Page 64 of Secret Mafia Daddy

When we get to the condo, Tony has a doctor waiting to patch me up.

Nico shows up a couple of hours later, but he just sits there. I frown.

“You’ve never this quiet,” I say slowly. “Something’s up. What’s going on?’

“We’ll talk about it when we get back to Chicago,” he says quickly.

I sit up. “No, we’ll talk about it now. What happened? Is it… did Catarina leave, take Chelsea?”

My heart is in my throat.

Nico sets his jaw. "We don't know, Angelo. All we know is that they’re gone.”

26

CATARINA

I expect Angelo to be gone all night, but what I don’t expect is for him to not come back the next morning. We had an early wake-up scheduled to go to our honeymoon, but it’s an hour past that and he is nowhere to be seen.

I’m worried sick, working my bottom lip between my teeth until it’s bleeding.

Chelsea’s still with her grandparents, but since apparently we are no longer going anywhere, I end up going to get her, wanting her with me. She isn’t disappointed at all, but she ends up immediately asking about her Papa.

“Papa's working," I say quickly, even though I don't know if that's true. I don’t know what Angelo will do. I’m hoping against hope that he’s not dead somewhere or in some woman’s bed.

Both ideas fill me with dread.

I get Chelsea back home and settled and call Dante immediately.

“I haven’t heard from him,” Dante says, but it sounds like a lie.

I take in a deep breath. “Listen, I know that you have your wiseguy code and everything, but me and Angelo had a really big fight last night and I just need to know if he’s okay.”

“Call Nico,” he says. “He should know something.”

Dante gives me the number and I dial it, not liking how vague he was being. Angelo is probably on a job, and I’m not sure he’s in the right frame of mind.

Nico answers on the fourth ring.

“Nico, this is Catarina, Angelo’s wife?”

“Oh, hello,” he says, clearly confused.

“I’m looking for Angelo. He’s not answering his phone, and well, I’m worried.”

Nico hums in the back of his throat, as if considering what he should tell me. “He was supposed to meet me for a job, but he decided to take off on his own. I’m on standby. I’ll fly out in about thirty minutes or so.”

My heart leaps up into my throat. “He did?”

“I’m sure everything is fine,” Nico says. “Give me a few minutes to make some calls and I’ll try to find him."

“Okay, thank you.”

He hangs up, and I only have to stew for about two minutes before someone calls back.

“Nico,” I answer.

“Sorry, this is Aurora,” a female voice answers. “Nico’s wife?”

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