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“Well, explain it to me then.”
Leo sighs; well, it's more of a growl. He leans back on his hands and looks out to sea.
“The world will never be a perfect place, Katherine. There will always be good, and there will always be evil. Both are needed; there cannot be one without the other. The police and government cannot stop or control all crime, drug dealing, or human trafficking. But we can. We ensure all drugs which are sold are safe and of good quality.I only import the best.We do not sell to children. We keep crime rates at a low because if you steal from the corner shop, you are stealing from me. I despise human trafficking; I do not tolerate it, which is more than I can say for our rivals. Truth be told, this isn’t the life I would have chosen for myself. I wasn’t born to rule. That was my brother. But when he passed, the duty fell on to me.”
Stunned into silence, I open the cooler bag and take out two bottles of water. I hand Leo one and take a drink of mine. I’m unsure what I expected him to say, but it wasn’t that. I actually kind of understand, which shocks the hell out of me.
“I have done a lot of bad and cruel things, and I will continue to do so. But I have done these things to bad people so that I can protect the good ones.”
Lying down on the blanket, I close my eyes to shield them from the sun. Leo lies beside me, his arm and fingers slightly touching mine. A tingle runs through me.
“I don’t expect you to understand or agree, Katherine. But you will need to accept it, and I swear, I will never hurt you; you will forever have my protection.” He turns on his side, and I can feel him watching me.
“You know, Leo, I have dreamt about this for so many years. I prayed that one day we would find each other. So many times have I imagined lying on a beach with you again.”
“Do not lie to me.” He slumps back down on his back. I sit up to look at him.
“I’m not lying. What do you mean?” He sits up, staring at me hard. He’s guarded again in Guerra mode.
“I came looking for you. I saw you with him. You had moved on.”
“What, when?”
“I hadn’t heard from you for months, years; my letters were sent back. My phone calls unanswered. As soon as I was able, I flew to England. I found you, having changed your name and living with some guy, Paul?”
“Paul?” I laugh.
“I don’t find this funny, Katherine. The days I was wasting my time searching for you, my brother was being hunted down and killed.” He stands and walks away; he’s so angry.
“Leo, wait.” He continues to walk away from me. “Please, Leo, let me explain.”
“There is nothing to explain. Pack up, we are leaving.”
“No!”
“No?!” Leo turns; he looks twice his size, so fierce. Pushing down the fear filling my body, I stand my ground.
“If I am to be your wife, Leonardo Guerra, you will respect me and listen to me.” He tilt’s his head to one side but says nothing, so I continue.
“Paul is my dad. And the reason I never answered your calls and letters was because we were evicted from our home. I came home from school one day, and everything I owned had gone. I was left with nothing. Believe me; I fought so hard to get my belongings; the only things I actually cared about were my letters from you. My mum had got herself in a mess with the wrong guy yet again, but that’s a story for another time. It was the last straw for my dad, so he took me in. I didn’t ‘change my name. My dad has always called me Katie; it's kind of a nickname, like Leo, short for Leonardo?” He stands tall, staring right through me, obviously going over what I have just said.
“Come on, let's sit back down and have something to eat.” He doesn’t move. Just looks at me. I calmly walk towards him and take his hand. He lets me take it and guide him back to the blanket.
We sit together, and I get out the food Alga has made. Leo takes the sandwich I offer him but doesn’t eat. Just stares out to sea. Deciding not to push him, I make small talk about the food Alga has made, how much I have enjoyed her cooking, and how lucky he is to have live in help. Growing up, I lived off super noodles and cheese on toast until I moved in with Dad. When living with my mum, we’d go from one month having hardly any money to the next living in luxury. It all depended on how wealthy Mum’s boyfriend at the time was. Most days, I’d make my own meals, so it was whatever we had in and the easiest. My parents were only teenagers when they had me; they did the best they could. Curiosity fills me. I need to know what happened when he came to find me. I need to know what happened to his brother. Our silence is broken when a wet fluff ball comes and sticks her head in our picnic.
“Macy! Get back here!”
“Oh, hello again, Macy dog.” She’s so cute.
Emmaline and Alfie make their way over to us.
“I’m so sorry; oh, hi Katie, it’s good to see you again.” A this point, Macy is climbing on Leo, trying to lick his face. I worry for a second, but he soon starts stroking her and rubbing her ears.
“Hi Emmaline, Alfie, it’s nice to see you again too. This is Leo.” I gesture to Leo, who seems quite taken with their dog. Emmaline does a double take, her face flushing. I’m not sure if that’s the fact she knows who Leo is or it’s just the fact he is incredibly hot sat here in his tiny swim shorts. Leo’s phone rings.
“Excuse me for a few minutes.” Leo walks away while he speaks to Marco.
“Come join me, guys. We’ve so much food here, and I owe you from last time.”
