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“Look, I tried to get Lorenzo to take the dog, but he absolutely refused,” said Marco. “He says he hates animals.” Lorenzo was going to look after Debi and Danio until we could sort out this whole situation and return home.
“And then I cried,” added Juliana, a wicked grin on her face. “A pregnant woman is an emotional woman.”
She’d resorted to emotional blackmail.
Mr. F woke up at that moment, and after a lazy stretch, he got down from the seats and ambled over to us.
“Hello, handsome,” Juliana cooed, ruffling the fur between his ears. “Did you have a nice nap?” Juliana didn’t look stressed in the slightest to me.
She began fussing over her animal who for some unknown reason was wearing Juliana’s pink sunglasses and had a donut swim ring around his neck.
“Why the hell is the dog dressed like that?”
“He's getting in the mood.” She put on a silly voice and pretended to be the dog. “Daddy Marco, I've been such a good doggy lately that I deserve a vacation, don't I?”
“I am not his dad for fuck's sake,” Marco replied to his wife. “If you really want to see my daddy side in action, then I'll happily take you to the bedroom at the back of the jet.”
“I love it when you get all caveman,” Juliana sighed.
Marco glanced over Juliana’s shoulder as she tapped on her cell phone. “Who are you messaging?”
“Don’t worry—I’ve got the block turned on so that no one can trace my location via my social media posts. I’m just updating Mr. Fluffy’s Instagram page to let his friends know what he’s up to today.”
“What friends?” Marco grabbed Juliana’s cell. “Who the hell are Biggo, Blacky, Browny, Templeton, Coley, Mathilda, and all these other people listed under the ‘friends’ tab?”
“They’re Mr. F’s friends—you know, other pets he follows on Instagram and who follow him. I’m just posting to let them know that he’s off on vacation and that we’ll post some more once we get there.”
“Mr. F has his own Instagram account?” I exclaimed as I snatched the phone from Marco. “Let me see that. Christ, he’s got over 200,000 followers?” My jaw dropped.
“I’m cultivating his social media presence,” she said airily. “It will help keep him in dog food if you guys ever get arrested and the Feds freeze our assets.”
“Wow, Juliana, you really think ahead, don’t you?” I gritted out. I wasn’t sure I liked anyone talking about the possibility of any of us getting arrested.
“There’s no point burying your head in the sand about these sorts of things,” she replied.
I shook my head at her. Juliana knew that I didn’t really mind Mr. F, but my main concern was Cate being wary around dogs. She was already unhappy about going to Italy. She will be doubly so about staying in the villa with a dog.
“Just keep the dog off my bedsheets and try to keep the dog away from Cate. She really doesn’t like dogs and is a bit scared around them.”
Juliana spoke to her dog. “Did you hear that, Mr. Fluffy? No flirting with Alessio’s new wife.”
I narrowed my eyes at her, but that didn’t stop her from saying more.
“Anyway, what does Cate think about you dragging her to Italy? You didn’t bother to consult with her about the engagement, so I’m assuming you didn’t give her a choice over this trip either.” Disapproval dripped from her words as her tone turned serious.
“Cate will do as I tell her to,” I snapped, before returning to my seat.
***
Cate had a fitful sleep on the plane.
Later, when she was fully awake, I looked across at her. “How are you feeling now?”
Her eyes reluctantly met mine, full of hostility. Ignoring my question, the first thing she said was, “Can I call my grandmother? She’ll be worried when she doesn’t hear from me. You know I call her every morning while I have my breakfast.”
“No. The FBI will be able to trace the call and it’s better they don’t know where we are for now.”
“She’ll worry herself sick. She’s already grieving over my father, and you know she hasn’t been well.”
