“Have you checked on Sailor this morning?” Dad asked as he sipped his coffee. It was almost as if he could read my mind.
I sat across from him, eating my breakfast and scrolling on my phone. Gio thought he might have found something, but he wanted to verify its authenticity before divulging it to me.
“No, why would I?”
“After last night, why wouldn't you?” he countered.
“Feel free to check on her yourself.”
He made a disgruntled noise. “Maybe if I didn't get winded after five steps, I would.”
I feared a headache was brewing behind my eyes. “Fine, I’ll check on her.”
Setting my phone down carefully, I pushed back my chair and walked over to the adjoining door. I didn't like the feeling in my gut as I knocked and waited with my hands in my pockets. It felt entirely too much like anticipation.
Sailor opened the door with a scowl on her face. She was fully dressed, her hair pulled back in its usual bun. No traces of a lack of sleep showed on her face, something I couldn't claim myself.
“Yes?”
I cleared my throat. “Dad wanted me to make sure you're okay this morning.”
“I’m fine.” Leaning around the door, she made eye contact with my father, who smiled and lifted his mug in salute. “Thank you, Benito. I’ll come take your vitals just as soon as I’ve had breakfast.”
“Could’ve just as easily eaten with us,” he said loudly as she closed the door.
Returning to my seat, I hurried to finish my eggs before they got cold.
“What did you do to her last night?” Dad asked, his tone accusatory.
I felt my shoulders stiffen. “What makes you think I did anything to her?”
“She’s bristly this morning.”
“Yeah, well, I technically invaded her privacy by using the spare key card to let myself into her room. She should be spitting mad.” My phone pinged, and I picked it up, but I wanted to finish the conversation with my father before I checked it.
“It’s not like you broke in for a bad reason, but to see if she was being attacked or something, for Christ’s sake.”
That was definitely a headache I was feeling, and it wouldn’t go away any time soon. “We wouldn't be worried about that if she wasn't associated with us, now would we?”
He scoffed. “She needed checking on, that’s all. Scared me to death with her hollering.”
“And now she's embarrassed to be seen after having a nightmare. Can’t blame her.”
Dad drained his coffee. “Still, you should do something nice for her today.”
Putting my phone down with a snap, I barked, “No, I shouldn't.”
“What’s gotten into you, son? I thought you’d finally realized she’s a good person.”
“Yeah, that’s the problem.” Pushing my plate away, I said, “She’s a good person, and we’re fucking criminals.”
Dad frowned at me. “When has your occupation ever stopped you from being with a woman?”
“First off, stop trying to push us together, for fuck’s sake.” Standing up, I leaned over and braced my hands on the table, meeting his gaze to make sure he knew I was serious. “Second, other families’ daughters or groupies are a hell of a lot different than that woman in there, who is cloaked in scruples.”
“I just hate that she’s alone, that’s all. I’m not trying to force you into anything.”
“Don’t use that sweet old grandpa routine on me.” Snatching up my phone as it went off again, I added, “Gio has something for me. I’ll be back later.”
