Page 58 of Thief of my Heart

SEVENTEEN

NO, YOU HANG UP FIRST, BUT WITHOUT A PHONE

Michael

“I’m not leaving until you go.”

I smiled against Lea’s lips, then sucked on the bottom one again for good measure before shaking my head. “Go on, baby girl. You need to get inside before your grandparents wonder where you are.”

She kissed me again, and this time, I was tempted to take her back to the garage and start Part Two of Ruining Lea Zola’s Innocence.

But when a light on the top floor of her house switched on, I managed to pull away.

“Lea,” I said, my voice rough with need. “Fuck. Baby, we gotta stop.”

She smirked, hands wrapped around my waist. “Please. You don’t want me to stop.”

“I definitely don’t,” I admitted while she did something to my neck that almost made me drag her down the alley to hide in the shadows like the thief I was. “But I’m also not interested in my boss popping his head out while I cop a feel of his granddaughter. And since I’m not leaving until I know you’re inside, safe and warm, you need to go in first.”

She giggled, then bit my ear.

I groaned. “Lea, Jesus.”

“Relax, I’m going. But I thought of something.”

The hopeful look on her face erased my worries. I wonder if she already knew she had this effect on me. That a little honey caught me like a damn fly, and I’d probably do whatever she wanted if she looked at me like that.

“I thought maybe you’d want to come over tomorrow,” she said. “I’ll make us some dinner, and we could watch a movie, hang out.”

She pulled mischievously on the collar of my jacket, urging me to kiss her again. And I wanted to. I really did. Just like I wanted to do all those things she was suggesting. They were so simple. Basic shit that kids our age did every weekend. Things I hadn’t done in years.

I glanced up at the front window of her house. No one was there, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t be in a second. “I don’t think so, Tess. It’s not a good idea.”

That hopeful expression disappeared, and it was like a punch to the gut. Lea looked me over like she was trying to find some missing piece to the puzzle. Then she glanced at the window and back to me with understanding written all over her pretty face.

“I’m not an idiot,” she told me. “I know you’re not supposed to get involved with me.”

I frowned. “You do?”

“Sure. Nonno’s been telling all his mechanics to steer clear since I was probably twelve. He’s a bit overprotective.”

Something inside me thawed. I knew it probably meant nothing, but the fact that Zola hadn’t singled me out with that warning felt, I don’t know, kind of good. Like maybe he didn’t only think of me as a no-good kid. Like maybe this job—and by extension, this girl—really was a second chance.

It also meant that there was even more pressure not to fuck it up. We didn’t need to rush into anything. Even though I already knew I was pretty much a goner, there was no guarantee Lea felt the same way. We could take our time. See how things went. I’d try to learn how to be an asset to her family, not dead weight. I’d make them see that having me around would be a blessing, not a curse.

How, I had no idea. But for the first time in my life, it really felt possible.

“They just have to get used to the idea,” she continued. “You’re a good person, Michael. Nonno knows that. He wouldn’t have hired you otherwise.”

I wanted to believe her. I really did. But something told me that my grizzled old boss wasn’t quite open-minded enough to accept an ex-con dating his granddaughter. Not any time soon, at least.

“But they wouldn’t be here anyway.”

“They won’t?”

Lea shook her head. “Joni has a dance show in Philly tomorrow night. They’re taking my sisters and staying with Nonno’s brother. Won’t be back until Mass.”

Well, that got my attention.

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