She scrunched up her face. “That’s debatable.”
I cut a piece of it with the fork and stuck it in my mouth. I paused before I really started to taste it. I looked up at her and she looked down at me, making the weirdest fucking face, like a puffer fish.
“What do you think?” She tucked her lips in. She was trying not to laugh.
I forced myself to swallow. If I knew what a cardboard cake tasted like, I was sure it tasted better than that one. “That the first time you baked a cake?”
She nodded. “Very first.”
“Good.” My voice was strained.
She pointed at me, full-out laughing. “You are a terrible, terrible liar, Capo!” She laughed even louder.
“You must’ve forgotten a few things. Like milk, eggs, and butter. What did you do, just add flour? You got any water in the pockets of that robe?” My voice had turned rough from the tightening in my throat and the dry thing she called cake.
She laughed herself out of the room, coming back with a bottle of cold water for me. I chugged it while her wild laughter turned into a satisfied grin.
She walked around the room, studying all of my equipment. “What’s all of this?” she finally asked.
“I do private security on the side.”
“You creep on people.”
“You could say that.”
“Do people pay you to creep?”
“Some of them.”
“Ooh. I see.” She gazed at one of the monitors. “Is that your building?”
“Our building,” I said. “Look.” I pointed to a spot on the screen and then zoomed in. Giovanni walked around the place, making his rounds. He had no idea we were on this side. He assumed we were in our suite on that side. He would always assume that.
“You’re not going to do that to me, right?” Her eyes narrowed on him as he pulled his pants from his ass crack. Giovanni was the ugliest son of a bitch I could find with enough experience to take care of my wife when she wasn’t beside me. “Be a peeping creeper?”
“Depends.” I sat back in my seat, studying her features in the glow of the monitors. She was refreshing. Something different.
“On?” She opened her eyes wide, something she did when she wanted me to continue or expand.
“How well you behave.”
“I’m a good girl.” She came to stand in front of me, crossing her arms over her chest, which had disappeared under the massive robe. “But you know what they say about good girls? They never make history.”
She closed the gap between us and reached out to touch my tie. I had untied it but didn’t take it off. She moved slowly, watching as the black material slithered out from around my collar, and then she set it on the desk. I’d rolled my sleeves up to my elbows earlier, and using her finger, she traced one of my veins, concentrating as she did.
We both became quiet, and when her eyes rose, we stared at each other.
“Do you need something, Mariposa?”
She shook her head. “I was getting lonely. This is a big place. I’m not used to it yet. I was wondering when you were coming to bed.”
I lifted my eyebrows and she looked away for a second, at one of the many monitors. “To sleep,” she added softly. Then she started to fiddle with the ties of the robe. I could feel her anxiety. She was preparing to either say something or make a move.
“Don’t do that with me,” I said.
“What? This?” She twirled a tie, making it go around and around, smiling a little as she did.
My hand came out to stop her. “Yes.Agitarsi. Fidget.Don’t do that with me.”
