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Rolling her eyes, she hops off the chair. “Fine, I’ll leave.” She points at me. “Not because you told me to, but because Ihappen to really like Lux, and sorting through her new clothes sounds way more fun than whatever you two need to talk about.”
She doesn’t leave, though. She narrows her gaze on me and tilts her head as if she’s trying to figure something out. “But if you’re planning on talking about Lux’s mom, don’t you think she should be present for it? Also, since when do you call her Lux? And why the hell won’t you call me Izzy?”
I give her a tired look. “That was way too many questions, Isabella.” It’s not that I don’t like calling her Izzy, I just get enjoyment out of how annoyed she gets that I won’t. But also, our mother’s middle name was Isabella. Even though I was only six, I remember how excited my parents were when they found out Isabella was a girl. Our mother had always wanted to pass her middle name down to a little girl. So I’ve always called her by her full name, just like our mother did when she was still alive.
“Don’t you know the best reaction to something isnoreaction?” I ask her.
She pops her hip out, propping her hand on it. “So you’re saying if I stop asking you to call me Izzy, you’ll start calling me Izzy? That’s so dumb, Teo. I’m going to go find Lux, but you should think about what I said. If you and Enzo have something to discuss that involves Lux’s mom, you should include her in that conversation.”
I ignore her suggestion as she walks away, because involving Lux in what I have planned for Enzo and me tonight is out of the question.
“So,” Enzo says expectantly. “I’m assuming you’ve come up with a plan? Or have you heard back from Mancini?”
I scoff. “Of course I haven’t heard anything from him. That man is useless, but I do have a plan.”
“Let’s hear it.”
Resting my hands on the edge of the cool marble surface of the counter, I continue. “You and I are going to the strip club.”
Enzo spits out the water he just took a sip of, nearly dropping the glass in the process. I laugh because while I didn’t do that on purpose, I couldn’t have timed telling him more perfectly.
“I’m sorry,” he says. “But what the hell are you talking about?” He grabs a towel hanging from one of the drawers and wipes his face before wiping the water off the counter.
“It’s exactly what I said. We’re going to the strip club.” I stretch out my arm so the sleeve of my suit jacket rides up, and glance at the Rolex wrapped around my wrist. “In a couple of hours, actually.”
“You know I’m all about going to a strip club, but do you think your wife will be okay withyougoing to one?”
“She doesn’t need to know the details right now. Besides, I’m only going to the strip club for her mother.”
Enzo raises a brow at me. “You’re lying to her now?”
“It’s not a lie if she doesn’t know to ask about it in the first place.”
“Omitting the truth is still a lie.” A voice comes from the entrance of the kitchen. I snap my gaze over and see Lux standing there with a look of disappointment on her face. My little deviant sister stands beside her, both hands on her hips as she taps her foot.
Fucking Isabella.
Lux walks in, rounding the island to stand before me. “Care to explain to me whymy husbandthinks going to a strip club is going to help get my mom back?” Her brows are furrowed and her nostrils flared. There’s the smallest vein pulsing on her temple.
I let out a sigh of defeat, knowing I’ll have to explain myself to her now. “There’s a specific strip club that Mauricio likes to hangout at every so often. I have it under good authority that he’ll be there in a couple of hours.”
Enzo, Lux, and Isabella all look at me with confusion, not knowing where I’m going with this. “I plan on paying off a stripper to get him into a private room to talk a little. After having a few drinks, of course.”
Lux narrows her gaze on mine like she’s still trying to figure out my plan. “So you’re going to have a stripper find out where my mom is?”
“It’s actually a damn good idea,” Enzo says. “Strippers, bartenders, and barbers are the best listeners. They can get anyone to talk without even talking. It’s quite fascinating, really.”
“Okay, and what exactly is your plan? Pay off the stripper to get him to talk and then meet up with her after to learn what she finds out? How do you know she’s not going to screw you over?”
“The private rooms are decent sized and dark. Very dark. Dark enough for someone like me to hang out in the corner without being noticed. Especially by someone who’s going to be too drunk and preoccupied with getting his dick wet.”
“Ew, Teo. Must you be so vulgar? It’s just creepy when you speak like that,” Isabella says from behind Lux.
“Okay. . .” Lux says with a couple nods as if the plan is coming together in her mind. “I like it. When do we leave?”
I release an amused scoff, which takes her by surprise.Oh, she was serious.“Absolutely not. You’re not coming with us.”
Folding her arms across her body, she leans her hip against the island.She’s so damn cute when she gears up to argue with me.“And why the hell not? It’s my mom. I want to help.”
