“That’s wonderful,” I say. The way he speaks, it’s clear that he admires Aleksandra. I can’t imagine a man like that being the monster that Dmitri believes him to be.
We round the corner as we get closer to my apartment. “I hate to ask this,” Antonio says. “But would you mind if I used your bathroom? I swear I’ll only be a minute.”
I open my mouth. Something tells me I should say no, but I can’t find any logical reason to turn him down.
He’s not the least bit forceful or brutal.
Antonio seems harmless. “Yes, of course. You’ll just have to excuse the mess. I’m sure my daughter Allie has every snack out on the coffee table and kitchen. She’s bingeing her new favorite reality show.”
The driver pulls up out front of the building. He leaves the vehicle running, steps out and around, and opens the back door for me. I climb out first onto the sidewalk and wait for Antonio to follow.
“What show is that?” Antonio asks.
“Gosh. Aren’t there so many to keep track of? Love Villa.” I retrieve the keys from my purse and unlock the main entrance. We head to the elevator, and I push the button for the sixth floor.
“Aleksandra loves that show,” Antonio says. “Although she has trouble bingeing it because of the twins. We’ve agreed to monitor what they watch.”
“That’s smart, especially when they’re so young.” I head out of the elevator once we reach the sixth floor, and he follows close behind. Unlocking the apartment, I let him inside.
“You’re home early—” Allie says, and glances behind me with a frown on her face. She doesn’t recognize Antonio, and why would she? She’s too young to go to a bar, and while I finally told her I changed jobs, I didn’t elaborate on the specifics.
I lead Antonio to the bathroom and flip on the light. “Here you go,” I say.
He steps into the bathroom and closes the door behind himself.
“Who is he?” Allie asks, keeping her voice down. “Where’s your boyfriend?”
“Long story,” I say, and glance from Allie back to the bathroom. The fan is running, so I can’t hear anything inside the small space. Not that I want to listen to him use the facilities, but my stomach is a bundle of knots after what Dmitri said.
Why did he have to get into my head?
“You owe me details,” Allie says. “If I brought a strange man home, you’d want an explanation.”
She’s right, but I’m an adult. I do owe her the truth, at least partially.
The bathroom door opens, and Antonio reemerges. “Thank you,” he says, offering a smile. I can’t tell if it’s forced or genuine. I don’t know him well enough to read him, but he’s given me no reason to distrust him.
Dmitri is paranoid.
“I’ll see you at work tomorrow,” Antonio says as I accompany him to the front door.
“Thanks again for the lift home.” I walk him to the door and lock it behind him once he’s gone.
Allie pauses her show and turns to face me, awaiting an explanation. “What happened on your date? Why’d mystery man from work take you home?”
“You heard that?” I’ll have to be more careful around here if I don’t want Allie overhearing something.
“Come on, Mom. You’d make me explain.”
“Things went a little south on my date with Dmitri.” I don’t want to tell Allie why or she’ll be worried about me when I see Antonio at work tomorrow night.
“South? As in the two of you broke up?”
“I don’t know,” I say. I slip out of my heels and sink into the couch beside my daughter. “It’s complicated.”
There’s no point in telling her the breakup was inevitable since we weren’t dating.
What is he going to expect from me? Will he still want me to attend his friend’s wedding? It seems pointless since that friend saw our fight.