Page 19 of Secret Sins

During that time, I fed Charlie and stroked his fur to listen to him purr while he ate. I drank nearly a full bottle of water and wished I had something strong stocked in my cabinets.

Knocking and entering simultaneously, Ellie came into the apartment and met me in the kitchen. "Alex wants to know if he needs to kick someone's ass."

I laughed, and it felt good. "Not just yet, but maybe I'll put him on standby."

"What happened?"

Pulling her to sit at the table with me, I held her hand when I said, "Van kissed me."

Her mouth popped open. "And that's a bad thing?"

"He ran, like always, so yeah."

"Damn, why does he keep doing that?" Squeezing my hand, Ellie studied my face. "You like him."

"Yeah, too much. Oh, that reminds me." Plucking my cell phone from my pocket, I pulled up a search engine and typed in the place I'd memorized. "He said he lived in Storm Cove."

"Where's that?"

"It's in Maryland, apparently." Scrolling through the results, I found information on Storm Cove Penitentiary. "Jesus, it's also the name of a federal prison."

"That would explain a whole lot." She tapped her fingernails on the table. "Like why he pays in cash, keeps his head down, and won't make friends."

Facing her, I sucked in a breath. "And why he keeps telling me he's bad for me."

"He's an ex-con."

"With someone after him, according to what he told me this afternoon." Shuddering at the memory of what he'd said, I repeated it to her. "Bad people who wouldn't think twice about hurting me just for being with him."

"The prison thing explains why he's so skittish," Ellie mused.

"Where does that leave me?"

I knew the answer, and I didn't like it. It left me bleeding out with my heart in my hands.

Chapter 9

Van

Though Liam had recommended I try the Oceana Grill, I wasn't in the mood to spend most of my paycheck on one meal. Splurging was not in the near forecast, but maybe I could treat myself to something other than canned food, boosted with fresh veggies. With that in mind, I headed over to the pizzeria I'd passed more times than I could count. It sat a handful of buildings down from the bakery and Bookish, hopefully giving me a buffer from temptation. There were many people I wanted to know better, but I was reluctant to get involved in so much as a friendship with anyone.

So I walked into Napoli's, the tangy aroma of tomato sauce and spices drawing me toward the counter. They sold their pizzas whole and by the slice, along with pasta dishes and salads. The dessert case called my name, but I thought maybe I'd push my luck at the bakery later. Assuming they were open that late, which I hadn't thought to check.

"You can take a menu and sit down if you want, and I'll come take your order when you're ready."

The voice evoked cotton candy and licorice whips, but it was attached to a full-grown woman, making me blink twice before I could answer. "I think I'm ready now, actually."

"Sure." The name tag on her white button-down read Anna; she was the woman I’d seen walking on the beach with Ellie. "What can I get you?"

"This one." I pointed to a pizza covered in some of everything. "Can I get a small, plus a side of breadsticks?"

We exchanged money, and she assured me she'd bring the food out when it was ready. I nabbed a paper menu for something to occupy my time while I waited, finding the woman's face plastered on the back alongside a man her age and an older couple. There was a long biography for the pizzeria, beginning with Alan and Mary Murphy, who opened the place in the 70s but no longer ran it. Instead, they'd entrusted the day-to-day operations to their son and daughter-in-law—who decided to sit across from me at the two-top table as she delivered my food.

"Are you Van? I'm Anna Murphy." She was short, and with her blonde hair and girlish voice, she reminded me of Kristin Chenoweth. Nothing about her screamed Italian to me.

"Yeah, I am." There was no point sighing in frustration, though I desperately wanted to.

"Newcomers are a hot topic, but all I've heard about you is that you work with Chris."