Page 15 of Retribution

“But, if you wanna go for a drink in its place, we can do that.”

“Sure.”

I was unsure why I felt strange after making the offer. It wasn’t as though Luca and I were dating. We knew nothing about each other, and the offer for drinks was just that. I needed a drinking partner. Luca was my booty call and Sandy would be my buddy.

Sandy and I went back inside where they had brought out drinks and was waiting on pizza to be delivered. Someone allergic to cheese ordered Chinese, and a man went in search of beer as there wasn’t enough. The table was now cleared, and the drinks set out. I walked over and poured myself a whiskey on ice and watched a few shocked faces.

A few men played pool, while some other watched a past world cup match on a small flatscreen. While we waited on the delivery, I took a mouthful of my drink and felt it float down my throat. A warmth hit my stomach, reminding me I hadn’t eaten all day. I wasn’t hungry and doubted that I would have any of the pizza when it arrived. Finishing my drink, I poured another and downed it in one shot.

Luca came over to me with a drink in his hand and I thought he was about to scold me. He didn’t. Instead, he updated me on the plans which he had been working on with the men.

“Have you eaten today?” he asked me first.

“Is that why you came over, to ask if I’d eaten?” I snapped. He took a sip of his drink and offered me no answer, so I softened my tone. “Don’t worry, I’m fine.”

“Did you know that Carlos and Pretty Boy are cousins?”

“Oh, that’s why Pretty Boy Mike was being so difficult. Family first, huh?”

“And, listen to this shit. Pretty Boy Mike’s dad is the real boss.”

That didn’t surprise me because Garry already told me as much. “Garry told me that Carlos often boasts about his uncle. The pieces are finally coming together.”

Luca wasn’t done. “The most critical piece of information is that Carlos and Marco are hiding out somewhere in Wilbur Heights at his aunts place.”

I was curious. “How did the team find out all this?”

“I can’t reveal their ways of investigation. If I do, I’ll have to kill you,” he laughed.

“Very funny,” I chuckled.

Being with Luca relaxed me, I was sure of that now. Just standing here talking to him eased some of my earlier tension. Didn’t know what it was about him that made me feel that way. I stepped closer to him and rested a hand on his chest.

“Thank you for all that you’re doing.”

Placing his hand over mine, he closed the few inches of space. “I can do a lot more if you want.”

“What have you got?”

Around that time, his phone rang, and he pulled it out of his jacket pocket. “I’ll just have to show you.”

“Answer your damn phone,” I laughed as he leaned over to kiss me.

I moved away from him and walked over to the pool table where some guys were playing at fifty dollars a shot. A few minutes passed before I turned around and noticed that Luca was missing. Ten minutes went by, and he hadn’t returned. The pizza and Chinese food had arrived, and men dug in. I took a box and stashed it inside the oven for him in case the men finished them all before he came back.

Concerned, I went in search for him outside. He was at the side of the building with his back turned to me and still talking on the phone. I was about to return inside when his voice stopped me in my tracks.

“I miss you too … Okay …. Bye ... I love you.”

Chapter 11

Ciara

“Hey Sandy, how about that drink?”

I left the loft shortly after hearing Luca on the phone. I tried not to let it bother me, but down deep I knew it did. It was none of my business who he was fucking anyway, but it appeared that this person was special. What bothered me the most was that he always claimed I was his woman. Then who the fuck was he missing?

I rode a few miles and stopped at Mickeys bar near the business district. I badly wanted another drink and Sandy was the person I thought about. He’d left the loft before me, and I wasn’t even sure he was available.