He had flashes of being back in that basement, not knowing what was happening or if Mitch was OK, and the whole time hiding his terror from Sammy. They were all in danger, but when bullets were flying, Mitch was in the thick of it.
"How are you doing?" Mitch asked as he put his arm around Rico's shoulders and kissed him on the cheek.
Rico must have looked troubled, but Mitch gave him a reason to smile. "Better now, but I keep having flashbacks," he admitted. "Sammy seems OK. Maybe I need someone to tell me to just breathe."
"OK. Just breathe," Mitch said in that deep, sexy voice of his. And hell if Rico didn't feel better.
"That's the stuff," Rico said and leaned his head on Mitch's shoulder.
It was incredible how much power just a few words from Mitch had over him. He could make Rico feel better so easily, but today must have been horrifying for him. To see Sammy in danger was a living nightmare for Rico. He could imagine how it shook up Mitch. But Mitch was holding it together with no sign of strain. He did that for Sammy and maybe for Rico too. He was an amazing guy.
Chapter 37
By the end of the festival that evening, Mitch managed to enjoy himself. With Enrico by his side and Sammy having such a good time, he couldn't help but have fun too. Their smiles were all Mitch needed to brighten his mood.
They were spending the night at Mrs. Del Rio's, but the party she was throwing that night slipped his mind until Sammy mentioned it excitedly. Her day was so full already, but she was ready for more fun. As for Mitch, he wished he could just have a quiet evening with Enrico in his arms, but that wasn't in the cards.
Before going to Mrs. Del Rio's, they stopped by the house to pick up the kittens and anything they might need. The house was dark and Mitch carried Sammy while she clung to him, her little arms tight around his neck. The kittens were glad to see them, and Mitch ended up carrying Sammy and the two kittens to the car.
Just as they were buckling her into her car seat, Enrico's grandmother texted him with some good news. "She says they caught Mr. West. The state police have him," Enrico reported.
"Good," Mitch said, relieved. Then he leaned down to talk to Sammy. "Did you hear that, Sammy? The mean man is in jail."
She nodded. "That's because he did bad things," she said wisely.
Arriving at Mrs. Del Rio's house, they had trouble finding a place to park. It was like being at the festival all over again. The party guests had taken up a lot of the spaces along her driveway and more were coming. Sammy was happy to see all the activity and the way the house was all lit up, and Mitch decided this party might be a good thing after all.
They found a safe place for the kittens and made them comfortable then they went out back to join the "peach shindig", as Mrs. Del Rio called it.
"I kind of forgot that your grandmother was throwing this party," Mitch said as they went around to the back yard. It was brightly decorated with lanterns hanging from the back porch and the gazebo.
Lights were strung all over the yard and people were already milling around with drinks and hors d'oeuvres in their hands. There was a giant bowl of peach punch, and Mitch had already been warned it was heavily spiked. Good thing there was another one for the kids.
"Grandma always throws a party on the first night of the festival. There's no stopping her," Enrico told him. "After we say hi to her, we can hang out by ourselves somewhere."
"I didn't realize that was an option," Mitch said and grinned at him.
"So was the festival fun or what?" Enrico asked Sammy as they started to meander between the guests in search of his grandmother.
"It was lots of fun, and I ate a lot of things," she said just as Mrs. Del Rio came over to greet them with hugs.
"Did you hear that, Grandma? You don't have to feed this one," Enrico told her.
"Oh, she can have a little something," his grandmother said.
"OK, then. You can be in charge of her. Mitch and I want to disappear for a while." Enrico turned to Sammy to see how she felt about it. She looked sort of doubtful, so he told her, "Your dad and I need to do some more dating."
"Dating is good," she said and her face brightened.
"We'll be back for your bedtime, in plenty of time to tuck you in, OK?" Mitch told her and kissed her little face. "Be good for Mrs. Del Rio."
"She's always good." Enrico's grandmother put an arm around Sammy's tiny shoulders and reassured Mitch. "I'll be sure to keep a close eye on this precious child. Don't you worry."
"Are we gonna dance?" Sammy asked her as the two of them walked away.
"Sure we will. We'll show them all how it's done," Mrs. Del Rio told her.
"They are going to exhaust each other by the end of the night," Enrico predicted.
