Riding Dirty: Luciotti Crime Family (A Bad Boy Mafia Romance) - Kara Hart Page 0,63
would’ve been back sooner or later,” he laughed.
“That place? That’s yours?” I asked him, incredulously.
“Yeah. Well, it was just sitting there for decades. I think it used to be this retreat area, back when Monroe was much emptier. Cappos would come down after a big job and lay low. Now it’s mine ‘cause nobody wants it.” He shrugged, running a finger down the arch of my naked back. This, being here in my room and feeling so free, was what I wanted to do with my life. No more café, PTA meetings, morning runs. Only this. I knew it was an unrealistic goal. It was unrealistic enough to assume he’d stay with me. I still had my doubts.
“But it’s a nice house! It must be worth some money,” I said.
“Yeah, which is why I’m going to sell it and get out of here,” he said, fingers stopping at the top of my ass cheek.
“What? You’re selling it? Why?” My heart beat at double speed, right before I felt it drop into my stomach. I knew something would ruin this. I knew it was too good to be true. Was it because I had a daughter? Or maybe it was because of the whole Cade fiasco.
“Yeah, have you seen it? It’s a wreck. Besides, I think it’s about time I high-tail it out of here. Don’t get me wrong. I love Monroe. It’s a beautiful little town. But I don’t think I can stay here forever. I think I want to go somewhere with an ocean. You know, renovate a house by the beach. I’ve got the money and the time. I’m a retired man… Why not?” he said, thinking to himself. I pushed him off me and spun around so I could face him.
“Yeah,” I said. “I guess you’re right. Maybe it’s for the best you leave this town. Not much good comes out of living here, I guess.” I felt my blood pressure rise. I was furious. No, I was enraged. I could just see the headlines now: “Woman goes crazy, takes down all of Detroit Mafia.”
“Yeah.” He sighed. I was going to kill him. “And I wanted to know if you and Jen could come with me,” he said, reaching down to massage my scalp. Wait, what?
“Um…” I began.
“I know, it’s crazy of me to even ask. I just think it could be nice. I’ve got money. You could do whatever you want. You could stay home with Jen or if you want to work, you could do that too. Anything you want. I’ve always wanted to start a business. I figure if there’s an ocean nearby, I could learn to fish or maybe I could take people out to see the whales. That might be a little too freaky for me though.” He laughed and pressed his lips together, waiting for my response.
I was quiet for a good few seconds. I didn’t know what to say. When he just kept staring into my eyes, with that look of confidence and slight hesitance, I knew he was for real. “You want me to move to the coast with you? You want me and Jen to move in with you?” I threw the bed covers over my face.
“Sorry, didn’t know that would freak you out so much. It was just a suggestion. This is the 21st century. We could, uh, talk online, right? I could text you or something when I got there.”
“Are you kidding?” I repeated, still under the covers. I could only imagine the look on his face.
“Yeah, I guess I came off a little stron—”
I threw the covers away from my body and wrapped my arms around him. “You jerk! Of course we’ll go with you!” I practically yelled it and Jen opened the door and peeked her little head in. Lucas nearly jumped through the roof, covering us up with the bed sheets.
“Wait. You’ll go?” Lucas said, reaching down to grab a pair of paints from the side of the bed. He crawled into the denim and buckled his belt closed.
“Uh, yes! I thought you were leaving here for good. Like, leaving me for good.” I smiled, kissing his rough cheek.
“Ew, Mom. Gross. Where are you going?” Jen asked, eyes creased, like a detective who had just broken a case.
“Jen, what do you think of the west coast? Beaches, beautiful trees, the expansive ocean…” he said to her, jumping out of bed. He grabbed his shirt, threw it on, and walked toward her.