Chapter 10
Nova
Five days after The Kiss, as I’m now referring to it, I’m meeting Chris at a restaurant I’ve never been to. I do know that Oscar Cano owns it, though.
I don’t know what all Chris has told Oscar—if he knows about the plan, or if I’m secretly involved and only Chris knows. We’ve both been busy and have only spoken in order to schedule this meeting—date—thing.
A large body stands up toward the back of the restaurant, momentarily distracting me.
Chris.
“Hey, stranger.” I saunter up to him.
“Hey, gorgeous.” He leans down and presses a chaste kiss to my cheek. Chris pulls out the chair next to him and gestures for me to sit down.
“I’ve never been here before.” I smile at him.
“The pasta is very good.” A voice from behind me sends chills down my spine.
The smile on my face drops immediately.
“Nova, I’ve heard so much about you. And you are doing well at Bella’s, no?”
My eyes shift between the two men. A sense of betrayal from Chris seeps into my soul. A warning would have been appreciated so I could mentally prepare to be this close to the man who caused my brother’s death.
Cano pulls out the seat next to me and sits down.
Holy shit, I’m sitting next to Oscar Cano.
This is the closest I’ve ever come to the man. My hand itches to grab the knife from the table and aim for the jugular. But a poorly thought-out plan will only end badly for me; I know that. Clenching my fists tight is the only thing I can do to not act impulsively.
“Nova, you know Oscar,” Chris says. His eyes are trying to send me a message that I couldn’t decipher on my best days.
“Hello.”
“Lovely to finally meet you face to face.” Cano tips his head and flags a waiter. Food and drink are immediately brought to our table.
I wait both men out. They apparently have a plan that I wasn’t privy to, so there’s no need to speak when I have no clue what will come out of my mouth.
Cano dishes out food to my plate while Chris takes care of his own. The show of dominance, of control, isn’t missed and only makes me panic more.
“So, Chris tells me he wants to include you in his new plan.”
I peer at Chris, hoping he guides me because I’m not sure what all Cano knows. I know the man likes docile, quiet women so this is my best chance of staying on his good side.
“As I was telling you yesterday, the use of the bouncers when something is dropped isn’t efficient.
We can’t trust them, for one, and there isn’t a guarantee that they give me a heads-up in a timely manner.
I’d rather have things picked up quickly and not sitting there half the night.
You never know who could randomly stumble upon the area.
Nova caught me when I was leaving. She didn’t see anything, but it did make me think about bringing in someone I trust in order to have better coverage,” Chris cuts in.
“Or a better way to let me know something has been dropped.”
“And then he told you about the business?” Cano tilts his head toward me.
“Um, only vaguely. He wants someone who could give him some sort of signal when they find a tag of sorts on the back door.” I shove a bite of pasta into my mouth so I don’t spill the fact that I know exactly what they are dealing in.
“Hmm. Simple. Effective. I like it.” Cano looks at Chris. “How soon could you have something like this up and running?”
I clear my throat. “I have most of details worked out. We could have it up and running for my shift this weekend if you needed it.”
The sinister smile is one I’ve not seen before, but I imagine it’s the look Cano had on his face while my brother seized and overdosed.
Red-hot rage shoots down my spine as I try my damnedest to not react.
“You trust her?” Cano asks Chris, but he’s still looking at me.
“I do. She’s reliable and keeps to herself. She won’t say a word.” Chris’s tone is almost bored.
“I’ll leave you to fill her in then. No specifics, just what’s absolutely needed.
” Cano stands up before pushing his chair in and facing me once more.
“It’s been a pleasure.” He grabs my hand and presses a kiss to the back of it.
I watch as he walks to the back, where the kitchen is located, and disappears through the back door.
“Well, that went far better than I thought it would.”
My head whips around to Chris. “A little fucking warning would have been helpful,” I hiss.
“Would it have made you more freaked out to know ahead of time?”
“No. Yes, but that’s not the point. I don’t like being blindsided, and I would appreciate a warning the next time I’m in that man’s presence. Especially if he’s going to touch me and be controlling about it.” I shove my plate away, no longer hungry.
Chris sighs. “I’m sorry, Nova. That wasn’t my intention. He joined last minute, and I didn’t have an opportunity to warn you. But he’s bringing you on board, so that’s the good news.”
“Is it? Or am I going to regret this?” I mutter, staring into my glass of water.
He doesn’t say anything, which tells me I will. Or maybe he already regrets bringing me into the fold. Who knows. There’s too much in the air currently.
My mind is trying to reconcile being as close as I was to Cano and how he treated me. Everything else has been pushed to the backburner of my logical brain.
“We need to figure out what we’re using at the back door. Something we can monitor while still being hidden.”
Chris’s agenda takes over, and I’m thankful. It means I can spend less time analyzing how Cano’s words and the way he looked at me make me feel. Chris’s words don’t really register either.
Some things are better left alone.
“A piece of colored paper?” I offer.
“Too vulnerable in the weather.”
“A rock?”
“Hmm, how could we differentiate it and not lose it?” He takes a sip of his water.
“How about you tell me some ideas then.” I cross my arms over my chest and tilt my head in exasperation.
His eyes widen before he leans back in his chair. “I apologize. I thought we were bouncing ideas off of each other.”
“If bouncing ideas means vetoing every option I toss your way, then sure.” I know I’m being extra, but the need to compensate for how Cano made me feel is, unfortunately, getting taken out on Chris.
“I should have warned you about Oscar,” he concedes, deflating.
“You should have.”
“I figured you’d already be on your way here and wouldn’t check your phone, but that was clearly a mistake.”
“I’d appreciate not being ambushed again.”
“Done. Is that the first time you’ve been in a room with him?”
“Yes.”
“You held onto your restraint well.”
I stare at him. He’s calm and collected, almost calculating.
Who are you, Chris Roth?
“Yeah, well, I didn’t really have a choice.”
“There’s always a choice.” He says the words, but I’m not sure he truly believes them.
“Is there? Because my life lately sure as hell feels like a lot of shit I definitely don’t have a say in.”
“You can get out. I’ll make it happen if that’s what you want.”
I scoff. Even if he could do what he’s promising, there’s no getting out. I knew that when I came up with this suicide mission.
“Nova.”
There’s that name again. God, there are too many moments around this man where I want to be Claire.
“What?” I cock my head in annoyance.
“I can get you out.” Chris leans forward, reaching to grab my hand and pull it from the prison I’ve held it in since Cano left.
“That’s a dream. A hope on a dream, really,” I whisper.
Our eyes hold as a flash of pain rolls through his bright-blue gaze.
“You don’t trust me yet, but when you do, all you have to do is tell me you want out. I promise you I’ll make it happen.”
I blink, drawing myself out of the trance that is the man who has flipped my world upside down. “Sure, Chris. Whatever you say.” I rip my hand from him and toss my napkin onto the table before standing up. “Text me thoughts on something for the back door.”
Then I’m out on the street, wrapping my arms around my torso from the chill in the air.
“Miss Olsen,” a stern voice says from the ally I pass.
My heart drops as my hands start to shake at the man I see leaning against the side of the building.
“Just a word of advice. Your mouth stays shut about this new … endeavor. I’ll be keeping an eye on you, just to ensure things are as you say they are.
I don’t take kindly to betrayal.” Cano steps forward to my frozen body.
“There are much more entertaining ways to break women than torture or kill them.” The kiss he presses to my cheek feels like acid against my skin.
My eyes close as I desperately try to breathe, but it feels trapped in my chest. When I am finally able to suck in a shallow breath, my eyes open to find Cano gone.
I don’t waste time getting home. A cab I usually don’t splurge on gets me home in minutes.
Once I’m inside, I lock my door and start stripping out of my clothes.
The small shower in my bathroom doesn’t have great water pressure, but I waste no time.
Getting hit with the cold blast does its job.
I need to get clean, to wash off the grime and disgust from Oscar Cano.
Before I realize what’s happening, I’m sitting on the floor of the shower, sobbing.
I fear I’ve gotten too close to the sun, and the only thing left for me is to burn.