We have unfinished business."
"The Colonel's office?"
"Wherever you like."
Chapter 19
The Colonel's office reflected its masculine owner. Furnished with heavy wood and leather, the thin walls allowed music from the dance band to drift in. Tonio closed and locked the door.
"No interruptions." He stood straight-backed and solemn. A month ago she would have found his stance intimidating.
"No interruptions," she repeated dumbly. Now in his presence, she was suddenly at a loss. "You're looking handsome tonight, Tonio. You've recovered well from your stay in the bullpen. Harry did a good job of getting you out."
"Harry Scott is the best friend a man could have. He used his influence as a state senator and convinced Governor Steunenberg that I didn't know any more than I'd already told them."
He stepped forward, so close that she longed to touch him. "Angelina, as long as I was in the bullpen and not talking, I was at a stalemate with both sides. I felt that we were both pretty safe. Your visit nearly tipped the balance.
"The guards had orders to listen in on every visit I had and the captain was smart enough to post Italian-speaking watchdogs. Maybe I was paranoid, but I half-imagined them with a cup to the wall trying to hear us. You came in talking about my meetings with Baker…"
"I'm sorry."
"Me, too. You almost gave them the fodder they needed to charge me as an accessory and you put yourself in danger. I was concerned that Clell would get wind of your visit and come after you, thinking that you knew something. Or that he'd realize how much you meant to me and use you as a union hostage to keep me from talking.
"Hell, I was just worried about you. Telling you to leave was one of the hardest things I've done."
"You're much too good with a poker face, Tonio. I almost believed your ruse. Did you know more about the union's activities?"
He broke into a crooked smile. "What do you think?"
Angelina returned the smile. "What about the union, Tonio? Are we safe now?"
"Harry and Baker are friends. Baker is courting Harry's sister Eleanor. Harry convinced him that I wouldn't talk. They know I'll never divulge what I know unless subpoenaed.
"To be honest, Baker never concerned me, it was Clell. Rumor is he ran to Canada. If that bastard ever steps foot in North Idaho again…"
He didn't need to finish, his meaning was clear. Hatred for the man filled his eyes.
"I suppose you've come back for your necklace," he said. "You had me doubting my ability to judge character, Angelina. When Nonna Gia telegraphed that you'd left New York, I thought I'd misjudged how much you valued it.
"Do you remember—you told me once that you would never leave the country without it? When I thought you had left, I held onto those words. If you were really going back to Italy, you would have asked for it back. Now I see that I was right and you didn't lie."
He paused. "I could have told you where it was that day in the bullpen, but I thought that as long as I had it you wouldn't go far."
"I came back for you."
The raw look that she could never explain before was back in his eyes as he stared across at her. He watched her as closely as he would the fuse on a stick of dynamite. This time she hoped she read it correctly.
She pulled a folded document from the small velvet purse that hung from her wrist and held it out for him to see. "Citizenship papers."
He pulled it from her hand to get a better look. She watched as a tiny frown turned the corners of his mouth and a barely perceptible crease wrinkled his brow. "This isn't legal."
"Legal enough to fool the authorities, or so I was told. I was sworn in by a certified judge of the United States of America and all I had to do was swear that I could vote."
"Damn, Angelina! You charmed your way into a naturalization mill!" He was clearly amused.
Angelina bit her lip. Her hands wouldn't stop shaking. She didn't know how to go about making a marriage proposal. She didn't suppose many women did. Even men seemed to have a tough time with it.
She took a deep breath, hoping her voice would stay steady. "I had a little speech planned, but it escapes me now so I'll just plunge ahead. Tonio, I may not be the blond American woman that you've always wanted—"
"Blond woman?"
"Maria