Page 63 of One Filthy Kiss

She keeps her voice low to avoid distressing Amber, but there’s no mistaking the resignation in her eyes.

“Just covering all bases.” I could add that you don’t mess around with men like The Fish, but I need her to remain calm. Once panic sets in, mistakes will be made, and her stepfather will be the one reeling in his catch.”

“Maybe Ric and I should leave via the hotel, Gio. I can’t bear the thought of him … of him following Amber.” She whispers her sister’s name as more squeals reach us from the pool.

Amber is standing on Demi’s shoulders in the water, arms raised above her head like a gymnast. “Ready?” Demi asks.

“Yeah, I think so.”

“Deep breath. Close your eyes. Three… Two… One…”

Demi lunges forward and Amber slides her arms into the water as she hits the surface and disappears.

Meggie holds her breath for her sister. Her eyes don’t waver from the spot where Amber landed until she comes back up, spluttering, her wet hair plastered to her face. “Can we do it again?” she asks Demi.

I bring Meggie back to the conversation. “That won’t work. He knows that you won’t go anywhere without her.”

“It’s just… I promised my mom…” she whispers. “What if he intercepts you before you’ve even left the city? She’ll be so scared, and I’ll be miles away.”

“This is the only way, Meggie.” I place my hand on her thigh, and she doesn’t push me away. She’s trembling. “This is my territory. He won’t make his move in the city.”

“The boss is right,” Ric says. “We discussed other options, but this way we’ll be able to move you both out of the city and divide his resources at the same time.”

It isn’t ideal. In an ideal world, Meggie, Amber, and I would be on my private jet and heading to the family home in Sicily. We’d have a summer ahead of us filled with pasta, locally made wine, sandcastles on the beach, snorkeling, markets, and balmy evenings spent outside under the starry sky.

But that world has always been just out of my reach. It isn’t the life I was born into despite Sicily being my home, and I’ve always accepted my destiny without question. Until now.

This is so unfair.

I’m separating Meggie from her sister when they need each other most. But I have to bear in mind that I’m doing this for them, and things would be a thousand times more difficult if I didn’t have Ric. He will take them to my cabin in Stowe, Vermont, and Meggie will have the breathing space that sheneeds to clear her head and think about her future. About what she wants.

I only pray that her future includes me.

Amber comes over to us then, dripping water into puddles on the warm floor. She beams at me and says, “Did you watch me dive, Gio?”

My chest is flooded with warmth, and I find myself smiling back at her, my grin so wide that my cheeks ache. “I did. Twenty-thirty-six Olympic games here we come.”

She scrunches up her nose in confusion. “What’s the twenty-six Olympi games?”

We all laugh as Meggie wraps an arm around her sister’s shoulders.

I imprint the sound in my mind. Who knows when we’ll all be laughing together again.

“Why aren’t you coming, Meggie?”

There are already tears in Amber’s voice as she peers at her big sister. She has caught the sun across her nose and cheeks, and her hair is looking lighter than it was when she first arrived. She’s tired. It may not be the best time to carry out the plan, but everything is in place, and the longer we wait, the easier we’ll make it for the Fish to gather his own resources around him.

“I have to stay here and do something for Gio first.” Meggie’s eyes meet mine briefly. “I won’t be long, I promise.”

“Where are wegoing?”

Meggie smiles. “You and I are going to Gio’s cabin in the mountains for another vacation.”

“In the mountains?” Amber’s eyes widen. “Will we have to climb really high?”

I crouch on the other side of her. “My cabin is at the bottom of the mountains, so you won’t have to do any climbing, unless you want to.”

“Okay.” She thinks about it. “Will there be snow?”