He was supposed to go to the warehouse with me, but canceled at the last minute. I’m glad now that he wasn’t there.
“Rough night?” he asks.
“Is it obvious?” I wave to Mandy at the bar. I work here, and I pretty much never deviate from my double shot cappuccino, so she gives me a nod to let me know she’s already working on it.
“Only because I know you. You went to that warehouse, didn’t you? I told you to wait for me.”
“I don’t really want to talk about it.” And I don’t want to think about how things could have gone if he was there.
“Did something happen?”
Mandy calls out my name and I go to the coffee bar, grab my drink and hand her a $5 bill. “Thanks.” Back at the table, I take a sip. “Can I ask you a question?”
His eyebrows rise. “Sounds serious.”
“It is. Do you know a man named Sergio Benedetti?”
Drew all but spits out his coffee. “Benedetti?” he asks too loudly.
I glance at all the faces suddenly turned in our direction, and lower my voice. “Can you say it any louder?”
“As in son of Franco Benedetti? Next in line to take over the family business?”
“That’s him.”
“Why?”
“I kind of ran into him last night.”
“You kind of ran into him? How do you kind of run into a man like that?”
“That’s the long story.”
“Nat—”
“Don’t push. I don’t want to talk about it.”
“You mean at the warehouse?” His eyes go huge.
“Let’s just say he was there conducting business.”
“Nat—”
“It’s fine. I’m fine.” I’m not fine though.
Drew eyes my new phone. I should have scratched it up or something. He knows I could never afford a brand new, latest model iPhone.
“What exactly happened?” Drew asks.
“I really can’t say, Drew. Please don’t push me.”
“Did you see—”
“Listen, I just want to know about his family. I tried to Google, but I can’t find much about him. I know you hear stuff.” Drew works at a gentlemen’s club. It’s a high-end strip joint and he’s mentioned the clientele sometimes includes men from the local crime families.
“So you want to know about Sergio in particular, not the family.”
I nod, bite the inside of my cheek.
