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Why would he keep them?
We’d been back home in Las Vegas for a week, but tonight was the first time I would spend with the Unholy Trinity again.
I’d texted Greta a couple of times, and she’d seemed happy, but Nevio had been impossible to grab, so I wasn’t sure how he was handling the separation from his twin.
Carlotta was allowed to spend the night at my place, so she and I went over to the Falcone premises around the time of our agreed meeting. We were supposed to have a movie night in Greta’s former ballet studio, which had now been transformed into a cinema and gaming room with a pool table, dartboard, and a retro pinball machine. The guys were already inside when we arrived, spread out on the comfy armchairs in front of the TV. Carlotta and I shared the loveseat. Nevio was laughing at something Alessio had said. At first glance, he seemed perfectly at ease, but something in his eyes told me that wasn’t the whole story.
As usual, we watched an action movie. Despite multiple discussions, they refused to watch anything that held a hint of emotional depth.
Usually, Diego picked up Carlotta at ten at the latest. He was strict with the curfew, but she was allowed to spend the night at my place today. At some point during the movie, I must have dozed off because the next thing I remembered was lying in near darkness with the TV off and without Carlotta by my side.
A shadow fell over me. My heart rate picked up.
“You missed the best part of the movie,” Nevio said from above me.
I squinted up at him. He was half bent over me as if he was about to pick me up.
We were the only people still in the room. “Where’s Carlotta?” I asked, sitting up in full concern mode. I would have smashed my forehead against Nevio’s if he hadn’t moved back quickly. The amused twitch of his mouth made me curse myself inwardly. This would have been the perfect moment for a kiss, right? And I messed it up. Well done, Rory, you stupid klutz.
“Massimo is carrying her over to your house. He didn’t want to disturb her beauty sleep.”
“Oh,” I said hesitantly. Was that okay for Carlotta? Diego would definitely throw a fit if he found out.
Nevio stood. “She’s safe, don’t worry.”
He held out his hand and pulled me to my feet, bringing us close once more. And again the realization that we were alone in the studio crashed into my head.
His pondering face was close to mine and slowly morphed into a mischievous expression.
“Your dad found your panties in my pocket when he picked me up on the night of the wedding.”
“What?” Utter horror mixed with mortification flooded me. “Did you tell him they were mine?”
Nevio cocked an eyebrow, on the verge of laughter judging from the twitch of his mouth.
Of course he hadn’t. We wouldn’t be standing here if he had. “He would have kicked your ass.”
Nevio smirked. “He would have tried to kill me. He was pissed off at me anyway.”
I nodded, still trying not to freak out over the fact that Dad had found my panties in Nevio’s pocket. Then another thought struck me. “Why did you have them with you anyway? You were supposed to throw them away.”
“Must have forgotten, was a busy night after all,” he said with a shrug, as if it was everyday business to carry my panties around in his pocket, and nodded toward the door. “Come on. I’ll take you home.”
I tried to figure out if he’d told the truth, but I didn’t want to make a bigger deal out of this than it was. Nevio had probably seen hundreds of girl panties in his life. Why would he care about mine?
“I walk our premises alone all the time,” I said, then wanted to kick myself. If Nevio wanted to spend more time with me alone, I should be the last person to argue.
“Strange things happen all the time,” Nevio said ominously.
We left the studio together and strolled over the lawn toward my home. Two windows were still illuminated, the living room where Dad or Mom were probably still waiting for my return, and the other was my bedroom window.
“Will you and the rest of the trio go out tonight?” I asked curiously. It wasn’t even midnight yet, so I suspected they still had something more entertaining to do than watch sleeping girls.
Nevio looked up at the night sky with a sly smile. “I think the night is ripe with opportunity, so yes.”
I wondered if that meant they would head to a club or go out on one of their raids. The first time I’d realized what they did at night—or the basics of what they did—I had been utterly devastated and shocked, though I wasn’t even sure why. Dad had always told me that the Unholy Trinity was dangerous—not for me, thank God—and that I shouldn’t let them pull me into their trouble. I followed Nevio’s gaze up to the sky, wondering what exactly drew him to the night, to the darkness.
“I like how peaceful nights are,” I said softly.
