Page 29 of This Thing of Ours

Fred yapped in her ear, and she set him down before making her way to the front door. Her hand hesitated over the knob, fingers trembling. The nerves were back. What kind of reception was she about to get? The cool and indifferent mobster or the newly discovered sweet and caring Marco?

Only one way to find out.

She pulled the door open, swinging it wide, then stood to the side to allow him to enter.

His eyes raked her from head to toe as he stepped over the threshold. He didn’t show much emotion, but she did notice his eyes found their way back to her hair where they lingered.

She gave a lock of it a nervous tug. “I, um, fixed it.”

His lips quirked, one side tipping up. “Better.”

She found herself smiling in return until she remembered he hadn’t contacted her in a week. Her smile faded. “I haven’t seen you in a while.”

She lost his eyes. They drifted over her shoulder, landing on something behind her back. “I’ve been busy.”

She didn’t have to be a master at reading people to know that was a lie. She turned her back on him, walking into the kitchen. “Can I get you something to drink?” She picked up her water and took a swig.

He looked at her over the expanse of the breakfast bar. “I should probably go. This was a bad idea.”

Gabby slammed her water down. “What? Two friends can’t hang out and talk?”

“Is that what we are… friends?” He didn’t raise his voice, but it did have an edge, which only fueled her anger.

“Why can’t we be?” she asked, flinging her arms out in exasperation, her voice rising enough for them both.

He took a step forward then stopped as if he didn’t trust himself to get any closer. “Because when I look at you, I don’t see a friend.”

His words hurt. She dropped her eyes to the counter and stared at the bottle of water, tracking a condensation droplet as it fell over the label. “Oh.”

“I see so much more.”

Her head popped up. “What?”

He was silent a moment then shook his head. “Forget I said that.”

“No. You can’t take it back.”

“This isn’t a good idea.”

“You’ve said that but haven’t told me why.”

He gave her a look as if it should be obvious. “You’re Nico’s sister.”

“And you think he won’t approve?”

He cupped the back of his neck, bowing his head. “I don’t know.”

“That’s right, we don’t know. Not that it matters. We’re both adults.”

She got his eyes back. “I owe my life to Nico.”

“And you don’t think he’d want you to be happy?” Her frustration was clear in her tone.

Marco raised his for the first time. “Not at the expense of his sister.”

Both of them angry was a bad idea. Gabby took a deep breath and slowly made her way around the counter.

He watched her, sticking his hands in the front pockets of his slacks.

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