Page 22 of The Cost of Corruption
“You’re home late today,” Letizia noted, sounding far more like the motherly figure she’d become to my brothers and me over the years than a domestic servant. “It must have been quite the night at the club. Why don’t you have a seat, and I’ll get you—Santa Madre! What have you done?”
So much for staying quiet.
The moment Letizia turned around and spottedSisterChastity in her full habit, laying loose and languid in my arms, her voice echoed off the stone walls.
Chastity’s eyes flew open. Startled awake and confused by strange, new surroundings, her impulse was to jump out of my arms, and I had to grip her even tighter, pressing her body fully against mine to keep her from tumbling to the floor.
“What’s happening?” she shouted, frantic as she struggled in my grasp.
“It’s okay, Chastity,” I purred softly against her ear, trying to reassure her. “You just fell asleep. Everything is fine.”
Judging by the looks both women in the room were shooting at me—one panicked and the other seriously disappointed—neither one of them believed that.
“Where am I?” Chastity demanded, her eyes flashing desperately around in the unfamiliar room.
“My home.”
Letizia arched a single eyebrow. “Andwhyexactly were you trying to sneak an unconscious nun into this house at dawn?”
“I wasn’tsneaking. I was being quiet, so I wouldn’t wake her up,” I said. Even though I technically didn’t owe the older woman any explanation, life in this house always ran smoother when Letizia was happy. “And besides, she isn’t really a nun.”
The older woman’s face paled slightly as her mouth fell open.
“Oh, Matteo.” She shook her head sadly. “That’s so much worse. It’s bad enough that you spend your time with these working girls, but now you’ve started bringing them home dressed up in blasphemous costumes?”
“It is not a costume,” Chastity protested, wriggling and writhing in my arm so hard I finally lowered her down to the floor. “I might not be a nun, but I am a postulant. I just haven’t taken my full vows…yet.”
“Oh.” Letizia sounded almost apologetic as she looked Chastity up and down with new eyes. “But if that’s true, what in the world are you doing coming home with Mr. Matteo at five in the morning.”
“There was an incident at the club,” I answered for her. “Sister Chastity here needed protection, and?—”
“SisterTheresa,” Chastity corrected.
Letizia’s skeptical brow arched right back up at that. “You don’t even know her name, Matteo?”
“I do,” I answered, struggling to keep my temper when all I wanted to do was skip all these questions and head into the peaceful quiet of my bedroom. “It’s Chastity. It will only change to Theresa if she takes her final vows.”
“WhenI take my final vows,” she broke in, shooting me a scowl. “Notif.I have every intention of taking them in two weeks.”
Letizia’s sharp-eyed gaze shot back and forth between us. “And you didn’t help her back to her convent because…?”
She balled her hands into fists, resting them on her hips as she impatiently waited for my answer.
“Because…the situation is complicated.”
It was the best I could come up with on the spot. Maybe after a little rest and a few shots of espresso, I could come up with a more diplomatic answer—one that would satisfy Letiziaandspare Chastity’s pride, but right now, that simply wasn’t happening.
“Complicated? Now, that might be the first honest word you’ve spoken since walking in,” Letizia said with a laugh before turning her attention back to the stove. “I don’t know if you two are lying to me or yourselves, but if you know what’s good for you, you’ll both spend some time begging the Lord’s forgiveness for whatever mess you’ve gotten yourself into.”
“She’s right,” Chastity said the moment we were out of the kitchen doors. “I shouldn’t be here.”
“Don’t worry about Letizia,” I shook my head as I led her toward the staircase. “She’s worked in this house since before I was born. She’s like family, and you know how family can be—never knowing when to mind their business.”
“But she has a point,” Chastity said, falling into step behind me as we climbed the stairs. “It’s not right for me to be alone with you.”
“We’re not alone,” I said. “Letizia is down in the kitchen, and my brother and his wife are in their apartments on the fourth floor.”
Apparently, she didn’t find three other people in a sprawling mansion sufficient supervision. Her steady pace began to falter. “Still, I think it would be better if you took me to Grand Central Station instead.”
