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We spent the rest of the afternoon in bed, the warm Sicilian breeze blowing in through the windows while we explored each other’s bodies. I never wanted it to end.
* * *
The club was crowded and too loud. I covered my mouth as I yawned. It was late, and I would much rather be back in the apartment with Giulio.
Instead, I was still trailing Nino Buscetta around Palermo.
Nino was smarter than I thought. I expected him to visit his mistress, but he hadn’t. He was never alone, well guarded. If I didn’t find a weakness soon, I’d have to get creative. That could have serious consequences for Giulio, and I was trying to avoid it. I needed to do this carefully, quietly. Then I could get Giulio safely out of the country.
Right now, Nino and his crew were up in the VIP area above the dance floor. He was snorting coke off a mirror on the table, surrounded by several women. Giacomo, his younger brother, was also there, looking annoyed. Armed guards kept watch over the group, which meant I was in the shadows, trying to blend in.
Nino leaned back and wiped his nose, beckoning a woman to crawl onto his lap. Obeying, she started kissing him, their mouths attacking one another.
Movement near the entrance caught my eye. A man wearing a baseball cap and a messenger bag over his shoulder was walking in. My muscles locked in pure shock.
Fuck! What was he doing here?
I surged forward. Wrapping my arm around Giulio, I began towing him toward the shadows. He was stiff in my arms, but didn’t fight.
When we reached the wall, I shoved him against it. “Che cazzo?” I snarled over the beat of the thumping music. “We agreed you would stay in the apartment.”
“I can’t wait any longer. It’s driving me crazy. Besides, I can help you.”
“Have you forgotten? Your face, the cameras. You’ll be recognized and they’ll come after you for the rest of your life.”
He pointed to the cap on his head. “Don’t worry so much, assassino. No one will recognize me.”
My hands curled into fists. “I have it under control.”
“You’re exhausted and Nino is running you ragged all over Palermo. And I’m not the type of man to sit at home and let someone else handle my problems. No, we do this together. Tonight.”
“Cristo santo,” I muttered and rubbed my eyes. “I am trying to do this carefully. I don’t want it traced back to you. I want you to finally be free.”
“I know.” He grabbed my face in his palms. “And I appreciate it. But let me worry about that. You don’t have to do this alone anymore.”
I rolled my shoulders. I heard the words, but they still didn’t seem real. For so long I’d been on my own. I indulged in the occasional hookup here and there, but there hadn’t been a boyfriend or girlfriend. No partners of any kind. It was strange to consider myself as part of a couple now.
But Giulio was here. It was real.
And I would do anything to keep him.
“Fine,” I said. “But don’t let the cameras catch your face. Look relaxed, like we are talking.”
“We are talking,” Giulio said, sliding closer and rubbing his hands on my chest. “You watch Nino and I’ll watch you.”
I shifted closer, needing more of his hands, more of his heat, as I kept my attention on the VIP area. “I thought you came to help.”
“What is he doing up there?”
“Coke and pussy.”
“What about the father?”
Sasha has been trying to find Don Buscetta, but he was like a ghost. “Sasha isn’t sure he’s even in Sicily.”
“He must talk to Nino.”
“Nino goes through burner phones like tissues.”
