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“They did?” Warmth filled my chest and tears pricked the backs of my eyes. “That’s…wow.”
Tony leaned forward. “Listen, those people adore you. They think you’re an amazing nurse. Hell, you saved Gabe’s life. He’s not going to forget that.”
I was filled with conflicting emotions. I wanted to be there for the team, especially since they’d asked for me specifically. I just wasn’t sure I was ready to see Marco again so soon.
Finally, the nurse in me won out. “When and where is it? I have to work tomorrow until five. My boss gave me off on Friday since I had to work on my birthday last week.”
The relief on Tony’s face was flattering. “It’s a wedding. Thursday and Friday night in the City. The rehearsal dinner is Thursday night, starting at eight. The wedding is Friday evening starting at six. It’s a high-profile wedding and they want tight security. The bride’s family comes from money. The groom is nobody famous, but the bride has an ex that didn’t take it well when she started dating the guy she’s marrying. He’s been sending her letters that hit just below the line of threatening. She has a restraining order against him for harassment. He’s been quiet lately, but she’s worried he’s planning something for the wedding.”
“Wow, that’s rough for her,” I said.
“Yeah,” Tony replied. “And she’s really sweet. I was expecting a bridezilla because of all the money, but she’s been nothing but nice. The groom too. He’s very protective of her. It was his idea to hire security.”
I was a little surprised. “I would think the family would want security for something like this regardless.”
Tony shrugged. “They have their own in-house, but nothing specialized for tracking a stalker. The groom insisted. He heard about how we handled the Gage event from someone who worked there and called us in for the wedding.”
I blew out a breath. “Okay. I’ll do it. But I can’t ride in with Marco. And I won’t be able to leave here until after I get off work at five.”
“That’s fine,” he said. “This isn’t something that requires a team meeting like the other missions. Andrea volunteered to drive you up if you changed your mind.”
I smiled. “That works for me. We can talk about her D&D campaign.”
“Her what?”
I snickered. “Andrea and Dante play D&D with some friends. I was thinking about joining them.”
He shook his head. “Whatever floats your boat.”
“It’s fun,” I said. “I haven’t played in years.”
Tony rose. “All right, I have to get back to the City to get ready for this shindig. I’ll have Andrea call you to work out the pickup time and place.”
I stood as well. “Okay. I’ll be ready.”
Tony stopped before he got to the door. Turning to me, he said, “Listen, I know Marco fucked up big time with you.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “He’s not a bad guy. He was just such a mess after Terry died that he couldn’t find his way.”
“I understand that,” I replied. “But it doesn’t excuse what he did last night. That was some next-level fuckery.”
“I know,” Tony said. “I’m not defending him.” He hesitated for a moment. “How much has Marco told you about Terry?”
“Nothing really, except they were engaged and Terry died,” I answered.
Tony’s mouth turned down in a deep frown. “Terry didn’t just die. He killed himself.”
My hand went to my mouth. “Oh my God. That’s awful.”
“It was,” Tony agreed. “I won’t go into detail because that’s Marco’s story to tell, but my brother was so torn up after Terry that he couldn’t find his way back to being the man he used to be. It was only recently that I caught a glimpse of that guy.”
“I appreciate you telling me this, Tony,” I said. “But I can’t be with someone who treats me like he did.” I shook my head. “I don’t think he wants to be with me anyway. Otherwise, why would he have done that?”
“I get it,” Tony said. “I just thought you should know.”
“Okay.” I had no idea what to say after all that.
“Andrea will give you a call later today,” he said as he left the room.
“Got it.”
