Worries
Dessert had just been served when Zorah’s phone pinged, and Zorah noted the incoming text from Icaro.
“Icaro.” She whispered to herself with a smile on her face oblivious to the way five sets of eyes turned to watch her with their own smiles.
Keturah leaned forward, “can we not tell him I’m here?”
“You want me to lie?”
“No, but don’t bring it up. I mean unless you want him to know where you are.” Keturah shrugged. “They can follow my trail of my bank card to Tampa.”
“Zorah,” Chester squeezed her hand on the tabletop. “It’s imperative we don’t let Icaro know where you are.”
“Why though? Why can’t I simply tell him?”
“Because he has eyes on him,” Orlando said simply, “and if he comes for you, then it means whoever is watching him will find you and until he sorts out the enemy family from New York and Ippocrate Giannone, it’s a problem. We don’t want him to lead them to you. We can protect you, I will keep you safe but if I have to choose between protecting you from a couple of people or protecting you from a small army, I will take a couple of people.”
“I guess.” She sighed and stared at her phone. “I miss him.”
“I know you do.” Chester patted her hand reassuringly. “Icaro is good at what he does. It will not take long for his family to get their ducks in a row. He’s a proud man. It’ll piss him off to know his family was remiss in keeping his wife safe.”
When Keturah bristled Orlando pointed his fork in her direction, flinging key lime pie across the table.
“Do not argue. Even you who were tailing her in the guise of protecting her let her slip through your hands.” He shrugged, “and despite the fact you were able to trace her back here, you still didn’t protect her and if we’d been Ippocrate Giannone’s hired thugs, she would be dead or living in a bunker living the rest of her life as a priest’s greatest sin.”
Keturah huffed, “but I wasn’t actually assigned to her yet. I was unarmed and incredibly outnumbered. Moving forward I won’t make those mistakes.”
“Can I call him back now?” Zorah interrupted the argument. She rose from the seat and moved to the other room, leaving Keturah and Orlando in their ongoing squabble while Chester, Shay and Dane adding in their two cents to keep it going.
Dialing out to Icaro she folded herself into an oversized armchair. He answered on the first ring.
“Hello, amoré,” his voice was tired.
“Hello, Icaro. How are you?”
“I’m good but I am missing my wife. I wish I could see you. I cannot stop worrying about you.”
She looked towards the dining room and then shrugged and making sure there was nothing behind her but the chair, she made a video call. Icaro’s face filled the screen.
“Hi. See. I’m fine.”
“Oh, my love, you look beautiful. You don’t know how good it is to see your face.”
“It is good to see you as well,” she smiled at his face. He did in fact look tired with dark circles under his eyes and his hair pulled in every direction. “Are you okay? You look exhausted, Icaro.”
“I spent a vigorous day.” He shrugged. “It is nothing a few hours sleep won’t cure. Though,” he smiled sweetly, “I would sleep better if you were in my arms.”
“Are you closer to finishing the jobs you need to do so I can rejoin you?”
“Zorah are you curious to know if I murdered anyone today?” he teased her.
She looked away, “no. I don’t want specifics. All I want to know is how much more needs to be done.”
“The Russian and his counterparts are taken care of,” he said simply. “He brought a crew of three with him and they were all dealt with today. The Gallo family are nearly all wrapped up with a few stragglers who were supporting Sveva and her father.”
“Then what?”
“Then,” he shuffled himself against his chair and smiled at her, “I will be taking a flight to New York. From New York it will likely take me a week or so to sort it out. Then, we’ll deal with Ippocrate and then,” he gave her a tired smile, “I am going to come find you and I’m going to hold you in my arms and I’m going to have the best sleep.”
“Just a sleep?” she asked flirtatiously.
“Naughty Zorah. What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking every day is a chance it is our last one.” At his shocked expression she continued, “you live a dangerous life, Icaro. While the men in your family tend to live long lives, it isn’t guaranteed and all it would take is one misplaced blade or a wayward bullet or,” she exhaled through her teeth, “a crew attacking you the way they did the other night, and your life would be gone. I cannot stop thinking of two things.”
“What my love?”
“The first of course is the photo and the bunker. They are freaking me out. I keep doing as you said. When I think of him, I change my thought to you touching me and it is helping.”
“Good girl. The second thing?”
“If my uncle wasn’t there to hit you with a tranquilizer dart, the other men, the other family were coming at you with real bullets. You would have been dead. Even if I’d survived, to be kidnapped, they intended to kill you, Icaro.”
“Ah my love. I am strong. You should not fear such things.”
“But I do, and I am fearful. Today I was hoping to hear from you long before now and my father said you were probably taking your time enjoying the process of eliminating your enemies but in the back of my mind, I kept worrying you were hurt or injured.”
“Your father was right. I got caught up. One hour turned into six and then eight and then my stomach growled because I was hungry, and I realized how much time I let slip away.”
“I was worried,” she repeated her fear.
“If I was there, I’d kiss all those worries away.”
“I’d rather you loved them away,” she felt her cheeks turning bright red at her bold words.
“Zorah.”
“Icaro, promise me when this is done and I get to come home to you, we make the best of our time.”
“Are you asking me to make love to you Zorah?”
“Yes, Icaro. I’m not wasting another day I don’t have to. When it’s time for us to be together, I want us to be together, completely.”
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