Total pages in book: 161
Estimated words: 151410 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 757(@200wpm)___ 606(@250wpm)___ 505(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 151410 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 757(@200wpm)___ 606(@250wpm)___ 505(@300wpm)
“We need to buy stuff for Battista. It’s getting late, and he needs food and sleep.”
He looked at me with an expression that made sweat trickle down the nape of my neck before he gave a nod. “So it’s Battista now?”
“It’s the only name I came up with on short notice. But it’s your choice. He’s your son.”
Something passed his face, but it was gone too quickly for me to grasp. “Then let’s go shopping and find a motel for us.”
“Us?”
“I won’t let you stay in a fucking motel in the middle of nowhere by yourself, Rory. End of discussion. Now get into the car.”
“You realize you’re acting as if you’re the one helping me when you’re not.”
“Get in,” he said in a softer voice.
I climbed into the car. Battista was sucking his thumb. Now that he wasn’t crying, he was awfully quiet.
“If my parents find out we spent the night together, even in a platonic way, there’ll be hell to pay.”
“Our families think we’re too close, like brother and sister, so they won’t suspect any dirty deeds.”
Not all of them. I was sure Kiara had watched our interactions with worry on occasion. After our shopping trip and another thirty-minute drive, Nevio finally pulled up in front of a motel. By now, I had completely lost my bearings. I wasn’t sure if we were in Arizona, Utah, or Nevada.
Battista was asleep. I’d given him a big bottle with formula in the car plus another fresh diaper and dressed him in a cute romper, and he’d fallen asleep right after.
Nevio and I walked into the reception building of the motel. The guy behind the desk glanced from me, to Battista, then to Nevio.
He nodded at me. “She legal?”
I wasn’t sure if he meant if I was of age or if I was a prostitute. Nevio flashed his teeth at him. “A room for us.”
The man looked at Nevio for several seconds before he nodded slowly, obviously deciding he didn’t want trouble. Considering this place wasn’t really inviting, he probably had suspicious-looking customers on a daily basis.
“Do you have a bed for the baby?”
The man gave me a look that suggested it was stupid of me to ask. Something in Nevio’s eyes told me he wouldn’t mind having a private chat with the man, but I didn’t want more trouble than we already had. I gripped his arm. “Let’s go.”
Nevio finally picked up the keys, and we headed toward our room. The moment we stepped inside, my belly tightened with nerves. There was only one bed in the motel room. It wasn’t even king sized. The last time I had spent in a bed with Nevio had burned itself into my brain, and I wasn’t keen on a repeat performance. Not like that.
Not at all.
“Where are you going to sleep?” I asked when I walked over to the bed. The scent of a strong cleaner hung in the air, which wasn’t the worst thing because it gave me hope this place was cleaned regularly.
“In the bed just like you,” Nevio said, one eyebrow pulling up in a challenging way. “We’re both adults, I think we can handle it.”
“Your actions of the past and even today suggest otherwise,” I muttered. Nevio was many things but not trustworthy, at least not in that regard.
He perched on the bed and took out his phone. “I’ll give Alessio and Massimo a heads-up, so they can fill in Adamo.”
I put Battista down in the middle of the bed so he wouldn’t accidentally roll off and hurt himself. The bed wasn’t very high but if he landed on his head…I didn’t want to risk it.
“I assume you won’t tell them the truth?”
Nevio’s dark brows pulled together. He and his cousins were close. Closer than close. The secrets they shared were more than an average human could stomach. But I had a feeling Nevio didn’t want anyone to know about his son, not even his best friends. This made me feel special, even if I knew I had been the convenient choice. Alessio and Massimo were hardly nanny material.
I gritted my teeth, my annoyance for Nevio on the rise once more.
“Not yet. I need to wrap my mind around everything,” Nevio said quietly, surprisingly reflected and reasonable.
“What are you telling them? Everyone will wonder why we’re both gone.” My cheeks heated when I thought about how this would look. “After the scene in the hospital tent, Adamo will definitely be suspicious.”
A sly smile pulled at Nevio’s mouth. “He won’t share his suspicions with our families. There’s a reason he prefers to stay at the races. A controlling family is annoying as fuck.”
It could be but I didn’t mind Dad’s protective ways most of the time. Of course there were instances when they were very inconvenient.
“Adamo will ask questions.”
“We’ll deal with him tomorrow.” Nevio rose to his feet and pulled his T-shirt over his head.