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“Look at me, Nicole.”
My eyes found his again.
“What about the damage done to your heart?”
“I— I don’t know what to do.” I swiped a tear that fell from my eye of its own volition. I didn’t give my eyes permission to leak. I wasn’t supposed to break down like this. This wasn’t part of the plan. “I don’t want to talk about this right now.”
“Do you want me to kill him?” he asked as casual as someone in a fast food window asking to take their customer’s order.
My eyes widened, and I let out a nervous chuckle. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No.” The menacing scowl on his face let me know he was serious. “I’m not kidding.”
“Of course, you are,” I corrected.
“The only reason he’s breathing is that you want him to. Say the words, and I’ll get rid of him.”
“I have to go.” I stepped around Vito and walked away. He was right, Desi was an asshole, but I didn’t want him dead. From the threatening look on Vito’s face, he would kill him and not lose a wink of sleep.
Vito caught my arm and gently pulled me close to him. I made the mistake of glancing up into his dangerously dark eyes, finding sincerity in them.
For the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why he cared about what happened to me when the man I laid down with every night could care less. My own father had disowned me because he didn’t like my choices. My own father didn’t concern himself with how the man in my life treated me. Why did Vito care?
He slid his card into my hand. “I’ll let you go if that’s what you want. But if you want something more, call me, and I will give it to you. If you need protection or someone to talk to, call me. It doesn’t matter what you need or the time of the day.”
I took the card.
“I mean it, Nicole. Call me anytime.”
I nodded and offered him an assuring grin. “I will.”
I still needed to figure out how to get money for groceries so that Tae wouldn’t lose his mind when I returned home empty-handed.
As I stared at the card, Vito added, “No matter what you need, you can call me. I can do it all, from building you a new home to burying your man in the walls of a new home. Just say the word.” He smiled.
I nervously chuckled. That was his third time mentioning killing Desi. Maybe I should stop chuckling. Maybe he really was serious.
Holding his card up, I said, “Thanks.” I think. “I will let you know if I need anything.” I could feel him watching me walk away, so I spun around and just spit out my request. “Can you loan me forty bucks until next week?”
Asking him for money meant I was at my lowest. But what choice did I have? I didn’t realize tears had released from my eyes and streamed down my cheeks until Vito wrapped his arms around me, telling me, “I’ll give you anything you want. Just don’t cry.”
This consoling hug would send Desi on another tirade if he knew about it. It would be the death of me, for sure. It was also an embrace I never wanted to end. Vito was willing to help me. And he did it with what felt like love. It felt even better when his arms lowered to my waist, and his intoxicating woodsy scent impaled my senses, making me wish moments like this were mine forever.
Desi thought I was screwing the guy from the grocery store. If only he knew how much I wished that were true.
