Page 64 of Wicked Truths
She chuckles as she kisses along my bearded stubble. “It’s been like a week.”
“A week is too long.” I mumble against her cheek before pressing my lips against hers.
I don’t want to go another week without her in my bed or my life. I don’t want anyone else touching her for the rest of our lives.
She breaks the kiss, sitting back on my legs. “You know, now that we are being completely transparent with one another, I need to tell you something.”
Her tone is serious and her gaze darts away from mine, leading me to believe she’s about to tell me something huge.
“What?”
“Years ago, I hated that Joey and Dad excluded me from everything. I was a part of the family, but always on the outskirts. One day, I got fed up with them and went to my Uncle Tony. He taught me self defense and let me learn the paperwork for his side operations.”
This doesn’t sound good. There’s no way Joey and Arturo know or else they would have told me long ago. How could she have worked for her uncle and no one even knew?
I keep my expression blank to keep my inner turmoil to myself. Oblivious to the thoughts swarming my mind, she continues.
“After I mastered the paperwork side of things, I started going on simple jobs with AJ, like making cash runs to the businesses that wanted our protection.”
“Who’s AJ?”
“Anthony Junior, my cousin and Uncle Tony’s son.”
“Ah, okay, well, at least you weren’t alone.” I don’t know what else to say, other than I’m surprised she kept it a secret. Especially from me.
She looks down at my chest, avoiding my gaze.
“The last job I went on wasn’t like the others. AJ and I were ambushed while picking up the last payment. I was stabbed in my shoulder while fighting, and I ended up shooting a guy at point blank range. Right in the center of his forehead.”
She shivers and leans closer to me.
I clench my teeth together, not wanting to say something stupid or something I’ll regret. Taking a deep breath, I try to fight the anger building in my veins, but it’s an impossible feat.
I’m fuming. I’m pissed beyond pissed. Arturo needs to know about this. What other trouble has her uncle and cousin thrown her in the middle of? Does she still work for them now that she’s back home?
“When did this happen?” I ask, trying to keep my voice calm and steady.
“Right before I went on the spa trip with my cousin Angelica.”
“When she flew down from New York to spend time with you?”
“Yeah. We thought it would be easier to conceal the injury if I wasn’t home, so Angelica flew down to have a girls’ week with me.”
I remember the sudden girls’ trip that seemed tolast forever. Francesca didn’t even tell anyone goodbye before leaving. She just disappeared and sent a text hours later when they were already at the spa.
“How did I not know this?”
She shrugs and winces slightly from the movement. “I hid the pain. Hell, I still do sometimes.”
“Yeah, but what about the scar?” It wouldn’t be easy to hide a stabbing scar.
“It’s barely visible.”
“But back then, it probably wasn’t.”
“I used waterproof concealer. When I would sleep over, I would sneak to the bathroom before you woke up and reapply the concealer so you wouldn’t see.”
She closes her eyes as tears fall down her cheeks. She whispers, “I killed a man, Rhett. I’m not a good person, and you shouldn’t want to be with me. I’m selfish for wanting you.”