I swat at the air. “Fine, fine. I’m fine. Just really humid.” I wipe my brow with a napkin and fan it out, pretending I’m hot.
Leo’s near the water. I wish he’d back away. I have no idea if he can swim, and he doesn’t have a bathing suit. I shield my eyes from the sun, and that’s when I spot her. That ugly, sadistic bitch. She walks toward Leo, holding something in her hand.
I leap out of the chair and sprint across the sand as fast as my feet will carry me.
When I get to Leo, I stand in front of him like a living wall. Okay, so compared to her, I’m a small living wall, but if she wants to approach this little boy, she’ll have to go through me. She can take me. I suffer no delusions when faced with a woman who can kick my ass.
But Alessio sent the cops after us, so I doubt she’ll do anything stupid.
The woman slows down as she approaches us. From a distance of only a few feet, she says, “You’re not alone.” As she walks by, she bumps my shoulder. “Your uncle will pay for this.”
Oh no.
She walks past us so none of the cops pick up on our exchange, but I can’t stop myself from turning and rushing up to walk beside her. “No, please.”
“Get away from me, bitch,” she says. From the pocket of her large brown raggedy dress, she shows me the butt of her gun. “Get back there.”
“Bathroom. Meet me in the bathroom.”
I stop, turn back, and almost run into Leo.
He’s looking up at me, his airplane tucked under his arm. “Who was that?”
“I don’t know.”
“But you talked to her.”
“I asked her if she wanted half of my burger.”
“Why?”
“She looked hungry.”
Leo frowns. “What did she say?”
“She’s a vegetarian.”
He bites his lip. “We have leftover spaghetti and marinara at the house.”
I run a hand through his thick black hair. “Next time we see her, we’ll offer that.”
“You ready to go home?” Blue eyes squint up at me.
“Actually, I’m going to stay for a while longer, but I’d like you to go home and nap.” I take his hand and walk him over to the nearest cop.
“Hi, there,” I say.
The cop’s eyes widen, and he says something into the earpiece. Before I can blink, the equivalent of a SWAT team pours out of an ice cream truck and surrounds me and Leo. A tall, broad-shouldered man with a full sleeve of tattoos on his left arm approaches me. Midthirties, handsome in a cold, no-bullshit kind of way.
“Is there a problem?” he asks in a deep, baritone voice.
I stare at my reflection in his black shades. “I’m wondering if you could call the island’s lord for me. Tell him his governess begs an audience.”
I expect the man to refuse, but he nods and dials. “Mr. Angelini, your governess approached us and wants a word.”
Nice to see the man knew exactly who I was referring to as the island’s lord.
“That’s what she said, yes. She saidyour governess,” the man confirms. He hands me the phone, a smirk firmly planted on his face.
