“Yes, I even get them on my shoulders and chest sometimes. Kate and I spent three weeks on a beach in Mexico one summer, and I was covered in them.”
I’m naturally paler than my mother, my abuela, and Rafa, who all have brown skin. But contrary to my dad, who’s as pale as a ghost, I tan easily and usually catch up with them every summer. Then it slowly fades during the winter months, and I have to start all over.
“As much as I’d love to see more freckles on you, I don’t want to lose you in thirty years to skin cancer,” he says, ever the pragmatist.
“How do you manage to be romantic even when you’re being a pain in my butt?” I laugh.
“It’s a talent. Now, do you want some sunscreen, or are you still planning on making me a widower?”
I roll my eyes with a sigh. “Alright, slather me with it.”
Resigned, I extend my arms toward him so he can spray the lotion on my skin. With efficient moves, he works it in, shielding me from the big bad sun. Then, I offer him my face, for which he shows a little more tenderness. Once my front is done, I turn around, swaying my leg over the truck to offer him my shoulders. This time, instead of simply spreading the cream on the skin, he gives me a full massage, mindful of my sensitive shoulder. With my eyes closed, I relax and enjoy the impromptu attention, my head slightly bobbing with his motions. Once he’s done, he presses his lips on the nape of my neck, accessible thanks to my tied-up hair.
“All done.”
“Thanks. I’ll definitely wear more sunscreen if that’s what I get every time.” Twisting around, I notice he’s in the same position as me, straddling the tree. “Do you want me to return the favor?”
His sweater is off, too, and his powerful arms are exposed to the sun where his T-shirt doesn’t cover them. “I’m good. I applied some of it before we left.”
“How serious of you, Coleman.”
“That might be the one good thing my mother taught me.”
I grunt in displeasure at the mention and move to press my back against his front. He leans back as well, and we remain like this for a while, with me half lying over him, enjoying the sun, the pure air, and the sounds of the wind in the leaves and birds in the trees.
Contrary to the other abstinent periods we’ve known, I’m not actually missing him. I miss the slex, of course, but in all truth, we’re the closest we’ve ever been, bound together so tightly he feels like a part of me more than ever.
“I found out who put out the kill order on Nammota,” he confesses, pulling me out of my peaceful state.
“Really?” I’ve been considering getting into that, but I haven’t found the mental strength for it yet.
“Yes. I don’t know how we’ll get ourselves out of this, Andrea.”
“Who is it?”
“Norman Becker.”
The name is so familiar that I instantly remember who that is. He’s among the twenty-five rotten CEOs I stole from. He’s the asshole from StarCare who made Nammota famous years ago. The person who cheated Oli’s family out of their rightful insurance money. He’s a devil of a man, and I should have known he was behind this.
“How did you find out?” I ask.
“Whoever helped him with it is good. Very good. But not good enough to erase everything. I followed the crumbs left behind and found a name—Zane Horvat. He’s been arrested a few times for petty crimes. Done some prison time, too. So I found a few mugshots.”
“And?”
“He’s the man with the snake tattoo.”
I shudder, my body having a guttural reaction at the mere mention. I’ve been dreaming of that man, of his tattoo, his cold, dead stare… Or rather, I’ve been having nightmares, waking up in a cold sweat to vivid images of Lex and me with a bullet somewhere in our bodies. It took me days to shake off the sight of Lex with a gaping wound right between his eyes.
“How did that lead you to Becker?” I wonder, dismissing my unease.
“I looked into his bank account, which led me to payments from whoever must be his employer. Becker’s name is at the end of the thread.”
“If I recall correctly, you went after him three separate times, yes?”
“Yes. I knew him personally. He was a friend of my father.”
“Holy fuck. Really?!”
