Page 66 of Unraveled

“Or do you have to be?” he asked as she started down the hallway.

Cara tensed, but kept walking. “Does it matter?”

Gian caught up with her quickly enough, his arm curving her waist as he pulled her in tight and kissed the top of her head. It was that simple action—his unspoken concern and care—that slowed Cara’s rage.

“It matters to me,” he murmured against the top of her head.

Cara sighed. “I’m good.”

Gian made a discontented sound under his breath.

“I am,” she promised. “Sometimes it spills out, though.”

“That’s a lot of anger to bottle up, Cara.”

They strolled out of the apartment building into cool March air, and Cara breathed it in deep.

“A lot of deserved anger,” she pointed out.

Gian nodded as he directed her toward the apartment’s parking lot, where he had left his car the evening before. “Sure, except you don’t direct it at the person most deserving of it.”

“My mother is the type that feeds off attention, negative or otherwise. She uses any time and attention you give her to manipulate you for her emotional games. It’s not worth it.”

“I’m suddenly feeling like I need to give my mother a visit soon.”

Cara frowned. “I didn’t mean—”

Gian shrugged as he unlocked his car and then held the passenger door open for Cara to slide inside. Once she was seated, he offered her one of his charming smiles. “You reminded me that despite the fact I am a twenty-nine year old man, I have a mother who still loves me as though I’m her baby. She’s always concerned for my happiness, even though she doesn’t have to be. I can’t even remember her yelling when I was a boy. I have a wonderful mother, and sometimes I don’t appreciate her enough. That’s all.”

Oh.

“I’m sure she would like to hear that, too, Gian.”

He laughed. “No worries there. I’ll be sure to tell her. I think she would like you, Cara.”

“Do you?”

“Of course, because I do, amore. Maybe you’ll be able to meet her soon.”

“When?”

Gian winked. “Soon.”

Then, he closed the door.

In a blink, he had rounded the car and was inside the vehicle, too. He hummed a sexy sound as the car lit up under his handling, the gears shifting into place as the engine turned over.

“I love this car,” he said, “but I do miss the Lexus.”

“I can’t justify buying a car in a city like Toronto. Everything is a walk away. It would be pointless.”

Gian glanced over at her, and then pulled out of the parking spot, heading toward the road. “I travel too much from one side of this city to the other to not have a car.”

“Point taken.” Cara stared down the road while Gian maneuvered the Mercedes into traffic. Something caught her eye down the way, something familiar. “Is that …?” She trailed off, leaving the sentence hanging as she stared over her shoulder.

Gian followed her gaze, although he was careful not to ram the front of his Mercedes into the back of the car in front of them. “What?”

“There, parked behind that white Toyota.”