Secrets, Love and Lies (18+)

28 - On the Road

I sit on the small bench to the right of the door and Luca nudges in beside me, our bodies resting against each other as we stare into the blue-grey skies. He surprises me by picking up my hand and threading our fingers together and my head falls to his shoulder. The way my head rests inside his arm is so familiar, the only thing that has changed is the couple inches of height that Luca's gained and the hard packed muscle beneath my head, so much bulkier than it was five years ago.

But the smell is exactly like I remember. Soft musk, spicy soap, leather and mint. He feels like my own little piece of heaven and I sigh when his hand releases mine to wrap around my waist and pull me just a little closer. Neither of us have spoken, but the silence isn't heavy, it's the kind of silence that rests between two people who can speak without saying a word.

"Was it really true...the story?" I finally ask, speaking against his hard chest.

"It doesn't matter if it's true or not. It doesn't change anything, Lily. There is no way to go back in time and there isn't anything I can do to change the future. It just...is."

"No, it does matter. Have you held this secret for five years?" I ask, a whisper.

"My dad has no idea. I could never put that on him, he probably would have done something crazy."

A puff of air comes from my nose as I answer. "Yeah, he's always been a pretty great dad, hasn't he?"

Luca doesn't answer but I'm sure he's bobbing his head in agreement. Nick Romano loved his son and protected him fiercely after the death of his wife, Althea. I was always jealous of the way the two cared for each other, wishing I could have the same kind of relationship with my own father. The difference between our fathers was that Nick knew a relationship grew with the investment of time and energy, a concept Gunnar never seemed to grasp. It also helps when your father isn't mentally unstable, and potentially psychopatic. 

Luca finally breaks the silence. "Your father and Walter, they don't know where you are since you left the phone behind. That was a smart move. Only problem is that it won't take them very long to track you here...and if they do track you here, you know what happens..."

My head drops and I nod softly.

"You need to get out of town tonight, leave a credit card trail out of town. Check into a hotel on the card, take out a bunch of cash and move on a few hours before you pay cash at a new place. Keep using cash from then on until they can get you out of the country. Buy some burners and toss them every time you use them. It's the only way they won't track you...or find your mother."

I nod my agreement. "How long before I need to leave?"

"Soon. I'm going to have to tell them that my lead took me to your classmate here, but it was a dead end. I have a feeling that Walter's got some idea who Alex is. He plays his cards close to the chest, but he insinuated that he knew about your boyfriend. I'll do whatever I can to keep them away from your family, but you need to make trails, princess."

I shiver in the cooling evening air and Luca suddenly pulls me into his lap and wraps his large arms around me, nuzzling his cheek against my head. After everything he's told me, the anger I've cloaked myself with for five years has dropped away and I no longer have a safe guard for the pieces of my heart. It doesn't matter that I only have these minutes with him, I can't seem to make myself care right now.

"I wish I'd known. Maybe if I'd have known, things could have been different," I sigh.

"Nothing would have changed except you would have hated your father even more and my father would be in danger. Nothing could've been different." He sighs and leans down to meet my eyes, and before I can turn away, his lips softly brush mine and then against my cheek.