“No. Your mother already bought him one and will kill you if you ruin her surprise. You leave the shipment alone. Capisce?” The words and his tone make it clear he’s in on the fentanyl.
Even though I was ninety-nine percent sure, hearing his voice makes it real.
“Okay, I understand. Bye.” Heart heavy, I hang up and when I turn, Wheels is right behind me, his brows raised in a question mark.”
I attempt a bright smile, stand and point. “There’s coffee and donuts in the kitchen. Want some?”
He steps in closer. “First, tell me the truth. Who were you talking to?”
“Vinny.” I race into the other room, take two cups from a stack on the counter, and pour out some dark liquid.
As I hand it to him, he glowers so I cup his cheeks. “Listen up. You were the one who ordered the damn dolls with my phone. I needed him to think Paolo did it, not me and not you. What was so wrong with that?”
Wheels grunts, nods, and fills a couple plates with eggs and a donut. “So, did he buy it?”
“I think so. Mostly.” I bite my lower lip. With my uncle, you never can tell.
“Rose?” He tucks my chin, sending chills down my back.
“I’m not sure, okay? He sent a warning. He said family or not, the dolls need to be paid for.” I help him put silverware, mugs, and the rest of our breakfast on a tray and follow him up the stairs.
After opening our bedroom door, he turns and catches my gaze. “Your uncle’s a bullying piece of shit.”
“He thought he was threatening Paolo, not me.” In our room, I cross my legs and dig into the scrambled eggs.
Mouth full, I try to explain. “Everything sort of backfired on me.”
Wheels sighs. “Just tell me the BIC code so we can find the container and go home.”
Placing my fork on my plate, I set it aside and count to ten. By the time I finish, I no longer want to wring his handsome, adorable, kissable neck.
I cup his unshaved cheeks, capture his chocolate brown eyes, and lean in until our noses touch. “Read my lips. I. Can’t. Remember.”
To emphasize, I raise my brows, let go of his face, and throw all ten fingers at him in a gangsta gesture used on TikTok.
When I cross my arms and tilt my head, he breaks out in laughter. “Okay. I believe you.”
Returning to my meal, I recall all the reality TV I watched. “How about we find someone to hypnotize me?”
He shakes his head side-to-side. “A modern myth. Hypnosis generally doesn’t reveal anything but false memories.”
“Well, howcanI remember then? It’s so damn frustrating to know I have a number in my brain, and it refuses to come out.”
Wheels sighs. “The subconscious is weird. Maybe, at some level, you don’t want your uncle to be caught.”
“I suppose… Is it such a bad thing? To have people fall asleep rather than overdose? Isn’t it better?”
“Rose, you’re doing it again.”
“What?”
“Trying to find any way to redeem him.”
“You’re right but you have no idea how hard it is to walk the razor-thin edge of living in a crime family yet staying on the right side of the law. Sam does it, but she has a police chief for a father. I do not have that luxury.”
“Let’s finish our breakfast and not think about it for a while.”
He charms me with tales of being a kid in Delaware. Going to the beach, living close to the base, getting into trouble. He avoids his life as a SEAL which I suppose isn’t strange. Not too many vets want to talk about their dark days.
