He pushes the blanket off. “I don’t take sick days.”
“You do today.” I stop him from getting up. “Maggie went to the store to pick up some things for you and will be back soon.”
“Maggie knows?” he groans as if that’s his worst nightmare.
“She knows, and we made a pact. You’re not leaving this bed until your fever breaks.”
A long sigh leaves him as he sinks his head back down on the pillow.
He’s back asleep in seconds.
I curl up in the corner chair with my book. I’m only a few pages in when his phone rings. I glance around, not seeing it on the nightstand, and decide to ignore it.
It rings again. Cursing, I set my book down and hunt for his phone, finding it in his pants on the floor. Antonio’s name flashes on the screen.
Not now, Mafia boss.
I hurriedly silence the call.
It rings again.
Another ignore.
The next call comes from Damien.
I stomp toward the door and toss the phone into the hallway.
Emilio needs to rest, and doing Mafia things is not good for men with fevers. He can go back to killing and committing crimes when he’s feeling better.
I grab my MacBook on the way back to the chair and decide to research restoring old homes while also keeping an eye on him.
I’ve never felt so torn in my life.
Do I nurse my husband back to health … or smother him with his pillow?
“Shit,”I whisper, my heart skipping a beat as I hear banging on the front door.
It can’t be Maggie. She has a key.
They’re going to wake Emilio if they don’t stop.
I spring off the chair and run downstairs, taking two steps at a time. My feet skid to a stop at the front door, and I stare through the peephole.
My stomach flips.
I reach for the doorknob but suddenly stop, rethinking my decision.
“Open the fucking door,” the voice on the other side barks. “Or I’ll break it off the fucking hinges.”
26
Antonio Lombardi isn’t lying.
He’s really about to knock the door off its damn hinges.
The pounding echoes through the home like gunfire.
I press my eye to the peephole again. Antonio’s face is bright red, his lips curled in a snarl, and his fist pounds against the door.
