Chapter 14: Chapter 14

SANTINO

“Don’t go out without an escort, not even for food,” Elio ordered as Santino walked him back to the door. “Is the heater working?”

“Yes,” Santino said, lifting his shirt slightly so only Elio could see. He didn’t want Presley to know he had a gun on him.

“Have fun, boss.”

Santino shut and locked the door behind him. Elio had set his overnight bag behind the chair when he came in so it was out of plain sight. Santino had debated bringing it in earlier, but he didn’t want Presley to think that he was assuming anything.

He headed back to the kitchen, thoughts on the task his men were handling for him. They’d been watching his uncle all week, trying to figure out his next move. He was clearly a threat to Santino’s position, and even he wasn’t sure how far Abramo would go to get what he wanted.

Presley was watching him as he came back to the kitchen. She was stunning. He was beyond grateful she hadn’t told him to leave when he’d come in. He was looking forward to spending whatever time he could with her.

“How much time is left on the casserole?” Santino asked.

“A few minutes,” she said, sitting down at the table. “Maybe we should—”

A knock interrupted.

“Press?” Ted called out as he opened the door.

“In here!” Presley called.

“Hey, dickhead,” Ted said with a glance at Santino.

Santino laughed at the nickname the husbands had given him. Presley looked between the two men.

“It’s all good, sweetheart. Just wanted to come and say hi, make sure he was groveling.”

“He is.” She turned red. “I have something for you!”

She left the room and came back with a couple of bags. She handed him a tall bottle wrapped in a pretty bag. Ted opened it up and squealed when he saw it. He pulled out a bottle of Mexican vanilla.

“I love you!” He slapped her lightly on the arm. “You little bitch. You just want some muffins.”

“I’m contributing.” She grinned at him. “I have something for Dan, too.”

She handed him a larger bag.

“We love you. What did you get Dan? It’s heavy.”

“A handmade chip and dip server. It’s hand-painted and gorgeous. It will go with that new red table runner he got for the patio.”

“He will love it! And what did you bring for yourself?”

“Tequila. A really big bottle for our next game night,” she said.

“Oh god! We’re going to get the cops called on us again.” Ted grinned.

They started laughing, and Santino was curious to hear how game night involved the cops.

“You should warn this one.” He nodded at Santino.

“Yeah, I’m sure game night with us is at the top of his list,” Presley said.

Santino frowned. He caught the veiled push away. She sounded like she thought he was going to disappear again. He’d make sure she knew he was here to stay. The oven timer went off.

“I’ll get it,” Santino said, moving around them and pulling the casserole out of the oven.

“I’ll let you kids eat,” Ted said. “Thank you for the goodies, Press. Love you.”

“Of course! Thank you for leaving me dinner.”

He kissed her cheek and gave Santino a wink, shutting the door behind him. Presley followed him out and returned a moment later.

“I set the alarm. I don’t want Elio to worry that you don’t have your bodyguards here.”

“Thank you.” He wouldn’t tell her he felt better knowing she had some security. “Tell me about Mexico,” Santino said as he served them both.

She described the resort and how thrilled the owner and board were with her plan while she poured them some water. They sat down at the table and ate while she talked about the small campaign she launched while she was there. It had already garnered several hundred thousand followers for the resort.

She had picked up her phone and was showing him pictures, but Santino hardly took notice of them. He was too distracted by how close she was sitting.

“We met some interesting people there, but it was good to get away from the resort. Tally and I went sightseeing on our one day off. We saw some of the most amazing ruins and ate the most delicious tacos from a street vendor.”

“That sounds like a great trip.” Santino hesitated. “So, what are your plans for the rest of the evening?” he asked, hoping she would let him stay.

“You don’t need to stick around, Sonny. I know that you have a lot on your plate.”

“Press—”

“I know that I’m not the prettiest or even the smartest. I mean, you said that you get offers all the time, and I’m sure there are plenty of other women you could spend time with. I’m a big girl. You don’t need to let me down easy.”

Santino leaned forward and grabbed her small hands. “Stop. Please.”

“It’s okay. I’m giving you an easy out. I don’t want you to feel bad.”

“I couldn’t feel any worse than I do right now, but that’s my fault, not yours.” He took a breath. “I don’t want to spend time with other women, Press. I want to be here with you. I’ve waited for you all week and suffered through an angry Flo and the husbands.”

She laughed. “I feel like I should apologize for them?”

“They care a lot about you, and I deserved it.”

He looked down at her slim fingers curled around his. “I’d like to date you, Presley. I can’t promise that things won’t be bumpy at first. My schedule is all over the place right now, but it won’t be that way forever. I’ll have to cancel plans occasionally, but I promise I will message or call if that happens.”

She chewed her lip. “I’d like that. And just for the record, I can get busy too. Like last week. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”

“You have nothing to apologize for. I was the one who didn’t show up.”

“Okay, so moving forward, we agree to communicate?” she sounded hopeful.

“Absolutely.”

“And I want to take things slow.”

“We can go as slow as you want.”

His heart was hammering. He had spent the week letting everyone know he was off the market. He blocked numbers and deleted pics, messages, and emails. Gia was the only one that had thrown a fit.

“I’m nervous, Sonny. I’m not good at this dating stuff.”

“Me neither, but I want to try with you. So, can I stay?”

“Yes,” she yawned. “But I’m going to bed. You can come with if you want.”

Santino had to rein himself in to not pump his fist. He was thrilled she was giving him another chance.

“Jesus, woman. I thought you would never ask.”