Page 62 of Hot Momosa

Leo

Candles and a coupleof strands of Edison bulbs illuminated my rooftop deck. Beyond the childproofed railing, the French Quarter glittered and gleamed. Somewhere in the distance, a musician poured his soul into a saxophone. A bluesy rendition of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” filled the air. I lit the last of the standing heaters and opened a bottle of Dahlia’s favorite wine to breathe.

I’d tidied up Gunnar’s toys inside and lowered the lights. The warm glow from the Christmas lights added a hint of playful wonder that I fully intended to take advantage of. Dinner on the deck, kisses on the rug by the tree. Come hell or high-water, our first date in over a year would be perfect.

Stuart came through the front door carrying takeout from Enzo’s restaurant. Judging by the aromas drifting up from the bags, my brother hadn’t let me down. Then again, Enzo was a Michelin Star chef. Surely, he could handle a romantic dinner for two.

“Need anything else?” Stuart turned to me.

“Nope. I’m good. Take the rest of the night off.” I followed him to the door.

“I’ll be back before you leave for the Gulf in the morning.”

“I’m heading out around five.”

He clamped a hand on my shoulder. “Good luck tonight. She’s something special.”

That he’d spoken so freely surprised me. As a general rule, bodyguards were seen and not heard.

He clenched his jaw. “I didn’t mean to—”

“Don’t worry about it. You’ve earned the right to speak freely after being assigned to my mother for a year.” Punishment for betraying Marco or not, I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.

He chuckled and opened his mouth to say more, but my ringing phone interrupted him. Stuart gave me a quick nod and closed the door behind him.

I checked the number on the screen and sighed. “Leo Marchionni.”

“Mr. M, this is Julia…um…Julia Carpenter.”

“Did you get the information I asked for?” I took the bags to the deck.

She let out a nervous laugh. “Yes. Sorry it took me so long, but once I found the arrest record, I felt I needed to dig a little deeper. I’m so glad I did. Once I found his wife—”

Arrest record? Married? What-the-unholy-fuck is she talking about?

“Julia, slow down and tell me what you found.” I plated the salads and poured the antipasti into a serving bowl.

“Right. Sorry. I emailed you the documents.” She drew a deep breath. “Meriwether was arrested for domestic abuse. His ex-wife pressed charges but they were dropped.”

“Dropped? Did she recant her story?” The spoon fell from my hand and left an oil stain on the white tablecloth.

I had a hard time picturing Dahlia with anyone other than myself, but never in a million years would I think she’d get involved with the kind of guy who’d hurt his wife.

“Yeah, but she was beaten up pretty bad. The thing is, there’s still an order of protection against him. Even weirder, is I could find no record of his wife after it was issued. It’s like she changed her name or left the country or…”

“Right.” I didn’t need speculation. I needed to know what’d happened to her. “Anything else?”

“I’m just getting started.” Julia laughed, but this time, it lacked any traces of nervousness. She seemed quite proud of the job she’d done. “He was accused of assault, battery, felony stalking in high school and twice more in college. Nothing stuck.”

I sank into a chair. “Not surprising.”

“Anyway. I reached out to his victims, but only one of them would speak to me.” Julia sounded as disgusted as I felt. “She said she reported him, but the university and the police discouraged her from pressing charges.”

Suddenly, the balsamic glazed chicken wasn’t appealing. “Anything else?”

“She said he went nuts when he found out she’d gone to the authorities.” Her voice lowered. “She claims he assaulted her…sexually.”

“That son of a bitch.” I couldn’t imagine Dahlia with such an asshole. I needed time to process what I’d learned, but the shower had cut off several minutes earlier. She’d be joining me for our date sooner rather than later.

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