Page 30 of Love Without Control

“Hey, I’m not sure I’m at the right place,” I called, but when a deep chuckle met my ears, my steps faltered. Squinting against the late afternoon sun, recognition sparked in my brain at the familiar sound.

I’ll be damned. Rocco?

Rocco Scordato looked different from the last time I’d seen him. A lot different. Most noticeably, he’d put on about forty pounds. He definitely wasn’t fat, but gone was the rail thin man I’d known when I was a teen. He was also bald now and sported a black beard with a smattering of gray, making him look more like a rugged biker than a slick mafioso.

“You’re at the right place,” he said, crossing the dark-green manicured lawn to slap me on the bicep. “Come on inside. My wife’s got an early dinner ready.”

“I… okay. Sorry about that. I didn’t recognize you at first.”

“And that’s the whole point,” he pointed out with a wry lift of one bushy eyebrow. “Do you have suitcases?”

Stepping closer, I lowered my voice. “I have three duffels full of cash.”

He jerked his chin up and down. “Definitely want to bring those in then. This is a nice neighborhood, but you never know. I was talking about your personal things though. My cousin said you had a lady friend with you, so we made up both guest rooms. I wasn’t sure if you’d be sharing or not.”

“That’s gonna be a no on the sharing,” I told him, figuring I could confidently speak on Evie’s behalf.Though I certainly wouldn’t mind…“We don’t have much in the way of personal belongings. We kinda left in a rush. Are we, uh, staying here?”

“Of course,” he boomed. “My cousin was in a hurry so he didn’t give me much information, just that you and your friend needed help. Come inside, and you can tell me everything.”

“All right,” I said, walking around to the passenger’s side. “Let me get E—”

“No names until we’re inside,” Rocco broke in, his voice sharp as a dagger as his eyes darted around the well-kept yard.

“Right.” I held open the car door for Evie as she emerged without her sunglasses and cap.

When I turned back to Rocco, his eyes were trained on her and as wide as dinner plates. “Holy fucking shit,” he muttered, apparently recognizing her, probably from the news coverage. “Whew, you do need our help, son. Get her in the house quickly, and I’ll unload the car.”

Tossing him the keys, I led Evie across the lawn and up the two wooden steps. Before I could knock, the door swung open to reveal a beautiful woman with a full figure and a broad smile. Her curly brown hair was pulled up in a ponytail, and green eyes gleamed from her mocha-skinned face.

“Come on in. I’m Jamie.” She said with a slight Jamaican accent, sweeping an elegant hand toward the living room, which was decorated in gray and red.

“Thanks for having us,” I told her, unsure if I was supposed to give this woman our names. Her eyes were trained on Evie, and I saw the flicker of recognition there, but she brushed it off with a shake of her head and stepped toward the other woman.

“Look at you, sweetheart,” she crooned softly, drifting her fingertips beneath the bruise on Evie’s cheek. “Who the hell did this to you?” Her eyes darted accusingly toward me, but Evie shook her head.

“It wasn’t him. It was the… the people who took me.”

Jamie nodded, her lips pressed into a sad smile. “All right, sweetie. Let’s get you settled and you can tell us more.”

“Thank you,” Evie replied.

Rocco lumbered in then, a duffel in each hand and Evie’s flowery bag slung over a thick shoulder. Jamie’s eyebrows shot up. “Well, I think floral is your color, honey.”

He dropped the bags and glared at her without an ounce of ire. “You got a smart mouth, woman.”

“And that’s why you married me,” she said with a wink before turning her attention back to us. “Follow me.”

Evie and I trailed her across the living room and down a hallway. “You don’t have to put us up,” I told her. “We could have stayed at a hotel or something.”

“Nah, we have a lot of work to do, and it’s easier and safer if we’re all under the same roof,” she said before opening a door on the right. “Evie, this can be your room. It’s more girly than the other one.”

“It’s beautiful,” Evie said, entering and looking around at the soft pink wallpaper and white bed. Gauzy white curtains draped over the two multi-paned windows.

“There’s a bathroom here,” Jamie said, sliding open a white barn door. “It connects to the other bedroom, so you two will have to share.”

We walked through and into the other bedroom, which was done in shades of blue. “This is great. Thank you,” I told her and received a warm smile in response.

Retrieving our bags from the living room, I dropped Evie’s off in her room. “There’s one more change of clothes in here. I’ll see about getting you some more things, if you’ll make me a list. Like the kind of hair stuff you like or… I don’t know… whatever else girls need.”

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