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“Right now.” He stands up, lifting me with him, and carries me out of the warehouse, ignoring everyone else's stares and questions.
When we finally reach the car, he lowers me into the passenger seat and buckles me in. I grab his hand when he tries to pull away. “I thought you said you can't take me with you.”
“I can't leave you here either.” He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. “If I'm going to pick between the two, I’d rather go with the one that keeps you safe.”
“Because of the job I have to do tomorrow?”
His lips twitch. “Yeah, because of the job tomorrow and all the ones after it.”
He steps back, closes the door, and gets into the driver's side. A man approaches the window, confused and angry.
“What the hell happened in there and where are you going with the mule?” he asks as Antonio rolls down the window.
“I don't answer to you, I answer to Zacharias and Enrico only. When they ask, I'll gladly tell them. Now if you don't mind, I have a job to do and it doesn't involve sitting here wasting my time with you.” Rolling up the window, he drives off and the other man stands in the center of the parking lot with his handsraised. I'll probably go back after today but I would rather not think about that right now. All I'll focus on is Antonio sitting next to me, reaching for my hand and taking me with him.
Ten
Antonio
Phillip grips my hand and stays quiet on the drive to my house. I was never supposed to bring him here but the decision has been made now and won't change no matter what Zacharias says. Yeah, I have grown a little brave and comfortable, but also, the man needs me too much to get rid of me. The small incident at the warehouse isn't enough for my job to be threatened anyway. And fuck that sleezy asshole. I saw red when he had his hands on Phillip. I don't know what told me to go back but I'm glad I did. If I could kill the man who hurt him again, I would a million times over.
When he said he wasn't safe there, I didn't understand exactly what he meant. It had to do with more than someone being after him. First I walked in on someone suffocating him with a pillow and then when I turned back around to check if he was really okay, one of the guards had him shoved against the bed with hispants down. He can't go back. I don't know where he'll go after the job is complete but he's not going back there.
“This is where you live?” He wipes his eyes with the back of his jacket sleeve—it doesn't clear the tear stains on his cheeks.
“Not what you were expecting?”
“Not really. It's like suburban HOA hell. I bet your neighbors consist of soccer moms and dentists.”
Releasing a chuckle, I pull up into the driveway. “I wouldn't know. I'm never here long enough to speak to any of them and usually come home late.”
Looking around, he opens the door. “Not today. The sun is still out.”
“Yeah. There are rare moments.”
Tilting his head, he places his foot between the door and bottom of the car. “You mean like when you rescue mules from creepy men at warehouses?”
“Pretty much.”
I take my hand away from him to turn off the car and he waits for me to get out before stepping onto the pavement. He examines the plants on the porch when we reach the door, bending down to trace some of the leaves with his fingers. “You have plants.”
“Yeah. They're the kind that don't require much care. Enrico brings me a new one every now and then as some weird joke. He said if I'm going to live in a family man's house and drive a car a banker or store manager would drive, I should be persistent. Apparently that includes me having plants on the porch and a mat in front of the door that says ‘welcome.’”
His laughter is like music to my ears. I miss it when we enter the house and it's nowhere to be found. “The inside is more fitting. It screams lonely bachelor.”
“Please don't make me regret my decision to bring you here.” I should be regretting having him here anyway.
“I'm sorry. It's a nice house, Tony. You going to show me the ‘spare room’ now?” He does his fingers in air quotes.
“I don't have one. Well, I do, but it has no bed or anything.”
“Does that mean I get the couch that looks like it's been sat on maybe once?”
I reach for his hand and pull him against me. “You can sleep wherever you need to.”
“It's because you need me to be okay for tomorrow, right?”
It's because I can't picture him being anywhere else tonight but I won't tell him that. “It’s because I need you to just be okay.”
