Page 99 of Come Back to Me

“Of course! Anyway, shoo. Thank you for the crystal,piccola.”

Leaning over to press a kiss on her cheek, I leave the yarn on the table. “You’re welcome.”

She grabs me in a surprisingly fierce hold and, in my ear, whispers, “Bottling up your feelings serves no purpose. Let them loose. Let him see your rage. He’ll respect you for it.”

“Nonna, I stole his truck and abandoned him at a lake. I don’t think I could do anymore without earning an arrest warrant.”

A shocked laugh escapes her. “You did that?”

“Yes.” My nose wrinkles at the bridge.

She pats my cheek. “Good girl.”

My nose scrunches harder, but I give her another kiss. “It wouldn’t have been so good if you’d had to bail me out.”

“I don’t know. I’d have paid to see your father’s reaction to that call. Sometimes, it’s useful to have the police in your pocket.”

Is that where Cody is?

To be fair, I haven’t seen much of him since that morning...

Guilt? Or regret?

“Don’t forget thetorroncini,” she tells me.

I stop at the kitchen and pull out some of the nougat Mom made for the dinner that never happened—my turn to feel guilt.

Annoyed, I snack on it as I leave the house.

Colt let me use one of the ranch trucks, and I have to launch my ass inside the damn thing because these pickups are constructed for giants.

Huffing, I settle behind the wheel, checking again that the seat is as far forward as possible, then carefully reverse out of the parking space where my dad’s car usually sits when he’s home.

As I do, the neighbor, Marvin, peers out of a crack in the drapes.

Because he’s a dick, I give him a one-finger salute, smirking when he glowers at me and retreats.

I make it back to the ranch in good time. Zee and Colt’s original interview was pushed to today, so she’s in meltdown mode when I reach her office.

Knowing how stressed she is, it’s a habit to check her blood sugar on her tracking app.

With a gimlet eye, I find myself surprised that her levels aren’t all out of whack, but when I enter the room, the first thing I do is locate her trail mix stash and throw it at her.

“Tee!” she shrieks when it bounces off the back of her head.

I stick out my tongue. “Why aren’t you changed yet? The interview is in less than an hour.”

“Where were you?!”

“With Nonna. She called me over. Wanted to know why I’d canceled Saturday.”

“I didn’t know if you’d make it back in time.” She spins in her chair. “Whydidyou cancel on Saturday?”

Ignoring her second question, I retort, “And leave you to the wolves? Nah. Nonna says she’s looking forward to seeing you on the TV.”

Panic has her jerking upright. “She’s going to watch?”

“Of course. She considers you one of her little rabbits.”

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