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All I’d done was touch her arm and leaned in close.
That was it.
It wasn’t nearly enough to be obsessing like I’d been.
It was why I’d begun avoiding work and throwing myself into finishing my kitchen.
I mean, yes, I’d also been feeling the pressure from my family to have a housewarming ever since my talk with Luca, but I’d been busting my ass because it kept my body and mind occupied so I didn’t have a chance to wonder why the hell I was thinking so much about her.
It made no sense.
I wasn’t a man who obsessed over women.
Liked them, enjoyed them, pursued them, then had a good time with them? Sure. But that was the end of it all. I moved on to the next.
Obsessing was new and off-putting for me.
Hence the avoidance of it.
But then there she was.
And it all came flooding back to me.
Until she said the one thing that could distract me.
Luca hadn’t been able to figure out much about the threat he suspected. So the entire Family had been walking around on eggshells, paranoid about some unknown threat in the shadows.
Jumping back into Family business had been a bit more jarring than I’d expected. I’d gotten too used to my quiet, safe life. I hadn’t been prepared for how hectic and uncertain things would feel to know there was likely someone out there who wanted me dead.
I didn’t even stop to question Josie. That was the level of paranoia I was dealing with.
I rushed through the crowd of people, finding not only Luca, but Lucky, Massimo, and Milo on the way. They each found a couple other men so that by the time we made it back to my bedroom, we were swallowing up the entire room. And a wide-eyed Josie was backing up against the wall near the window, clearly intimidated.
I couldn’t blame her.
Even being raised in the Family, seeing a bunch of powerful, deadly men in suits descend upon you was a little scary.
“Josie, this is my family,” I told her. “Guys, this is Josie. She works for me at the banquet hall. She just told me that when I was leaving work on Monday, she saw someone following me.”
“We should get the footage from the cam—“ Lucky started, getting a head shake from Josie. “No?” he asked.
“No. Ah, they weren’t in the lot. Which is probably why Matteo didn’t see them himself.”
“Them?” Luca asked.
“Singular. One guy. He was parked across the street. Probably just far enough that none of the cameras could see him. And even if they could, not fully.”
“Okay. Did you get a good look? I know you said he wasn’t close,” Luca said, keeping his tone calm even though the ticking in his jaw made it clear just how upset he was about this information.
“I, ah, yeah. He seemed tall. I know that is hard to tell because of seat height and everything, but the top of his head almost touched the roof. I don’t know about you, but my head is nowhere near the roof in my car,” she said, giving Luca a wobbly smile.
“What did he look like, babe?” Milo asked, drawing her attention to him. I watched as she relaxed looking at a somewhat familiar face.
That jealousy shit?
It was back. And stronger than before.
“Right. Yeah. Honestly, he was very average, unfortunately. He was dark-haired and dark-eyed with a little scruff, but not a beard per se. Kind of like him,” she said as she pointed at Massimo.
“What about the car, Josie?” I asked. Partly because I wanted information, but also because I wanted her focus on me instead of them for a minute.
“Oh, right. It was a black sedan. Four-door. I’m not great with cars. But it wasn’t really, you know, sporty looking. It was more like a car a businessman would drive. I know you are going to want to know, but, no, I didn’t get a plate. I don’t think there was a plate on the front, actually. But he drove away too fast after you to catch the back plate.”
My gaze slipped to Luca. I could practically hear his thoughts. And they lined up with mine.
You had to have a front plate in Jersey. Not having one was a surefire way to get yourself pulled over. And no one who was up to anything shady was going to bring attention like that to themselves.
But Pennsylvania was right next door. And they didn’t have a law about front plates.
It wasn’t a whole lot to go on.
Tall, dark-haired, dark-eyed guy in a black sedan who lived in Pennsylvania.
But it was more than we’d had before we all walked into my bedroom.
“Have you seen the car since then, babe?” Massimo asked.
“No. But Matteo hasn’t been at work since then.”
“Do you think you could recognize him again?” Luca asked.
