Page 31 of Caesar DeLuca
Earlier, she’d been giggly and chatty when we watched movies. She said we could act like friends until our time together inevitably came to an end. Something about the proposal rubbed me the wrong way, so I snapped. I reminded her she shouldn’t be living out here all alone.
It was an uncharacteristic emotional reaction out of me that I’ll deny to my dying day. Though being the only one aware is torturous enough. I should be focusing on Carisi and Rocky, not growing jealous of my hostess’s ex-boyfriend or disgruntled by the idea she can’t wait for this storm to end.
She won’t even accept my offer to provide protection for her home!
Knowing she’s likely led Carisi and his men straight to her, it only shows how clueless she is. They could be watching her home this moment. Enough peculiar things have been taking place over the past few nights to be cause for concern.
I didn’t bring her baseball bat and a large kitchen knife into the den with us for no reason. If my suspicions are correct, her backup generator didn’t just happen to malfunction. Much in the same way I’m not wholly convinced this power outage is area wide… or at least has affected the closest town.
It feels too convenient. Too coincidental it’s happening when it is.
Ariana pushes her can of mixed vegetables away and blows out a sigh. “I don’t regret stopping to pick you up. I’m actually… grateful you’re here. Even recluses like company sometimes.”
“Is that what you would call yourself? A recluse?”
“I spend most of my time here. I only go into town once, maybe twice a month.”
“What about your family?”
She stretches her legs in front of her from where she’s bundled up in a blanket on the sofa. “You know how you said you come from a big family? I come from a very small family. My parents are retired and live in upstate New York. My little sister’s in college. Everybody’s in their own world right now. I visit for Christmas every other year.”
“Do you want to have a family of your own?”
I almost swear at my own question. I hadn’t meant to ask… because it’s truthfully none of my business. Ariana has proven to prefer privacy and doesn’t seem to want to discuss certain topics. But she considers what I’ve asked, then shrugs her shoulders.
“I’m not sure it’s in the cards.”
My head tilts to the side. My gaze intent and studious on her. “You’re a very nurturing person. You seem to have a gift for it. You mentioned being a nurse?”
“In the emergency room,” she says. “It was years ago.”
“Why did you quit?”
“I… I needed a break.” She sits up and throws some of the blanket over my lap where I sit next to her. “It was a very stressful life to lead, and the people I had surrounded myself with weren’t good for me. Finally, I realized I needed to get away. I had saved a lot by living frugally and some investments I made, so I quit. I sold a lot of what I owned, including a condo in the city, and came out here.”
“And now you have more peace,” I finish for her, and she nods. I hum in thought. “I suppose that makes sense.”
Her lips part in a slight smile. “You’re getting better at pretending, Caesar.”
“No pretending. It does make sense. Maybe I’d do the same if I weren’t in the lifestyle.”
“Do what I did. Quit.”
“There’s no quitting from this life. Either you live to be old enough to die of natural circumstances or you get eliminated by an enemy… or family. Those are the only options.”
“That couldn’t sound more depressing.”
“I’ve accepted it as my reality. The people you surrounded yourself with—one of them your ex-boyfriend?”
Her brows pinch closer. “Why are you so fixated on him? Why does it matter to you?”
Because… because he better not make a return…
“He sounds like a bastard,” I say aloud. “If he wasn’t good for you, then you’re better off without him.”
“Thanks for your advice, Dear Abby. How’s your love life going?”
Nonexistent.
