Rocco cleared his throat. “Is that your—boyfriend?”
She burst out laughing. It took her nearly a minute to stop.
She grinned. “Templeton’s a rat.”
He blinked. “A rat?”
She nodded. “He’s my pet.”
He wrinkled his brow. “You have a pet rat?”
“I do.”
“I never knew anyone who had a pet rat.”
“Well, now you do.”
He nodded. “Now I do.”
Rocco peered at her.What kind of girl has a rat for a pet? An interesting one, that’s for sure.
“Did you grow up in Vegas?” he asked. “Is that where your family’s from?”
She stiffened, and he could kick himself for having asked.
I guess family is a sore subject with her.
She was quiet. He had only her profile to look at because she wouldn’t look at him. Staring at her throat, he could see her swallow before she spoke.
“Um, yeah, some of them.” She handed his bottle back to him. “There’s not much left. Sorry.”
“That’s okay.”
She sighed, leaning her head against the wall, shutting her eyes. “I’m tired.”
He did likewise. “Me too.”
Rocco woke with a start. He blinked, wondering where he was. And then he remembered. It was chilly. He stood up and slipped his arms back in his racing suit, zipping it up. He looked over at Nico. Her head was leaning against the wall. Her eyes were shut.
“Nico,” he whispered.
Nothing.
She must be cold, he thought, looking at her bare legs. He crossed the room and picked up her racing suit. As he did, something fell out.
Two things, he realized as he bent down to pick them up.
One was a photo of a woman. She could be Nico’s mother. The same dark eyes and hair. The same bold bone structure. The other was a piece of paper—on it, a pencil drawing of what looked like an older man.
Rocco searched and found an inner pocket that had been stitched on the inside of her suit.
She must have sewn this in.
He folded the paper and tucked it along with the photo inside the pocket. Then he placed the suit over her legs, doing his best to tuck it around her without waking her. After that, he sat down beside her and shut his eyes.
The next thing Rocco knew, someone was shaking his shoulder. He blinked. It took a minute for his eyes to adjust and for him to realize where he was. He looked up. It was Frank from maintenance.
“You guys get locked in here?” he asked.
