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The talk went on for another twenty minutes before Luca finally agreed I had to help Claire pack, because we needed to be on the road.
The Family couldn’t take any next steps until we were all safe.
When I got upstairs, I found Judah sitting on the floor of the nursery, shoveling potatoes into his mouth with one hand and flipping the pages of one of his books with the other.
I nodded my head toward the stairs at my man who followed me up, making sure he stayed there, so Judah wouldn’t get curious and fall down as I turned into my bedroom, finding my luggage on my bed, half full.
Claire herself was in my closet, shuffling through my shirts, trying to decide which ones to bring.
“Oh, hey, do you want me to pack casua—“ she started, getting cut off as I reached for her, pulling her against me, and sealing my lips to hers.
She melted into me, her lips demanding more from mine as they slanted over hers again and again.
“Never been that fucking scared in my life,” I admitted after, holding her tightly against me.
“Me either,” she agreed. “But I knew you were coming, that you would save us,” she said.
And, fuck, I was going to do everything in my goddamn power to make sure she never had to worry like that again.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Claire
We left in someone else’s car.
It was a big black SUV with heavily tinted windows.
Someone had backed it up to the garage where I watched these kind strangers load everything I hoped we would need into the trunk before they encouraged me to climb in the back and strap Judah into his car seat.
Then Aurelio climbed into the front, and we were off. With no fewer than four cars swarming us, in front and in back. Then, in busier intersections, on our sides as well.
One by one, as we drove, they fell away, though, until there was just one following us.
Aurelio and I were both silent.
Even after Judah knocked out about half an hour into the drive.
I figured he was focused on his directions, which had been written down, because Luca was worried about any phone trace leading to our location. We’d both needed to forfeit our phones before we left, getting handed new, ‘clean’ burners that neither of us had opened, let alone set up yet.
As for me, well, my mind was racing.
Part of it were worries about Judah, about how he would handle another move, another change.
He was adaptive, though. And I’d packed as many of his books and toys as seemed reasonable to keep him occupied. And he’d sure have my and Aurelio’s undivided attention, since it sounded like we would not be leaving this safe house for a while.
I was sadder than I would have anticipated at leaving Aurelio’s house.
Some part of me was scared that we would never go back. That after a week or two at the safe house while his family sorted out the Warren problem, he would get sick of us, then just nudge us on our way when it was all over, going back to his quiet, easy, mess-free life.
I glanced up at him between the seats, my heart breaking a little at the idea of him telling me he didn’t want us anymore.
I shouldn’t have gotten so attached so quickly.
But, as it turned out, it seemed I had very few—if any—defenses for Aurelio’s very unique charms.
I mean, what mom wouldn’t start falling for a kind, stable, patient man who cooked and was amazing with kids? Who kissed you until you felt it in your toes? And, well, who could do other magic with his mouth and fingers too?
I was so wound up that I figured there was no way I would sleep. Not that night. Hell, not even the next day.
