Page 16 of Vito DeLuca

Nodding, I assured, “I will.”

I expelled a deep breath when he opened the door for me to leave. I only wanted to see one person. It was our usual shopping time, so I hoped he was there. Desi had to be delusional to think I would go groveling to my parents, begging for food. They would chastise me for hours, only to tell me they refused to support me in my bad choices.

I arrived at the grocery store and drove around the parking lot, looking for Vito’s Jeep. I found it parked near the back of the lot. So happy to see his vehicle, my smile reached the corners of my face. He was the only sunshine in my life.

I had hoped he would be here, but now that he was, I didn’t know what to do next. My smile disappeared, and hesitation took over. Was I going to come straight out and ask him for money for food? Would I run away with him? Would he think I was a nuisance and tell me to leave him alone?

I went into the store uncertain about approaching Vito and with no funds for groceries. I grabbed a buggy and started walking around the store browsing food items. I was inspecting a head of lettuce when I smelled his cologne. A tingle traveled up my spine as my senses reacted to his presence.

“Nice to see you again, Nicole,” he said with his arms crossed over his chest. He eyed me from head to toe, taking mental pictures of every inch of my body. “I thought you weren’t going to ever come back.”

“Well, I have to buy food at some point,” I replied nonchalantly.

Vito’s intense eyes captured my gaze and held it. “You’ve been walking around just looking at food. You haven’t picked up anything yet. Are you here to shop, or were you waiting for me?”

I tossed the head of lettuce into my cart and tilted my head to the side. “See, I’m grocery shopping,” I retorted.

“Okay. Point taken.” He nodded. “But I’m only here to see you. Can we talk for a minute?”

“We are talking.”

“Somewhere private, where there’s just you and me.”

An extreme sense of discomfort blanketed me. This had been a mistake. Desi was probably already here watching me. His sister probably wasn’t too far behind. If either saw me with Vito, I would have to deal with his torture for the next two weeks. It could be months before I saw the light of day if he discovered I was here talking to Vito again.

“Just say what you need to say now,” I suggested.

“For starters, I think you should leave that boy you call a man. He doesn’t deserve you.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about. He just—”

“He’s an asshole. The way he talks to you is horrible. The way he touches you is worse. And even though you might not admit it, he’s hitting you. You deserve so much more than that.”

“He’s not the best man….” I began.

He cut me off. “He’s a piece of shit.”

I closed my eyes and huffed. “You think I don’t know that. I’m the one who has to live with him,” I admitted.

“You don’t have to do anything. This is a free country. If you want to leave him, leave him. Life is too short to be stuck with someone putting their hands on you,” he said sincerely.

“How am I going to leave? He’s dangerous. The man will kill me.”

And I had absolutely nowhere to go.

Vito touched my cheek. “There are men more dangerous than him who could protect you. I would happily do the honor.” His hand drifted to my chin atop a makeup-covered bruise. He wiped the makeup away with his thumb. “The truth is, he will kill you if you stay with him.”

I looked away. Vito had noticed the bruises beneath the makeup, which let me know they were never hidden from him. He had known I was being abused.

Would Desi kill me if I stayed with him too long? Unfortunately, I didn’t know the answer to that question. That didn’t stop me from sucking up my tears and rebuffing Vito’s claim. “No, he’s not going to kill me. He only threatens to hurt me if I leave. He won’t kill me if I stay.”

“What about the damage done to your body?” Vito prodded, his handsome facial features disturbed by annoyance.

I shrugged. “I’m fine.”

“What about your beautiful, bruised face?”

I dropped my gaze.

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