Page 58 of Now and Forever

Mireya was always better than I was at following rules.

“I don’t need it. He told me I was free to come and go as I pleased as long as I take Armando or Giovanni with me—two bodyguards he has assigned to me.”

“He must really trust them to leave them with his new wife.”

“I’m getting used to Armando. He’s not too bad. He doesn’t hover.”

Mireya replied, “Tell Ana I said hi. We spoke a little at the wedding. It’s great to see she and Elizondro are doing well. It gives me hope.”

I recalled what Ana had said at the wedding. “Yeah, for me too. I should go.”

“Call me back when you can.”

“If you hear any more about Patron’s plans, call or text,” I said as I made a mental note to ask Em.

“I will.”

We disconnected the call, and I made my way out of the library, searching for Armando. The door to the theater room was slightly ajar. I peeked in. Maybe it was constructed for Josie? I didn’t have the energy to give that more thought. I found Armando sitting at the breakfast bar drinking a cup of coffee while Contessa was cleaning the stove. With his suit coat missing, his holster and gun were visible.

I almost asked why he needed to be armed in the apartment, but then I remembered Dario saying that in bed and in the shower were the only places he wasn’t armed. Coming up behind Armando, I laid my hand on the countertop. He met my gaze. “I want to go to Hotel Phillips.”

Armando furrowed his brow.

“Dario said I was free to come and go wherever I wanted as long as you or Giovanni come with me. If you can’t take me, I’ll call Giovanni.”

“I can take you,” he replied less than enthusiastically. “Why Hotel Phillips?”

“If Dario told you to take him to the grocery store, would you ask what he planned to buy?”

Contessa smirked. “I’d ask if he knew the way.”

“Okay, that was a bad example.”

Armando took a final drink of his coffee. “We should take the SUV.”

I wasn’t going to argue about the vehicle. “Let me run upstairs and we can leave in a few minutes.” Not waiting for a reply, I headed upstairs. In the bedroom, I assessed my attire: a long black maxi skirt with a lightweight short-sleeved cream sweater top that left a small band of my stomach exposed. My sandals had only a two-inch heel. A gold chunky necklace and large gold earrings completed my attire. With my hair secured in a low ponytail, I decided I looked respectable enough for a Luciano wife. If someone didn’t know who I was, the giant diamond on my finger would give them a clue.

Before grabbing my purse, I considered adding Em’s thigh holster and knife. Then I remembered the male voice on the phone. If Elizondro was in New York, Ana no doubt had her own bodyguards. I didn’t want to be found armed.

Armando met me at the elevator. “Did you call Dario?” I asked.

“No, ma’am.” He grinned. “I sent him a text message.”

I shook my head as the elevator opened. While I wasn’t surprised, I could at least revel in the fact that my precedent was set—I hadn’t been the one to ask permission. In the garage, Armando and I walked to the large SUV we’d used last night for dinner. Once I was seated in the back seat and Armando was in the driver’s seat, I thought about Dario out and about all around town. “Does Dario have a bulletproof vehicle?”

Armando’s stare met me in the rearview mirror. “He has one available to him.”

“Besides this one,” I clarified.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Okay.” I inhaled, reassured that my husband wasn’t slacking on his safety simply because I may have a whim to leave the apartment. As Armando pulled the vehicle out of the garage and onto the streets, the summer sun and blue sky shone above the buildings. Looking around, I asked, “Would you mind being a tour guide?”

Armando’s eyes were covered with sunglasses, yet he turned to the rearview mirror, no doubt assessing my reflection. “Excuse me?”

“I know next to nothing about Kansas City. Maybe you could point things out. Dario mentioned museums and art galleries.”

“The grocery store,” he said with a smirk.

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