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Reaching over my lap, Antonio's arm brushes mine as he undoes my seat belt. Our eyes lock and he clears his throat, shuffling away from me. “We better go before they force us out.”
“Yeah, sure. Will there be clothes for me wherever we're going?”
“You can borrow mine if you have to.”
He stands up first, grabs his bag from the floor, and reaches for my hand, yanking me up from my seat as soon as our fingers touch. His clean scent hits my nose when my chest smashes against his. Gripping my shoulders, he chuckles but it doesn't meet his eyes. Maybe if I make him laugh enough, it will reach them someday. “Easy, burrito. We might need to work on your balance.”
“Or you could not yank me off my seat so hard.”
“I barely used any force. It's not my fault you're as light as a feather.” He shoves me in front of him when the line starts moving quicker than before.
Glancing behind me while guiding myself forward with my hands moving against the seats, I say, “If you want, you can always lie on top of me to make sure I don't float away.”
His brows wrinkle. “What do you mean?”
Huffing out a breath, I look ahead, quickening my steps. “You said I was as light as a feather.”
“Oh, I see. I imagine me lying on top of you wouldn't be very comfortable. I'm twice your size.”
Yeah, I don't think he does see. It's as clear as day he's as lost as before when we finally exit the gate and his face is still wrinkling in confusion.
Deciding to keep fucking with him, I don't stop. “There are things you can do to make me feel so good I'd never notice your weight on me.”
He shakes his head, walking alongside me. “Not sure what giving compliments will do to make me feel lighter to you.”
Ay ay ay, this guy. “You're right. Having you on top of me would be awful,” I deadpan. “An absolute nightmare.”
People rush between us, threatening to separate me from him, and I grab his hand in a panic. His fingers squeeze around mine as he drags me toward an escalator, remaining in front of me all the way to the bag claim area. He grabs his gun case from anemployee and doesn't let go of me until we're outside standing in front of a black SUV.
The window rolls down and a man in glasses peeks over the top. “Antonio?”
“Si,” he nods, opening the back door. I climb in when he gestures for me to get inside, and he slides in beside me, adjusting his blazer. I never cared for men in blazers until I saw him enter the club a few times with his unbuttoned at the top, revealing the slither of hair peeking from his white V-neck. He wears t-shirts with his suits and it does shit to me. I should be weirded out about lusting over my brother's husband but I already tortured myself over it a month ago, when I purposely put on a show for him without him realizing the real reason I was there. Not for the drugs. Something about him being there while my hands got forced and tied behind my back sent shivers down my spine.
Trying to fight my attraction did no good then or when I saw him grab a man by his neck and drag him out of one of the clubs. It won't do good now either. I didn't expect to want him this way and it was never part of the plan. But I'm an adult now with different needs and I have eyes, skin, and ears. They all have noticed him. His gorgeous face, how his muscles bulge in his clothes, his deep growly voice, and now his touches.
“Only one bag?” the driver asks, eyeing us in the rearview mirror. He doesn't count the hard case, as Antonio is opening it and loading his gun.
“It’s all we need,” Antonio responds, placing his hand on his gun. He hasn't done that until now. In fact, he put his gun up before sliding in next to me the first time like he had no intentions of using it the whole drive. Warmth swarms in my stomach at the thought of him trusting me over this guy. Over anyone. Maybe it's something ridiculous to feel good about but like my aunt used to say, it's the little things. The small sparks inour life, making it a little brighter than before. So many sparks with Antonio. Tiny and big.
Neither of us talk until we arrive at our destination, and Antonio never takes his hand off his gun or his other hand off me, fingers gripping my lower thigh tightly. I feel like I'm everything in the world to him and like he's the only one who could ever give me exactly what I need. No one's ever calmed me down so quickly the way he did at the airport. He did it more than once too, like he automatically knew all the right ways to reach me.
Three
Phillip
“We're here,” the driver says, stepping out of the car. “I'll let him know you've arrived.”
Antonio nods, searching around us as the driver walks up a short sidewalk leading to a large brown stucco house. The front door pulls open before he can knock on it and two men step outside. One is holding a gun and the other is waving him away while smiling in our direction.
“That's our cue to get out,” Antonio says.
I sink back in my seat when his hand lifts from my thigh, and I don't move until he's out of the car. Giving one of his half smiles, he offers me his hand like before and I take it. He keeps reaching for me. Whether it's intentional or not, it's like his body gravitates toward mine whenever it senses I'm distressed. Or it feels that way. Once I'm out of the car, he releases my hand and shoves me behind him. “Let me handle the talking and keepat my back the whole time. Just because Zacharias says we can trust these guys, doesn't mean we can.”
“They helped his son, didn't they?”
“Yeah, but it doesn't make us friends. Men like this are unpredictable. They can be helpful one minute and have a gun at your head the next.”
“Antonio is it?” one of the men on the porch says as we get closer.
