Page 9 of Enduring Caine

“I’m worried about your health,” I whispered.

Antonio swept his upper arm across his forehead, his leather duffel flailing about. “Don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere without you, bella.”

Score one for Samantha. I addressed the driver, “There you have it. If you want him to go, I’m going with him.”

“Call my uncle,” said Antonio. “Tell him that’s the deal.”

The driver nodded and took a few steps away, keeping his eyes on us.

“Fool woman,” muttered Antonio.

I grinned at him. “I have to be, to be so in love with a fool man like you.”

“Iamserious, Samantha. I don’t want you there.” His shoulders flagged and he rolled his bad shoulder, fighting off a grimace.

“Amore,” I said, resting a hand on his chest. “You’ve already given me the details. I know I didn’t react well when you told me originally, but I can handle it. Don’t worry. I love you and I’m going to continue loving you after this.”

“The reality is very different than whatever picture you’ve painted in your head, bella.”

“If we can get through this, we can get through anything, right?” I had a dozen lines I could feed to him, even if they preyed on his optimism about our relationship. But they were all true. “Honesty and truth. Partners. Stronger together.”

Antonio let out a sigh, his resistance falling. “Visiting them will test all of those things.”

“Every muscle needs to be broken before it can heal and become stronger?”

“That’s a ridiculous analogy.” He chuckled, then resumed the serious tone. He stepped closer and whispered, “But I need to warn you, there will be rules that challenge your natural inclinations. The walls have ears and eyes there. No snooping, no matter what you see. No searching for Elliot’s contact. Pretend you don’t know what they do and don’t let them know your ties to the FBI.”

I wanted to debate his assumptions about what I’d do there, but he’d never believe me. My inner detective was too busy doing cartwheels to be convincing. “I understand.”

“And I hate to say this, but it’s very important for you to know—there will be many lies and secrets while we are there, and some of them may come from me.”

At the wordlie, my stomach tightened and a tremble ran through me. We’d finally gotten past hiding things from each other. Diving back into a world of deception could be devastating for us.

“But I promise, on my heart, that I’ll explain everything once we leave.”

I blinked slowly, not as intentionally this time. Was I ready for this? “Okay. I trust you.”

The driver returned, tucking his phone into his pocket. “Ms. Caine, you’re welcome to join us at the villa.”

“Excellent.” How long would we be there? The afternoon? A day? A week? How much could I accomplish in that amount of time?

And could I convince Antonio that I was doing this for us? Not just for this moment in time together, but longer term. Would it be enough to prove to the FBI that I could work as a consultant from anywhere in the world so I wouldn’t have to leave him to pursue my dreams?

In the end, this was aboutour future.

Chapter 5

Antonio

Thetowncarturnedfrom the coastal highway, passed through the immense gate, and drove onto the pebbled driveway that wound its way to the top of the hill where Zio Giovanni’s estate stood sentinel over the Mediterranean. Tall cypress trees lined the driveway, with umbrella pines soaring to the heavens closer to the buildings.

In my mind’s eye, I saw the gardens overflowing with reds and purples and whites, the nearby vineyard, the beaches crowded with tourists. But in the midst of winter, the colors were muted and the beaches bare.

It had been nine years since I last made this drive. A young man, full of increasing anger and confusion, who fell too deep into this world of money, power, and influence. Mario whisked me away to Napoli when I got out of the hospital all those years ago, after being shot on a job for my uncle. I swore never to return.

Now here I was once more, under their influence.

“Wake up, bella.” I squeezed Samantha’s hand which I’d held while she drifted off against my shoulder on the two-hour drive from Roma. Quiet whimpers invaded her sleep, as they had since New Year’s. Each time, I shushed her, and they faded. “You’ll want to see the view as we get closer.”