AllFreeNovel
Share Us
A wooden shelf above the toilet has some tiny ornaments. I pick up a statue of a cat climbing the Empire State Building, then replace it and put the pink towel back on the rack. Who the hell furnished this place?
Rain begins to hit the small bathroom window, catching my attention. I take a final look at the row of statues on the shelf.
“I hope it storms,” I tell the cat. “I hope it fucking hails and floods. I want entire villages to be swept away.”
Carina is standing in the doorway of the bathroom. She scrunches her face and nods at the statue. “Should I give you guys a few more minutes?”
I snort and look away from the shelf, my gaze drawn to Carina like moths to a flame. Three times now, someone has tried to kill her. Three times I’ve saved her, yet most of the time, she glares at me like I’m the enemy.
I look away. I suppose I am no better than the enemy, though, since I know of the order against her.
Thunder rumbles in the distance. “You may get your wish about that storm,” she says.
I don’t want to be in such a small spot with Carina any longer, so I move past her. The tight space has me brushing against her, my senses flooding with her scent and the feel of her pressed against me. I stare down at her moodily and palm my phone.
“I’m going to message the Coroner to come get us in the morning.”
Carina immediately stiffens. “No. I won’t have the location of the safe house compromised.”
“Our lives are on the line,” I say. “We can’t stay in any one place too long.” My gaze drops to her lips. “And while it’s true that cell phones can be traced and tracked, I have scrambling tech on mine. We won’t be leading anyone here that way.” I narrow my eyes. “Unless yours is compromised. Dammit, I should’ve checked that, to begin with—”
“Mine is secure,” she says. “And I think you mean my life. The first attack was in my apartment. The second attack, outside the Pits, was also directed at me. You just got in the way. And the third…today…well…”
I see a sliver of fear pass across Carina’s gaze. I wonder if I frightened her when I killed that man. My fingers tighten around the phone in my hand.
She keeps going. “I know staying in one place too long isn’t smart. I also know walking out of here without protection of some sort isn’t wise. I get all that. But I’m at the point where I’m through relying on other people’s security, Luca. If we’re calling anyone to come transport us somewhere, it’s going to be a Scarpetta.”
Even after I’ve just saved her life for a third fucking time, she still doesn’t trust me. “The Coroner is a hitman that works for the Valachi but takes jobs from the Scarpettas, Papparados, and Marzanos,” I point out.
“One person isn’t enough to protect us, Luca.” Carina’s voice softens, and I see the weariness in her gaze.
“The Coroner is one of the best.”
“He’s not one of my people.” She still argues, and when her lip curls up in anger, my cock grows hard.
Perverse bastard.
“I’ve saved your life three times, Carina. You’ve gotta trust me at some point.”
She hesitates, her gaze resting on my lips. I could move away. Part of me thinks maybe she doesn’t want me to, though.
“It doesn’t matter. Certain safe houses are not meant to be shared with others.”
I nod and fold my arms across my chest, intentionally brushing my forearm against her breasts. I lean in close, and she tilts her head to the side. “And yet, you shared the location with me.”
“That’s different, Luca, and you know it.” She licks her lips.
“Tell me how it’s different,” I whisper, wanting to kiss her.
“I trust you.”
I pause, despising the emotions her words churn inside me.
“We have history,” she continues. I need her to shut the fuck up.
I unfold my arms and press both palms against her shoulders, forcing her heavily against the doorframe.
“You shouldn’t trust me,” I bark, my heart hammering.
