She looked petrified, and her dainty features looked smaller against the guy.
They were standing at the front door entrance.
“How long will you be on the premises?” The guy asked her. His tone was rough. It added to the hardness in his composure.
“I planned to be here all day.” Millicent answered. “Mr. Rossi has a special diet. After yesterday, I have to make sure he gets the proper nutrition.”
“Give me your bag and spread your arms out,” the guy ordered.
That was where I needed to step in.
“Hey, give her a break.” I walked up to them and squared my shoulders off with him.
I must have looked comical because I was just a little taller than Millicent.
The guy laughed and regarded me with observant eyes. “Mrs. Boss, this is how things have to be.”
“She doesn’t need to spread her arms and be treated like some criminal. I know her.”
“Right, word has it that you knew the other two guys from yesterday too. Word also has it that they wouldn’t hesitate to kill you.” He smirked, and the dimple in his left cheek softened his harshness and focused the attention on his sculpted looks.
“That was different, Mr…?”
“The names Dante, and no, Mrs. Boss, it wasn’t different.” The trace of amusement left his eyes. “If you want her in the house, she needs to do as I say. Now.”
Oh my God, what the hell? This was my house. Well…
It was Dad’s house.
“It’s okay. I have nothing to hide,” Millicent offered. She held out her bag and gave it to Dante.
He searched through it and motioned his head for her to spread her arms. She did, and I had to endure the embarrassment of him doing a scan of her and the whole search procedure of patting down the length of her to see if she was carrying a gun.
Millicent, of all the people. She was like Aunt May from Spiderman. And like a woman of that caliber who was in her late sixties, she looked embarrassed too.
“All clear, Mrs. Boss.” He looked at me again.
“Why are you calling me that?” I challenged.
He laughed. “Aren’t you?”
I linked my arm with Millicent’s and ushered her away. We stopped in the kitchen, and I would have started talking to her, but Claudius came out of the pantry carrying a dead squirrel. I shrieked when I saw it.
“What the fuck are you doing in here with that?” I winced.
“Language, Miss Amelia,” Millicent scolded. “Your mother would be appalled to hear you sound like some fish wife.”
“Yes, I’d bet she fucking well would. This dead fucker might too,” Claudius cooed, smiling and waving the squirrel’s tail at Millicent.
She frowned and walked away from us.
“That is disgusting.” I folded my arms under my breasts.
“It’s protein. I don’t know what the fuck kind of diet Raphe is on, but there’s no meat in the house.”
I shook my head at him. “You killed a squirrel?” I couldn’t believe it. Nausea pulled at my stomach and I had to focus on not heaving.
“Man has to eat.” He winked at me and placed the squirrel on the counter.
