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The shower comes on, and I go still, debating with myself. I glance from the bathroom door to his pants, where he put his phone after his call. Before I change my mind, I quickly get up and rummage through his pocket. I take his phone out, but it’s locked. I’m trying to think if I want to guess his password when a text comes through.
HUDSON–MOOR CORPORATION:
Don’t even consider no-showing or sweet Charlie will pay for your mistakes.
I gasp as I read the words. Suddenly, the water stops running in the bathroom, and I quickly drop his phone back into his pants pocket and jump back into bed. Just as I pull the covers over my head, the door opens. My heart is pounding like crazy.
“Are you asleep?” he asks. “Sorry I snapped earlier. I’m just a little tense because I have a tight schedule today.” His shadow falls across me, and I snap my eyes open to see him standing over me with a little frown. Water drips down his hard body, lovingly caressing his ink before disappearing into the towel wrapped around his waist.
“I know how that can be.” I answer, slowly sitting up on the bed, drawing the sheets up with me to cover my chilled body. Who could be threatening him with my safety?
“I’m glad you understand.” He smiles and moves away from me. He picks up our clothes from last night, removing his phone to place it on the vanity without checking his messages before taking the clothes to the bathroom. If not for that message, the sight of him in front of that vanity would have me drooling, but I have other things on my mind now.
When he comes back into the room, he goes directly into the closet, and when he comes back out a couple of minutes later, he’s dressed in a navy suit that fits his body like it was made for him–guess it probably was–and a striped tie dangles from his hand.
“You’re leaving already?” I can’t keep the disappointment out of my voice and he grins at me as he walks toward me.
“I’ll be back in time for dinner,” he promises as he sits on the edge of the bed. He takes my hand in his and runs the tipsof his fingers over my palm. “If you don’t want to be alone, you can go to the Liquid Elixir, Andrea would love to have you, or if you want to work, you can use my office downtown. I’ll text my assistant to let you in.”
“Okay,” I whisper. He presses a gentle kiss to my head and gets up from the bed.
“Wait!” I call out, standing up. I take the tie from his hand and drape it over the back of my left wrist. I struggle to pull up his collar. He smiles softly and bends his head, so I can do it more easily. I don’t look into his eyes as I knot it. I want to ask him what’s going on. I know he won't tell me. Especially not with that text.
“Thanks, love.” He kisses me when I’m done, then continues to the vanity to grab his phone. The light comes on, and he stiffens as he reads the message. He glances at me, and I raise a brow in question.
He gives me a forced smile. “We’ll go grocery shopping tomorrow.” With that he walks out of the bedroom. I sink weakly onto the bed and stare up at the ceiling at a loss for what to do.
What are you hiding from me Ezra?
The sound of a car piques my attention. I get up from the bed to go to the window. I frown as I see the truck I saw him in yesterday pull out of the garage. I had no idea the truck was in working condition because I’ve not seen him drive it before. When the truck is out of my view, I go to the bathroom to take a shower.
When I’m dressed, I get my phone and go downstairs. While I’m heating my food in the microwave, I put in Hudson Moor cooperation into the search engine. Loads of articles come up on Moor cooperation, a conglomerate in Rhode Island that deals in car parts and materials to make floors, doors, roofs, etc.
Nothing on a Hudson. I type in Hudson Moor, and I get better results. There are no pictures of the man, but I learnhe’s the recluse owner of Moor Cooperation. Thirty-five. A self-made billionaire. Philanthropist. No family ties. Ran away from the orphanage he grew up in at the age of seventeen. No-one knew where he went or what happened to him, until he suddenly showed up again five years later and established Moor Cooperation.
I put in variations of Hudson Moor Cooperation, but try as I might, I’m unable to find pictures of the man who’s threatening Ezra. What the hell does Hudson Moor want with us? Then I remember the name he mentioned on the call.Massimo. The same person he was talking to yesterday in the garage. I remember how he hung up immediately when I walked in. On a whim, I type in Massimo Moor Cooperation, thinking he might be this Hudson’s secretary or something.
Nothing comes up. I type Massimo Moor. Several Facebook profiles pop up but none of them have an affiliation with Hudson Moor and I doubt they even know the man. I scroll down the page and see an article on Massimo Moratti. I frown as I click on it, and my jaw drops as I read the article. He’s the ruthless leader of the mafia family in Rhode Island. According to the article, he ordered the killing of a father of two because he owed him twenty grand. I guess that’s what he values a life at, I think in disgust.
I exit the article and search for Massimo Moratti. Several articles come up. Heartless. Unfeeling. Unhinged. Psychopath. Those are a few of the words used to describe the man. Ironically no one seems to know much about him apart from him being the head of the mafia, and there are no pictures of him on the internet.
For some reason, though, just thinking about him makes me uneasy. I try to shake it off as I eat, but it lingers like a bad taste on my tongue. I drop my laptop into my bag and walk out. Shit, my car is still in Burlington. I really need to go get it.
I make my way to the garage, hoping the keys to Ezra’s SUV are visible. Sure enough, they’re in the cup holder. I smile as I start the car. I type in the name of Andrea’s bar in the GPS and follow the instructions as I drive away.
The bar is closed. Of course it is. Why would a bar, especially one that doesn’t serve food, be open this early? It shows just how unsettled Ezra was for him to mention me coming here. I get out of the car and glance around, wondering how to get up to Andrea’s apartment.
Would it be rude to just show up? Damn it, I wish Ella were here. I need to talk to someone, and I’m not sure Ezra’s little sister is the right person. I turn to get back into the car when the bar’s door swings open. I glance back in surprise.
“Autumn.”
“Hey, Charlie! How are you this morning?” Her eyes drop to my stomach and quickly come back up.
“I’m great. And so are the babies.” I smile at her.
“Do you want to come in? Andrea is sleeping in since she was up late. I work here during the day since construction of my office just started. I prefer it over working at home. It’s so quiet and isolated, but at the same time, I can interact with people if I want to,” she explains, returning my smile.
“Yeah, I’m also here for work.” I lift up the bag containing my laptop.
