Page 18 of Spring Break with a Mafia Prince
“I smell like burnt hotdog,” I muttered.
“Only a little. Come on.” He caught my hand, leading me away from the center of the carnival to a small coffee cart set upto one side of sideshow alley. The lights still flashed too brightly, but the sounds were more muted here. “What do you want?”
“Ah–” I hadn’t thought to bring my purse with me because I had no intention of doing anything but walk and clear my head, not fill it with undesirable smoke and burning things. “I’m good,” I said quickly.
He bumped my hip with his. “It’s a coffee, Bella. I’m not buying your family business.” His eyes weren’t laughing when he said that, and his gaze darkened when he looked down at me. “I like that dress.”
I squeezed the soft green cotton of my maxi length peasant dress. “It’s one of my favorites. Um, matcha latte? With vanilla please,” I added when his eyebrows did their thing again. “You look pretty too,” I whispered, leaning in.
He snorted out a laugh. “Damn, I missed you.”
His arm slipped around my waist in a possessive gesture as he held out a card. Within a minute I was holding an oversized steaming hot matcha latte that slipped down my throat.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“You weren’t gonna eat anything again, were you?” He tightened his hold on me. “Were you married to walking around here?”
“No. I've had enough.”
“Good.” He guided us back through the crowd to the boardwalk that led past the marina to the clifftop. Somehow the crowd was more manageable with him by my side. “Sorry I wasn’t around much the last few days. Dad was available and… I don't get to see him much.” He fell silent for a long minute. “He’s still my father, even if I don’t always like him.”
I swallowed hard. “I know what you mean. At least yours is…functioning.”
“Semi.” He laughed again and pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “Are you wearing the right–” He checked down. “You areactually wearing shoes. I’m impressed. Want to check out the view from up there?” He nodded to the clifftop.
It was a steep looking walk, but thankfully there were no people on it, especially at night.
I shrugged. “I’m game.”
“You’ve never been?” He looked at me askance as we passed the jetty. “Will you wait here for me?”
I nodded, and he took off at a run, heading back toward his boat. I found a cement pylon and planted my butt, finishing my drink by the time he loped back toward me. A bundle was under tucked one arm, and he’d slung a different gray jacket to the one I’d stolen from his across his shoulders. That, he promptly took off.
“This is for us.” He nodded to the picnic rug under his arm. “This is for you.” He shrugged off the jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders.
“I’m getting a collection.”
“Good.” His gaze darkened as he looked at me, a shadow flittered behind his eyes. Something unspoken passed there, but after a moment he grabbed my hand, finishing his drink and binned both of our cups. “Captain said it’s a bit of a walk, but worth it. Do you need to be back any time soon?” He tacked that last bit on casually.
I shook my head. Dad had passed out later than usual, which meant he would also wake up later. “No, why?”
“Because Cap also said the sunrise is stunning.” Falcon reached out to brush his thumb across my bottom lip. “Are you up for that?”
I didn’t answer him because I couldn’t, so I nodded instead. He seemed to understand, dipping his head to brush his mouth lightly over mine. Just once. That’s all.
My heart pitter-pattered away in my chest as his hand closed firmly around mine. We walked in silence, taking the steep walk slow, enjoying the night’s quiet air.
We reached the top without too much panting or disgracing ourselves. His hand never left mine, and he never towed me up the hill or walked ahead of me, just keeping pace.
Whatever or whoever Falcon Gianio was behind closed doors with his family, he was a different man with me.
Low undergrowth opened out to a small expanse of rock and grass. A few beer bottles littered the far side of the clearing, but it was cleaner where Falcon laid out the picnic rug, planting his ass in the middle with his legs set out in a vee shape. He crooked one finger at me where I huddled in his jacket back against the shrubbery, neither of us breaking our unspoken vow of silence.
The cliff face was sheer, maybe a dozen feet away from where he laid out the rug on the ground. Beyond that the sea looked black, except for a single shimmering triangle where the moon's light reflected on the dark water.
He leaned back and caught my hand as I stared toward a horizon I could no longer see, tugging me down to the space between his legs. Warm arms wrapped around me as he rested his chin on my head.
I sank into him with a sigh. “I thought this was going to be scary.”
