She smacks my arm. “Don’t be silly. You know I can kick his ass all by myself.” She laughs.
“That ain’t no lie.”
Daphne and Michelle could bring any man to his knees. Lucio and I made sure of it. We taught them how to fight dirty so they could defend themselves against any asshole on the streets. That was our duty as Daphne’s brother, and since Michelle didn’t have anyone at home to teach her those skills, we took her under our wing too.
“I better go. I want to talk to Daphne before I catch my plane. I’m only here until tomorrow to pick up some last-minute things I left behind.”
I lean forward and kiss her cheek, saying goodbye to another person in my life. “Don’t be a stranger, kid. You’ll always be a part of our family.”
“I hope you find some peace, Angelo,” she whispers in my ear before kissing my cheek.
“I have,” I tell her as I release her.
We walk toward the booth where my mother, Daphne, and Delilah are sitting, but there’s no Tilly.
“Where’s Tilly?”
They look at each other before turning their gazes on me.
“She said she’d be here in a minute, but that was a while ago.” Ma shrugs. “I’m sure she’ll be here soon.”
Daphne pats the leather seat next to her and motions to Michelle. “Sit.”
I peer out the windows, but the street is empty. My stomach knots because something’s off. “I’m going to check on her.”
“God, I hope we didn’t scare her off,” Delilah says as I start to walk away.
I back up, not liking how that sounded because I know exactly how these three ladies can be. I narrow my eyes on Ma. “What happened?”
Ma takes a slow sip of her beer, staring at me over the rim with wide eyes. I cross my arms and wait, because I need answers, and I’m not going anywhere until I get them.
“Nothing.” She doesn’t look me in the eyes.
I lift an eyebrow. “Nothing?”
“The girls just told her about the virility of the Gallo men.”
“Fuck,” I hiss, worrying she’s been scared off by a day of shopping and Gallo gossip.
“Oh, come on.” Daphne rolls her eyes. “She was laughing. We didn’t traumatize her. She’s probably busy with something. We did monopolize her time all day.”
I glance toward the doorway again. “I’ll be back. So help me God…”
“He’s such a worrywart,” Daphne says as I push through the front door and leave.
I pull on the door to the bakery, but it’s locked and the lights are off. “Fuck,” I groan as I peer up at the sky and close my eyes.
I storm back into the bar, ignoring my mother as she calls out to me and head into the office to grab my keys. There’s no text from Tilly, but I send her one as I head toward the parking lot.
Me: Where are you?
I stare at my phone as I walk toward my car, hoping she’ll reply, but she doesn’t. The message doesn’t even change to read. There’s radio silence, and her car’s missing.
“Angelo,” Daphne calls out from the doorway as I climb into my car. “Where are you going?”
“She’s gone.” I slam my door, not needing to say anything else.
My hands are shaking as I turn the key in the ignition. I place my phone in my lap and pull out onto the street, heading toward her place. To add to my aggravation, traffic is a bitch, and there’s an accident on Western Avenue.
