I give Michelle a smile, feeling mighty impressed with myself and my ability to hold it together even under Angelo’s penetrating gaze. Well, to be fair, my back was to him most of the time, but still.
“I don’t care who you’re with, Daphne. Just be careful and be smart.”
Careful—I had been careful. Leo was careful because he knew there were eyes on us. Smart. That was something entirely different. If I were smart, I wouldn’t have agreed to the one date, and I most definitely wouldn’t have banged him, officially becoming a member of the mile-high club.
I stalk back to the bar, grabbing my purse and phone from under the countertop. “I’m always smart, Angelo. Always,” I lie.
I march out of the room, making my exit, and head to the alley. I’m already listening to Leo’s voice mail when the door slams behind me.
Daphne. I can’t stop thinking about you. You said goodbye, but I know you didn’t mean it. I’ll be at your place tonight. Don’t shoot me.
I can’t wipe the smile off my face, but then I remember the possibility of one of us winding up dead.
Me: It’s too dangerous. Someone saw us at the airport.
I tap my foot, waiting for him to text me back, but when nothing comes, I take a step back inside. I’m not even three feet down the hallway when my phone finally rings.
“What do you mean someone saw us?” I can hear the worry in Leo’s voice.
“One of my brother’s friends works at the airport. He ratted on me.”
“Fuck,” he hisses.
“I don’t think we should see each other again, Leo. It’s too dangerous. You were careful, and someone still saw us.”
“Do they know who I am?”
“Since the guy works at the airport, I’m sure he can figure it out.”
“The plane’s registered in the company name.”
“And which company would that be?”
He still hasn’t told me much about his work besides the fact that he’s in no way involved with his father’s business. I wasn’t going to push the subject, but since he brought the topic up, I think, what the hell. Why not?
“Excellence Hotels.”
“LiketheExcellence Hotels?”
My brother’s wedding was at the Excellence. Now, the reason for Leo to be at the hotel made perfect sense and how he knew which couple was celebrating in the grand ballroom that evening too.
He wasn’t stalking my family, after all.
“Yes,” he replies.
“Are you, like, the CEO or something?”
“I own the hotel chain, Daphne.”
My mouth hangs open. I knew Leo was wealthy, I knew Leo had class, but never did I think he was the owner of one of the biggest and most elite hotel chains in the country.
“Well, okay,” I say, still in shock from the truth bomb he just dropped on me. “We still shouldn’t see each other again. When I said goodbye, I meant it.”
“We’ll talk about it tonight,” he says and hangs up.
I gawk at my phone in disbelief.
He hung up on me.
