, Luca hangs up again, then pulls to the side of the road, grabs his phone, and gets out of the car.
I take it from that, I am not privy to the conversation.
Thirteen
Luca
“Alessio needs me in Italy. I am on my way to the airport.” Nicolai’s voice booms down the line.“The fucking Russo family is causing trouble with our shipments again!”
“I will be back in three hours, tops. Can’t you hold off until then?”
“No, I need you to stay. Handle the girl until I get back.”
Scrubbing a hand over my face, I sigh.
“You will need to keep her at your place. Sofia is staying behind with the baby at the Stonewood Estate, so you can’t take her there, and the police are monitoring the headquarters in New Jersey at the moment.”
“You can’t be serious, Nic? I’m not a babysitter. What the hell am I supposed to do with her until you get back?”
“It’s a few days, Luca. I am sure you can handle her.”
“Ha.” I laugh. “You haven't met her yet.”
“I am intrigued already. A woman that has fooled you for the last year is definitely one worth meeting.”
“Call me when you land.” I hang the phone up, not wanting to hear another joke about how long it has taken me to apprehend Scarlet. It has been an ongoing torment. The entire syndicate has given me a hard time over how I kept being outsmarted by a girl. Scarlet is not a girl, though. She is a fiery young woman full of too much curiosity.
As I get back in the car, I can’t help but notice that Scarlet has taken Pumpkin out of his box and is caressing him on her lap. I glare at her for a long moment, hoping I don’t have to say anything, but the longer I sit idle, the more I realize she is just as stubborn as I am.
“Cat goes back in the box now, red,” I order.
She doesn't bother even looking at me, just turns in her seat and puts the cat back as ordered. My eyebrows rise with surprise that she actually obeyed without an argument for once.
Fourteen
Scarlet
We stop outside a tall high-rise building on the west side of Manhattan. The sun shines off the mirrored glass, temporarily blinding me before we pull into an underground garage.
