Page 116 of The Protégé

“I guess I know the way to a thief’s heart.” She laughed, moving her hips to taunt me. “I love you too.”

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

ELENA

Orion hada meeting with his friends to talk about Samuel Donatello’s death and his connection to The Trogyn. There were a lot of moving pieces. He didn’t want me too involved with the crime organization and told me to focus on Musepaper.

After organizing all the information I had regarding the bank schemes, I took a break.

I sat in my kitchen and opened a recipe book that hadn’t been touched in years. I wasn’t a good cook. I didn’t really like doing it, but mostly I didn’t have time. But today, love and hope rose in me. I wanted to cook a traditional meal for him.Lomo saltadowas a stir-fry dish with seasoned meat, french fries, onions, tomatoes, and peppers served with rice. I’d learned it from my mom a while ago.

Orion said he loved me, and I told him I loved him. Smiling, I looked around my home, appreciating what I had. Love truly changed the energy around a person, and I felt the bliss in my heart and everywhere I looked. I had to notify the girls that the mission The Thief Who Loved Me was completed!

I loved my messy home, but I should clean it up a bit. Orion preferred order and organization. I could find everything I needed in his office. His suite was just as neat. I sorted through a pile of old mail and discarded things I didn’t need.

Satisfied with my cleaning job, I looked in the refrigerator for ingredients, but there was nothing. Orion and I had been ordering out most nights. Not wasting any time, I drove to the grocery store two blocks away, grabbed a cart, and searched for my ingredients.

Thoughts swirled in my head about the bank scheme, recipe ingredients, Musepaper, and the anticipation of telling the girls about my successful mission. I crashed my cart into a man with a cast on his arm. He stood beside his wife, who was driving the cart full of groceries.

“Oh my God!” I cried. “Are you okay? I’m so sorry. I should’ve paid more attention.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he said.

I turned to the red-haired woman. “So sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Her eyes warmed. “Life gets busy.” She placed a hand on his back. “He’s a strong man. A shopping cart won’t hurt him.”

The guy looked at me. “Have a good day.”

“You too.” When they disappeared from the aisle, I blew out a breath and muttered to myself, “Need to pay attention. Don’t let happiness blind you.”

As I wandered down the meat section, I spotted two of my nosy neighbors. One was recently divorced, and the other had broken up with her boyfriend. I heard all this from a neighbor I’d bumped into when I stopped by the post office to mail the check to Uncle Carlos.

I didn’t hang out with my neighbors, but they knew I’d worked for the news station. Right now, I didn’t want to have a conversation with them.

As I swerved my cart around, I heard, “Elena.”

Shit.

Splashing fake surprise on my face, I turned around to see Melissa, who had cropped brown hair, and Brittany, with her bleached-blonde hair worn in a ponytail.

“How are you both?”

“Good,” said Melissa.

“Sorry to hear there’s no more Uncover the Truth,” Brittany said. “Beauty Secrets Galore has taken its slot. Chantel is okay, but she can be annoying.”

“There are so many changes to Channel Seven News. What have you been up to?” Melissa asked.

This was the perfect opportunity for me to promote my Musepaper and address any rumors that had already started to circulate.

“Oh, I’ve moved on.” I smiled. “I’m working for this online newspaper called the Musepaper. It’s an up-and-coming news outlet that tells the truth. There’s a juicy article coming out soon. You should check it out.”

“Let me look.” Brittany scrolled on her phone.

“Who’s the guy that’s been coming to your house?” Melissa asked.

I thought gossip only occurred in a small town, but I was wrong. I lived on a dead-end street, and there were only six homes there. These women often took walks together in the neighborhood. I wasn’t surprised they’d noticed Orion.

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