I frowned. “We’re not.” Not technically. “And she’s not that much younger than you.”
“But eight years younger than you,” she reminded me before fake-zipping her lips and tossing the key into the metaphorical water. “I should shut my mouth, since Pablo is a decade older.”
“A decade?” I scoffed.
“Mm-hmm.” She nudged my suitcase with the tip of her boot. “You failed my test, you hypocrite. He’s only three years older. But what he lacks in age difference he more than makes up for in the bedroom.”
Payback was a bitch. “Yeah, I don’t need that mental image. Because Pablo will have his ears removed if I think—”
“That was Van Gogh. He’s the one who cut off his ear,” she interrupted as I grabbed my suitcase.
“Yeah, okay, well, I’ll chop something else off, then.” I winked, and she nudged me in the side as we started down the long hall toward the guest room, which happened to be on the other side of the house from my old bedroom. Well played, Mom. But my room had a balcony overlooking the water, which meant I could easily access the room at night.
“Sure, sure. I’d say your bark is bigger than your bite, but I know you. And both are equally scary.” She elbowed me again. “Jeez, you’re still made of rock.”
“I was going to say you must be hitting the gym yourself at how hard you poked me,” I joked, faking arm pain with a dramatic moan.
We stopped outside the guest room, and I saw Alessandro had already claimed the bottom bunk with his bag.
“Why can’t Constantine share with him?” I grunted like I was that teenage boy again. But at least that me was still innocent. Had yet to take a life.
“Constantine share?” She snorted. “Sure.” With her arms folded now, she set her back to the hall wall outside the bedroom.
“And where is your artist who isn’t Van Gogh? Why didn’t he come with you?”
“He had to wrap up a project at his studio first. He has an exhibit next week, so it’s a big deal he’s even coming here for a few days.” She checked her watch. “Should be here any minute, though.”
“Wow. I really look forward to meeting him,” I dryly said, rolling my eyes. “But if you’re introducing him to the family, it must be serious.”
She held up her ring finger, and thank God, there was no ring. “He’s planning to ask you all for my hand in marriage. I figured if we’re all here, it made sense to do.”
“What?”
She followed me into the room. “He proposed already, and I helped him stand back up and kindly told him to try again after he talks to you guys and Dad. Because you know—”
“He’d lose a limb if not?” I smiled, but fuck, it wasn’t funny. I didn’t want her marrying some guy I’d never met and already had a bad feeling about.
“So.” She pointed at my suitcase as if the answers were there. If only. “Why are you really here? You don’t think any of us are buying the Homeland Security BS, do you?” she asked as I peered at the couch opposite the bunk beds. It was loaded with stuffed animals for the grandbabies Mom hoped to have one day.
Shit. “We’ll tell you tonight. I promise.” I dropped my bag and flipped open the blinds, catching only a partial view of the water from this side of the house.
“It’s not good, is it?”
I let go of the wooden blinds and slowly faced her.
“Tell me now. Don’t make me wait. Hell, clearly Hudson knows what’s going on or he wouldn’t be here.” Izzy was leaning into the interior frame of the door now, her humor and happiness absent from her face. All hard, sad lines now. “Please.”
I gathered in a deep breath and scratched my jawline, contemplating what to do. Before I could decide whether to confess the truth, my phone began vibrating in my pocket.
It was my mother’s cousin. “One second. I need to answer this message,” I told her.
Giovanni: I have the name. I’d rather share it in person. Offer my apologies to your family face-to-face. I heard you were back in New York.
The fact that news had traveled fast that I was in town didn’t shock me. There were always eyes on me when I was here.
Me: You need my parents’ blessing for an impromptu visit. Call them. And just give me the name now.
“What is it?” Izzy asked, coming closer, and I looked up to see her worried expression.
“Just Maria’s ex causing problems,” I said once reading the information he’d texted. As I’d suspected, he provided Thomas’s name.