She stepped out and gazed at the small navy-blue sedan. One of Michael’s men, Joaquin, exited the car and gave a nod.
“Hey, Nick. There are fresh clothes and groceries in the car. I’ll drive the SUV back to Michael’s.”
“Thanks, man. The plate?”
“The plate on the sedan traces back to a woman in a nursing home in Queens. You should be good.”
Nodding, I turned to Alexis. “Let’s go.”
She lifted her chin with the haughty demeanor I was very quickly getting used to, and strode toward the car. It was already dusk, since the sun set before five o’clock in mid-October, but I could still make out the shape of her ass in her tight jeans. It was perfectlyround and full enough that I could imagine spreading my palms over each cheek...spreading her apart as I slid my fingers to her sweet little—
“Nick?”
Sighing, I shook my head. My new ward had a gorgeous body. Too bad it was attached to her bratty mouth.
“Sorry, zoned out there for a second. Thanks, Joaquin.”
“Stay safe.”
I climbed behind the wheel and glanced at Alexis as she tapped away on her phone.
“I’m not sitting in the back this time,” she said, her eyes glued to the keyboard.
I studied her dark, wavy hair as it fell across her shoulders and the firm set of her chin as she refused to look at me.
“The whole point of me guarding you is that you’re notseen,” I said, starting the car and putting on my seatbelt.
“I trust you to protect me,” she said, finally looking at me and sarcastically batting her eyelashes. “I mean, you’re huge and are obviously a badass with all those tattoos.” She patted my arm. “You’ve got this, boss.”
I pulled out, glancing around to make sure we weren’t followed. To be extra cautious, I would drive on side roads and take several detours on the way to the safehouse. It was imperative that John’s men couldn’t find us.
“Are you always such a little brat?” I asked as I pulled out of the tunnel and onto the two-lane road.
Alexis sighed and her shoulders slumped as she finally stopped tapping on her phone. “Probably. I’m kind of difficult. Mom says I could drive a saint to worship the devil if I tried hard enough.”
My lips curved against my will. Although I found her to be a pain in my ass, I did admire her ability to admit it. Most people woulddeny it, but there was something refreshing about accepting your flaws.
“Well, at least you’re honest,” I said, finally pulling off of the side streets and onto the Southern State Parkway. “That goes a long way to a Caruso.”
Alexis reached over and turned on the radio. She searched for a station until finding one that played 90’s grunge.
“Fuck yes,” she said, leaning back against the headrest. “I love Nirvana.”
“Aren’t you too young to know who they are?”
“I’m twenty-two and have this really cool thing called the internet, so yeah, I know who they are.”
Aaaaandthe snark was back. My nostrils flared as I silently asked for patience.
“It’s not like you’re old enough either. I mean, what are you, like, thirty-five?”
“I’m thirty,” I said, shooting her a glare. “And I like Nirvana too.”
“Well, great.” Crossing her arms, she flashed a sardonic smile. “We have exactly one thing in common.”
Rather than telling her to shut her smart mouth before I did it for her, I turned up the radio and drove the rest of the way in silence. Several minutes later, we entered a quiet, nondescript neighborhood in Massapequa. I pulled up to the second house from the corner and drove into the driveway. Hopping out, I unlocked the two padlocks on the gate and pulled it open before sliding back behind the wheel and driving through.
Once we were parked, I closed the driveway gate and reapplied the locks from the inside. The fence that surrounded the modest home was over six-feet tall and provided excellent privacy. Alexisstepped out of the car and stretched, and I diverted my eyes from the cleavage that bulged underneath her V-neck sweater.
