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Considering that yesterday, I’d finally had the health checkup that Renato had been threatening, I didn’t want to rock the boat. I was pretty sure my birth control shot was about to be discovered with the blood test. There was no way to make the hormones wear off faster, so I still had a good seven weeks of protection, and I had no idea how my baby-obsessed husband was going to react. His addiction to filling me up and holding me in place, full of his cum, was pretty transparent. He wanted me pregnant, and soon he’d find out that wasn’t going to be possible for another seven weeks. That moment was coming, and I had no idea exactly when.
However, since that moment wasn’t this one, and I was at school and Renato wasn’t here, I wasn’t going to let my anxiety ruin my day. In the grand scheme of things I was keeping from him, a temporarily higher hormone level barely made the cut.
Today was special and just for me. Making the decision to run from Atlantic City had already meant giving up everything I’d accomplished here, including my degree. Now, I had another chance. An unexpected opportunity to follow my dreams when I’d thought they were gone for good.
I entered the building where my lecture was, soaking up everything about the place. The flyers on the wall, the smell of burnt popcorn emanating from the common room. I grabbed a coffee from the takeout cart and waved to some people I knew in my program. The only dark spot on an otherwise happy day was my lurking shadow.
When it was time to pay, Sonny handed money over and took his Americano from the barista.
“You know, you don’t have to watch me in here. You can wait outside in the car.”
“The lot is way in the back. I need to be close at hand, just in case,” Sonny muttered, looking at every student who passed us suspiciously.
“Just in case what?”
“Those Castillo fuckers try and get some revenge. An eye for an eye, you know. That’s not just in the movies. It’s painfully real.”
We walked along in silence for a moment. People passing us sent smiles my way, only to blanch when they clocked the hulking man in a suit glowering at them. There was no hiding Sonny. He was large and in charge, or so he liked to think, clearly. He seemed to have been trained in the same merc school as Elio, because he scanned corners and moved with the same tactical grace as thesottocapo.
“Did you serve with Elio?” I wondered as we reached my classroom.
“How did you know that?”
“Just a guess. You know you can’t come into the lecture hall, right?”
Sonny nodded and pointed to a spot by the door. “I’ll be here. If you need anything, Mrs. De Sanctis, just scream, and I’ll be there before you run out of steam.”
“Call me Charlie, please. Don’t make this weirder than it already is,” I begged him.
He avoided my eyes, moving to his position beside the doors. “Mrs. D. Final offer,” he finally agreed.
With a resigned sigh, I turned to the doorway.
“Before you go, how long is this?” Sonny shot out before I left.
“Three hours.”
His look of disgust made me laugh. He crossed himself quickly, swearing under his breath in Italian.
“You’ll survive, and if you get tired, I can come look for you at the coffee shop?” I suggested.
But he was having none of it. “I’ll be here,” he said firmly, planting his feet.
“See you later, then,” I teased and went into the classroom.
Students were settling into their seats, and I selected one on the end and sat. I had my notes and books. Somehow, Renato had managed to get a minion to track down all our things from the bus. He’d also had everything moved from our old apartment to Casa Nera. I had all my notes and secondhand textbooks back.
And now that I had my old clothes back, I could see how shabby they looked next to my new designer threads. I was considering donating them, but that felt wasteful and spoiled. I actually felt guilty toward my own clothes for wanting to toss them when something better came along. I was clearly losing my sanity a little bit more with each passing day.
The lights dimmed as I checked the class schedule. A guest lecturer? Who could it be?
As if my thoughts had summoned him, he suddenly appeared. “Well, Nurse Burke, I’m relieved to see you’re still alive.”
Oh, no.
Doctor Dan stood at my side, peering down at me with a self-important smile.
“Are you the guest lecturer?”
