Page 35 of Contempt

Rose smiled brilliantly. “Yeah, okay.”

• • •

As easily as it had been for Renzo to agree to dinner with Rose and Diego, his nerves decided to make an appearance as soon as he was standing outside of his sister’s place later in the day. He couldn’t place why, exactly, but it was there.

Maybe because it had been so long.

Maybe for Diego …

Maybe because this was the universe’s way of reminding Renzo that no matter who or what he was now, he was still fucking human. And the universe had come around to kick him in the ass with something like anxiety just because it needed a good laugh.

Who fucking knew?

He wanted to see his brother, though. He greatly wanted to spend more time with Rose because honestly, he didn’t know how long this trip was going to last. Who knew, Cree might just get pissed off enough that he would come after Renzo to bring him back, or put him back to work. Or shit, he might send someone else to do the job.

Either way, how long he was able to stay here was contingent on a lot of things that he had absolutely no control over. If he didn’t go up there tonight—whether he was fucking nervous or not—then he didn’t know when he would get another chance.

When his contract was up, sure … if he stayed alive that long.

Christ.

His thoughts were morbid tonight.

Renzo finished the smoke he’d been using as a way to take the edge off, and stubbed it before dropping it into his pocket. Now or never … He hadn’t thought to call up and let Rose know he was downstairs, but that was mostly because he was trying to stay off the phone when it came to his sister. At least, then, the fuckers back at The League wouldn’t think his family was the one and only reason he headed to New York when he should have been working. Sure, he could have used a payphone but fuck it.

Next time …

Coming around the corner of his sister’s building, he headed for the front entrance. He planned on just getting Rose to buzz him in, but as he came up to the front door, something made him hesitate.

Something made him stop.

Maybe it was the buzz that drifted over his skin.

Or the way his fine hairs stood up on end.

Like his nerves just knew.

Knew to stop.

Knew to look.

Knew she was there.

Renzo glanced over his shoulder as a cab pulled up on the other side of the street, and sure enough, he watched Lucia step out of the back of the yellow car. Holy fucking shit—his heart probably stopped right then and there, he couldn’t be sure. It was like the whole fucking world tilted, and put itself on the correct axis again.

Oh, sure, he’d known for a long time that he was living the wrong way—that everything about life just felt off. He knew it was because he was without her, but he’d become comfortable in this, sort of. He’d gotten used to feeling this way, and the sudden shift set him off balance. It took him entirely too long to blink out of it.

He wasn’t surprised that she was at his sister’s place—he knew Lucia kept in contact with Rose and Diego, when she could. Rose filled him in on that, but she promised to never mention him to Lucia. Not that she talked to him about Lucia, or anything else.

She couldn’t.

Those fucking rules …

Fucking hell.

God.

She looked beautiful.