“You want a ride?”
“No, it’s okay.”
I pulled my arm from her grasp and dropped my long-sleeved shirt down my arms before I handed it over. “Tie this around your waist.”
“Why?” she asked as she did what I told her.
I scooped my arms underneath her, lifted her with ease, and started to carry her down the sidewalk. She was a perfect fit in my arms, light as a pillow.
“We could just get a taxi.”
“We’re only a few blocks away.”
“I’m going to feel a lot heavier by the second block.”
I smirked. “I lift three hundred pounds every day in the gym. You’re basically the bar.”
“Basically the bar?”
“The bar is a hundred pounds.”
“And you think I’m a hundred pounds?” she asked incredulously.
“Well, you feel like it to me.”
“Cristo, my ass alone is a hundred pounds.”
I burst out in a loud chuckle. “Wouldn’t that be a sight?”
I carried her all the way home and through the private gate to my house. I didn’t put her down in the entryway but actually carried her up three flights of stairs to the private bedroom at the top. I gently placed her on the bed, and then I held her knee and removed one heel at a time, undoing the little clasp on the side of her ankle to get it loose before I slipped it off then doing the same on the other side.
“Thank you.”
21
FRANCESCA
Wolfe worked out in his gym on the second floor while I headed to the market to grab fresh flowers and a couple of things for dinner. When I returned, I clipped the ends of the flower stems and arranged them to fit the vase I’d found in one of his cupboards. The vase was a beautiful cerulean blue, and the white and pink flowers I picked out went so well with it. I’d been living with Wolfe in Palermo for a week, and it had been the fastest week of my life.
My phone started to vibrate on the counter, and I glanced at it reflexively, expecting it to be a spam call or nobody important.
But it was my father.
I stared at the name as the phone continued to ring and ring, paralyzed by something between fear and panic. My stomach dropped as if someone had punched it, and I was so surprised by the cold call that all I could do was stare until it stopped ringing.
The phone remained bright until the screen suddenly went dark.
The beautiful morning I had was suddenly shattered by his intrusion into my life. When I’d walked to the market that morning, I was at peace, just enjoying my day. Having no other care in the world besides flowers and dinner was pure serenity.
But now, my day was ruined.
A voice mail notification didn’t pop up on the screen—but a text did.
Frankie, call me.
I stared at the sentence until the screen went black again.
I carried the vase to the top floor and set it on the edge of the kitchen island. The windows were open, so sunlight drenched the room. I could distantly hear the shower running down the hallway, so I knew Wolfe had finished his workout.
