“Then why can’t they see my face?”
I hesitated, and I knew she caught it. I’d never been more off my game than since she arrived.
“Another time.” She mirrored my words as I spoke, and I shook my head trying to get it on straight.
“There.” I pointed to a row of mausoleums, and we rushed over, happy to finally find cover.
I tugged hard on the first few doors, but they wouldn’t open. These were smaller and probably independently owned. Therefore, they weren’t open to the public.
“Elio,” she whispered, and I kept moving. “Elio,” she hissed, and I finally looked over at her pale expression. “First row, three stones down, I think there’s someone there.”
Scanning the area, I couldn’t spot anything, so I went back to trying the doors.
“Do you know how to shoot?”
“I can manage a weapon, Elio.” It wasn’t lost on me she said weapon, not gun.
“Good.” I took her hand and pushed the gun into her hold. “Push that down, aim, and squeeze.” I turned to move on but swung back to her. “And don’t kill my cousin.”
“Of course.” She raised the gun and started to watch my back. “I like him.”
I wanted to curse for bringing her into his shit storm, but I couldn’t go there yet, not until we were safe. Finally, the fourth door opened, and I turned back to see her like stone, barely blinking, the gun gripped tightly, waiting for the worst to happen.
“Hey,” I whispered, “it’s open.” Slowly, I removed the gun from her hand and tugged on her arm to guide her inside.
She paced the tiny room while I found a lighter and lit a few candles that hung low on the wall. It gave just enough light to show what we were next to. A single tomb with a flat surface sat in the center of the room that held a single thick paned window. That was it.
Removing the cloak and my jacket, I used the sleeves of my jacket to tie the doors shut the best I could. I couldn’t tell if she was disturbed by being in a crypt, or if the gunshot in the alleyway was too close. I draped my cloak over the single tomb in an effort to camouflage it a bit.
I heard footsteps and placed a finger to my lips while I leaned against the wall and carefully peered out the murky window.
Sienna covered her mouth and pressed against me, and I could feel her trembling against my back.
I spotted him as he stepped out of the shadow of a tombstone. Raindrops started to fall, making it more difficult to see him through the tiny window. He lifted a cell phone to his ear as he scanned the backs of the crypts, then he slipped behind one of them and disappeared from view. I pulled back from the window.
“Is he gone?” she whispered then jumped when a door creaked a few crypts down.
“Stay down.” I motioned for her to get her body low beside the tomb, and in three strides I had a grip on my coat, tightening the fabric around my fist as much as I could. I hoped like hell the knot I made plus my own strength would hold against any attempt to open the door.
The door next to the crypt we were in creaked loudly, and a moment later I felt a hard tug and held tightly to the fabric of my jacket as it strained against the pressure.
“They’re all locked,” he yelled at someone nearby, or maybe he was on the phone. All I cared about was the fact that he thought we weren’t there. “All right, heading there now.”
Footsteps raced off and were soon drowned out by the sound of heavy rain as it played loudly inside the concrete box we were in. I slowly released my hold and let the knotted sleeve slip out of my fingers.
“Elio?” Sienna whispered from behind me, and I moved close to her.
“Yes.” I swallowed back my desire to confess everything to her as I realized just how too close for comfort the past hour had been. I grasped the top of her arms tightly as her wild eyes found mine.
“I—” She stopped then flung herself at me, kissing me passionately.
Years ago, something terrible had happened to her at the house, and I remembered how she had raced to my place in the middle of the night to fling herself into my arms. My mind immediately went back to the crazy, wild sex we had that night on the balcony. I knew she needed it, as it was her way of letting me ground her, and I had no problem a decade later doing the same for her now.
“Hey.” I ripped myself away from her and held her head between my hands. I looked past those hungry eyes and saw her vulnerability and the pain that smothered her heart, and I knew it was all because of me. Leaning down, I brushed my lips across those trembling ones and felt my own heart pound along with hers. “I know it’s way too late but,” I felt again the pounding of my ribcage, “I’m so sorry, Sienna.”
She blinked back her tears and looked away for a moment, and when her gaze returned, I saw my words had hit home. I gave her a moment then felt her press a little harder against me, giving me permission to continue.
I reached down and hooked my arm under her knee, hiking her leg to rest on my hip. The slit in her dress made everything easier. Running my hand down her bare thigh to her smooth curves nearly made me lose my mind. I used her hips to turn her away from me then kissed her neck from behind. One hand gently slid across her collarbone and up her neck to her chin, turning her to look at me, while the other fingered the bow that kept the front of her dress up. Feeling confident that we were alone for the night, I let my guard down a bit.