Is something happening right now?
I hold my breath as my heart begins to thump hard in my chest.
The man comes up to the window, and Maso smiles casually as he winds it down. “Buonasera, agente.” Translation: good evening, officer.
The policeman nods and looks into the car with a torch. He shines it in everyone’s faces.
“Qual è il problema?” Maso asks. Translation: what seems to be the problem?
“Ha un documento d’identità?” Translation: do you have identification?
Maso takes his license out and passes it over. The policeman studies it.
“Apra il bagagliaio.” Translation: open the trunk.
Maso motions to open his door.
“Rimanga dentro la macchina.” Translation: stay inside the car.
Another policeman comes over, and they look through the trunk together while we all remain silent.
“Dove sta andando?” the officer asks. Translation: where are you going?
“Riportando a casa il signor Ferrara. Sono la sua guardia del corpo.” Translation: driving Mr. Ferrara home. I am his security.
The policeman’s face falls and he looks into the backseat with his torch. He immediately bows his head.
“Mi scusi, signor Ferrara. Buonanotte, signore.” Translation: my apologies, Mr Ferrara. Have a nice night, sir.
“Cosa state cercando?” Enrico asks. Translation: what are you looking for?
“Abbiamo un evaso che si ritiene stia fuggendo in questa direzione. Fate attenzione stanotte.” Translation: we have a prison escapee who is believed to be heading this way. Be careful tonight.
He hands Maso’s license back to him and waves his flag. We pull back out into the traffic. Enrico and the men continue on as if nothing has happened.
I stare out the window into the darkness with my heart hammering in my chest. He has a gun. He has a fucking gun in his car. They all have them.
Who do they think is coming for them?
And why are they all so fucking prepared for it?
For the rest of the trip, I pretend to sleep. My mind, however, is anything but relaxed. I just saw it with my own eyes, as casual as casual can be. The crime. It’s still alive and well.
They honestly believe that someone is coming for Enrico.
They thought it was an ambush, and they were armed and ready. They were calm, cool, and collected. Fear is filtering through my bloodstream. Who would want my man harmed, and what the actual fuck is going on around here?
I feel sick.
Enrico reaches forward and tucks his gun back under his seat. He picks up my hand, kisses my fingertips, and rests it down onto his thick thigh.
I watch him in the darkness as he stares straight ahead, unrattled.
Focused.
Who the hell am I in love with?
***
Olivia
Half an hour later, the car pulls into Oliviana.
“We are home,” Enrico says with a soft smile.
I wait in my seat as Maso comes around and opens my door. I get out and look around me. Two other cars have pulled up behind ours. They were obviously following us home. Enrico begins to chat with one of the men in the car behind us, and I watch him converse with them. He chuckles at something someone says, and they all break into chatter.
Totally at ease.
This is his normal. This is his safety net. He turns and notices me standing on the spot, and he comes over to take my hand.
“Come, Olivia.”
He leads me into the house and shuts the door behind us. He puts his arm around me and pulls me close, kissing my temple carefully before we turn and walk through to the kitchen. Antonia is cooking dinner.
She turns to us with a big smile. “Ciao, signorina Olivia.”
“Ciao.” I smile. I’ve been practicing what to say to her. “Grazie per aver cucinato la cena.” Translation: thank you for cooking dinner.
Enrico’s eyes glow with tenderness as he watches us.
“Ha un profumo straodinario,” he says. Translation: it smells amazing.
Her mouth falls open and she claps her hands together. “Signorina Olivia, così bella in italiano.” Translation: Miss Olivia, so beautiful in Italian.
I smile bashfully. “Grazie.”
Enrico goes to the fridge and takes out a bottle of wine. He collects two crystal glasses, too, and I watch as he pours us both one.
“Let’s go sit on the terrace,” he says, handing me my glass.
We walk outside and take a seat at the table. He lights the candles in the center.
His eyes watch me as he takes a sip. “You’re very quiet.”
I’m feeling overly emotional-like I might burst into tears at any moment.
I sip my wine.
His eyes stay glued to me. “What is it?”
I shrug, feeling stupid. I knew all this about him. Nothing new has come to light tonight, but for the first time, I’m unsettled. I’m feeling a new emotion.
I’m frightened.
I stare down at the table. “I wish you were just a delivery man.”
His eyes hold mine.
“I wish you and I had a chance to be normal.”
A frown crosses his brow. “You wouldn’t love me if I were normal, Olivia.”
“You’re wrong.” I smile as my eyes well with tears. I sip my wine, disgusted with my dramatics. “Ignore me,” I sigh. “I’m hormonal or something.”
“I’ll talk to the staff. They’ll be more discrete.”
I nod.
He leans over and takes my hand across the table. “Tell me about your plan-the one where you show me something.”
I shrug. “Doesn’t matter now.”
“Why not?”
“Because I would be beside myself with worry about you the entire time.”
He exhales and turns his gaze to the lake.
“How did your father and grandfather die, Enrico?” I ask.
“Car accident.”
“What caused their car accident?”
“They were run off the road.”
My heart constricts as I watch him, so detached and cold.
“Is that why you have so much security?” I ask.
“Yes.”
“Are you in danger?”
He clenches his jaw but stays silent. I can see his answer as clear as day in his eyes.
That means yes.
My eyes well with tears again. Damn these hormones. Why am I such a crybaby today?
“What did you want to show me, Olivia?”
“I wanted to take you to a little one-bedroom apartment with no fancy furnishings, no staff, and nobody around. I wanted to show you that our love was enough. That that’s all we need.”
His eyes search mine. “I already know that, my love,” he whispers sadly.
“You scare me.”
He gives my hand a reassuring squeeze.
“I know how our story ends, Rici,” I whisper.
“How?”
“You’re either going to be arrested and put in jail… or you will be killed.”
Our eyes are locked.
“Either way, we don’t get a happy ending… do we?”
He drops his head, saddened by my epiphany. “I’m not going anywhere, Olivia. This is who I am, though, and you need to get your head around that. I’ve tried to protect you as much as I can from my working life at Ferrara.”
“I know,” I mutter.
“I just need you to love me-to not ask questions. Let me handle business, and you handle our relationship. Keep me in check when I’m working too much.” He smiles softly. “Keep the two things separate. When I come home, I just want to be happy with my family and forget everything else.”
“How can I keep it separate when we do nothing else?”
He frowns. “What do you mean?”
“We have no friends outside of Ferrara. Your staff are everywhere I look. I just want a normal Saturday night date with friends and to…” I shrug. God, I don’t even know what I want. “I just want you to be a boring old delivery man and for us to live completely alone.”
He chuckles. “Okay.”
“Okay?” I frown.
“Let’s go and stay in Milan at my apartment for a few days. It’s a lot more private there. I’ll speak to the staff about being more discreet for when we come back home to Lake Como. You have to remember, I have never had a partner. They aren’t used to keeping my woman happy.”