“Ad, who was that?”Mom asks behind me, voice tight with concern.
I shut the door, lock it, and force myself to breathe.
“Wrong house,” I say too quickly, too brightly.
Mom’s eyes narrow, but I barrel past her before she can ask anything else.I will not let tonight be destroyed.
Bella has worked too hard, and this play is a big deal.She deserves her moment.
I’ll deal with it.
Later.
When I’m not shaking.
When my heart isn’t hammering so hard it hurts.
But one thing is already crystal clear to me.Giovanni Russo isn’t going away.
And neither is the fear curling like smoke in my chest.
ChapterTen
Nathan
I’m late.
In my defense, disguising yourself as a very tall, very grumpy pile of laundry takes time.
I tug my skull cap lower, adjust the sunglasses—even though it’s dark inside—and pull my black hoodie straight.
Jeans, work boots.Nothing flashy.Nothing rockstar.
Nathan Thorn, superstar, is dead tonight.
Just a guy in a crowd.
At least, that’s the plan.
Yeah, yeah, I’m aware the whole grand gesture idea is dumb as fuck.
No one’s going to swoon because I showed up incognito to a middle school play.
But once I said it out loud, I couldn’tnotshow up.
And hell, I wanted an excuse to see her.
To see Adrianna without her knowing I’m here.
To catch her unguarded.
To breathe the same air for five minutes.
Pathetic?Probably.
But here I am anyway.
The drama teacher—older guy, beard big enough to house a family of squirrels—is rambling onstage about the “innovative modern adaptation” of The Tempest, and the audience is eating it up.
