Page 14 of Bite Marks

“By my honor, no deals. I told you, I don’t make the same mistakes twice. You never need to worry about that again.”

Her smile returned. Something about his conviction and the weight of his words made her believe him. Nunzio was a bit dense in the way all men were dense at times, but he wasn’t outright stupid. Vanessa needed this deal to work between them, but she wasn’t going to risk everything she’d built by fucking around with the mob. At least not too much. In this city, being in the upper-crust and staying clear of the mafia was a near-impossible pairing. It was inevitable that she crossed their path at some point in time. At least Nunzio was cute.

“Good. Anything else? I need to get back to work. I’m chasing down a Degas.”

“Give me his address, and I’ll find the guy for you. You said, Dagas? D-A-G …”

“No. It’s Degas. D-E-G-A-S, and he was a painter back in the mid-1800s. I’m after one of his paintings. And no! You can’t help. The painting is in France.”

“I’ll fly to France for you.” His words were laced with sex and a grin.

She laughed. “I bet you would. I have to go.”

“Can’t wait to see you again. I’m looking forward to dancing.”

The thought of Nunzio fighting that goon squad, the way he moved with and around them, came to mind. He was like water, flowing from one spot to the next. He should make a good dancer. She just couldn’t picture him in a class with an instructor. “I still have a hard time believing you took dance lessons.”

“Everyone always says that.” He chuckled, the warm sound cascading through the earbud and straight into Vanessa’s mind. “I got to put my hands on beautiful women in tights or nice dresses two nights a week. I was in heaven.”

Giggling, she envisioned those hands on her. Maria rolled her eyes and waved at her as she walked on, probably heading home to shower and change for work.

A boldness Vanessa hadn’t felt in a long time blossomed in her chest. “And you managed not to step all over their feet with those big shoes of yours?”

“I had a little more room to grow at the time, so I was only in size thirteens by then. I’ll admit I stepped on a toe once or twice. But to my credit, the other guys stepped on way more toes than I ever did. All the girls wanted me as their dance partner.”

“Oh, is that right?”

“It is, and now you get the world-renowned Nunzio all to yourself.”

She tilted her head back, laughing at his absurdity. “World-renowned, huh? Yeah, we’ll see about that. I’ve got to get back to work now.”

“It’s good to hear you laugh again. I can’t wait to see that smile.”

“Smart men make me laugh. Idiots make me mad.”

He chuckled. Those smooth tones rumbled through her again, and she let them slide deeper.

“Men can be pretty thick-headed sometimes, I can admit that,” Nunzio said.

“I’m glad to hear a little humility from you for a change.”

“You ladies like a confident man.”

“We also like honest men.”

“Honor and integrity.”

The family’s motto struck a chord inside her that wasn’t the one she thought it would be. Even with all the shit that life brings, there were a few glowing positives. One of those things could be good, honest men. Men who really believed in that motto. A lot of those guys didn’t always climb very high in the ranks, and some of them ended up with cement shoes. But occasionally, “every death of a pope,” as her people would say, a good man came around and really set an example the others could follow. Maybe Nunzio could be that man.

“I like that. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Have a good day, butterfly.”

“Oh wait!” Vanessa bit one of her nails around a wide smile. “How big are your shoes now?”

“Seventeen and a half.” He let that sizzle before adding, “Extra wide.”

“Hanging up now,” Vanessa squeaked in English before hanging up and screaming with laughter.

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