Marie thought it was a little tacky to have the tub in the room with them but wouldn’t turn down a chance to get in it. Her muscles ached all over, but Matteo should stay out of it with his leg, so maybe she’d just have a shower instead.
“She didn’t bother to send in the paperwork and the accountant didn’t either. We’ll use that one until we figure out if it’s safe to go back to New York yet.”
“Alright, boss. I’ll go pick us up some food and come back in a little while.”
“Yeah, she’ll probably be hungry. Bring plenty of water back too, she’ll be thirsty.”
“Will do.”
He left and Matteo came to the other side of the bed and slipped in. “You awake, Marie?”
His New York accent wasn’t as pronounced when he was in public, but sometimes, when he was with her, it came back. She found it endearing and turned to hug him with a grin. “I am. I’m alive, I’m fine, and as you said, thirsty.”
“I thought you would be, so I got some bottles of water for you at the grocery store earlier. There’s juice too if you want that. I have apples, tangerines, and some chips to snack on until Anton gets back if you want them. He’s getting us all the special over at that bar and grill across the street.”
“That sounds good. How’s your leg?” She turned to face him properly and cuddled close.
“It’s sore, but I’ll live. Just a scratch really.” He brushed it off, but she thought he was brave.
“It could have ended up anywhere, and all you cared about was getting me in the car. You saved me, again.”
“I protected you, it’s my job.” He shrugged off her praise and slid his hand down her back. “I’m just glad it was me that got the graze and not you. I couldn’t live with myself if you’d been hit.”
“Not to mention you’d have gone crazy on the guy.” She knew him enough now to know that was true.
“You are correct.” He dotted a kiss on her nose before he left the bed. “Tonight’s entertainment includes crappy television, a game of cards, or reading. I’d like us to keep all electronics off for a while. There’s a store across the street that sells second-hand books if you want to have a look later.”
“That sounds good. What about clothes?” She looked down at her jeans and wondered how long she could wear them before they started to smell grungy.
“That we’ve already taken care of.” Matteo pointed to the closet and she went to it. She found a new pack of cotton panties in her size, a couple of bras, a pack of socks, three sweaters, four pairs of jeans, a couple of sweatshirts, and shoes - all cheap but serviceable. They’d work until they figured out their next move.
“Great.” She found another bag and found her favorite kind of fleece pajamas, a couple of nightgowns, and some flannel pajamas too. “Thanks.”
“I see you like your sleepwear, at least.” He sat down at the table and looked at her. “I’m really sorry about this.”
“Don’t be Matteo, it’s not your fault, it really isn’t. I think we know who is behind this, don’t we? There’s only one person smart enough to track Anton, only one person that would know you’d bring him with you: Celeste.”
Pain crossed his face in a dark flash, but he frowned and then finally looked up, resigned. “It has to be her.”
“It does.” She felt terrible for him, but it was true. Celeste was the only one that could figure all of that out.
“Why don’t you get a shower, wash all that smoke off you, and I’ll wait for Anton, okay? I got you some shampoo, conditioner, a toothbrush and toothpaste earlier, when you were in zombie mode.” He chuckled and she glared at him.
“I was exhausted after all of that. I barely even remember being at the store. It’s a good thing you were awake.”
“I was tired too, babe, but you’ve never experienced something like that.”
“Have you?” she asked quickly, curious.
“Not the fire part, but the being shot at part? A time or two. Which is part of the reason I’m wanting to get out of this game.” The way lines appeared at the side of his eyes, and the tightness of his mouth was enough to tell her how thoughts of his past troubled him.
She nodded and walked into the bathroom, her new fuzzy pajamas in hand. She had a brush in her bag so she could brush her hair out later, but that wasn’t what was on her mind. His aunt had put him in a life that meant he’d get shot at. What kind of woman would do that to her own nephew?
19
“I want you to go to Italy, find my aunt, and find out if she’s the one behind this contract,” Matteo said into the phone. He was outside of their hotel room, while Marie was in the shower, cleaning off the smoke and filth from the night before.
“Sure, Matteo. I can do that,” Petey said from the other end of the line as Matteo breathed in relief. He wasn’t sure how the other man would feel about the job.
“You don’t have to do anything, just find out what you can. She’ll have started the contract over there if she is the one behind it. Someone there will know.” Matteo sighed, exhaustion was creeping in, even though he’d had a nap earlier. It had been a long day, and it still wasn’t over. Not yet.
“No problem, Matteo. Anything for you, you know that. I’ll get a plane out tonight. Just tell me where she is, or where you think she is, and I’ll find my way there.”
“Thanks, Petey.” He gave the man the details that he could, which wasn’t much, just the name of the town and the villa where she was staying. “If you need to, get some money from Penelope. If not, just turn in an invoice to her when you’re done, whatever you need to do. I’ll pay for it all.”
“Got ya, boss. You be careful out there, alright?” Petey sounded concerned, which Matteo understood, this was a very dicey situation. He and Petey had worked together for a long time. He’d learned to trust him, and the man worked every single day to ensure that trust stayed rock solid.
“Will do, Petey. You take care, and let me know as soon as you find out anything.” Matteo ended the call just as Marie opened the door to their room.
“You didn’t get me a coat.” She stood there with her hair dripping down her back, wrapped in one of the white towels provided by the motel, obviously confused.
“Fuck, I’m sorry baby.” He smacked his hand against his forehead and ushered her back in, out of the cold. “We’ll get you one tomorrow, I promise.”
“Okay. I was about to dry off when it hit me, you didn’t get me a coat.”
“I didn’t get me one either. Anton managed to grab more than we did, so he has a coat, but it just never entered my head. I’m really sorry.” He felt completely stupid for forgetting the one thing they’d need the most right now. How could he forget that? People would notice if they continued to walk around in freezing cold Canada without coats.
Not like the gunshots or the American plates on the car would draw enough attention, he had to go and forget to get the coats, too.
“It’s alright. Like you said, we’ll do it tomorrow. Sit down, let me look at your leg.” She tucked the towel back in between her breasts when she sat down and that distracted him while she pulled his leg up into her lap. He was completely engrossed in watching a bead of water slide down from her hair, straight into her cleavage when she ripped the bandage off of his leg.