Page 34 of His Passerotta

His head tilts slightly. “What did you say your name was?”

I didn’t. And I’d really rather not.

Should I lie? Give a fake name?

Does he know about last night?

Would my name mean something to him?

“I’m sorry, have I confused you?” he asks, leaping me from my thoughts.

What kind of person takes so long to remember their name? A liar, that’s who. Fuck.

“Ashley,” I finally say.

“Ashley.” He gives me the tiniest smile. I don’t know if he means to come across as evil, but even his attempts at politeness feel like threats. “Pleasure to meet you. I’m Lorenzo.”

“Yeah, you too,” I say with a smile I hope doesn’t appear too forced.

“So… Are you and Anthony an item?”

An item? Who talks like that?

“Yeah,” I say with confidence that has me patting myself on the back. “Yeah, we’ve been seeing each other for about a month. I’m crashing here while my landlord does some work on my apartment.”

“What kind of work?”

“Plumbing,” I say immediately. “A rusted pipe burst. It didn’t create a ton of damage, thankfully, but some of the piping needs replaced so it doesn’t happen again. And then there’s the drywall, you know?”

“Ah, well, I’m glad my brother could give you a place to crash.”

“Yeah, me too. He’s um, he’s been really great.”

Lorenzo smiles again, but this time he looks amused. That doesn’t seem like the best sign.

The front door opens and slams, causing both our heads to turn that way as Anthony barrels into the kitchen.

His eyes widen with shock when he sees the two of us, and he stops so abruptly, his shoes squeak on the tile.

“What…?” He blinks at Lorenzo, then clears his throat. “What are you doing here?”

Lorenzo shrugs. “I figured you’d be late, so I cancelled lunch to save Settimo the aneurysm. I thought you might want to grab a bite with me instead? Just the two of us.”

“So you came here?” Anthony asks, exuding a calmness I’m beyond impressed with. “That seems like something that could’ve been relayed by a text.”

“I don’t like to be kept waiting, either.” Lorenzo gestures to me. “Besides, I wouldn’t have been able to meet your … girlfriend, is it? Are you two official?”

Anthony and Lorenzo have what seems to be a stare down for several seconds before Anthony finally responds.

“No. We’re friends.” Anthony looks down at the mess on the floor, seemingly just noticing it. “I think I’ll have to pass on lunch. I need a shower and…” he gestures to the floor, “this to clean up. There wouldn’t be enough time before my meeting at one.”

Lorenzo stares for a moment then nods. “It does seem like you have a lot to take care of.” His eyes flick to me. “Another time then.”

Anthony nods, his posture rigid, and Lorenzo gives me one last creepy smile before stepping toward the door. “Take care, Bailey.”

With that, he leaves, not sticking around long enough to see the blood drain from my face.

Once the front door shuts, Anthony runs his hands over his face. “Goddammit.”

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