Page 37 of Whispers in the Dark
“Well, fuck that was cute,” Leo says.
“I’m a dad,” Alex whispers in disbelief, pulling at the ends of his hair. “I don’t…” He swallows hard, shaking his head, and then drops to his seat. “What am I supposed to do?”
“Well, first…” Vin stands. “You’re to order a paternity test with Dr. Rose, just to be sure.” He steps toward the child. “Although anyone with eyes can see this little girl is clearly yours.”
“She even has your damn nose.” Leo chuckles.
“Do you want to hold her?” Samuel asks.
Alex swallows hard. “What if… What if I drop her?”
I reach over, grip his shoulder, and then sign,You won’t.
He nods, standing. Taking a few steps, he holds out his arms, and as carefully as they can, Samuel maneuvers her into Alex’s hold.
“I’ll, umm…” Samuel hooks a thumb over his shoulder and then backs out of the room, closing the door behind him.
Alex stares down at the little girl, standing as still as a statue. The girl releases a tiny hiccup and then stills, her chest slowly rising up and down.
“What just happened?” he asks quietly, clearly trying not to wake her.
Vin stands beside him, gripping his shoulder. Grinning, he says, “What just happened is you inadvertently became Mom’s favorite.”
Chapter nine
Alina
My car comes to a stop in front of Mauro’s house as the engine rumbles louder than any car should before abruptly silencing. With my gloved fingers, since the heating still refuses to turn on, I rub the edge of the steering wheel in a soothing motion. “Hang in there, girl. Hopefully, soon I’ll be able to get you tuned to perfection.”
As if understanding me, the car makes a sound resembling a sigh when, in fact, it’s probably something else ready to give out at any moment.
Opening my door, I step into the fresh coating of snow just as Mauro’s front door opens. He stands at the threshold with his arms crossed over his chest, his larger-than-life biceps outlined under his white T-shirt.Holy sweetness. “Hey.” I wave as I quickly look anywhere but at him, advancing toward the back of my car. “I only have a couple of things.”
He snaps his fingers, and a moment later, two men walk out of his house heading my way. “Oh, I can manage.”
The one closest to me scoffs and points a thumb over his shoulder. “He’ll have our balls in a vise if we don’t help, and I for one would hate to live without them.” He stabs a finger against his chest. “I’m Joey.” He jerks his chin to the other guy. “And this is Elio.”
Elio dips his chin in a polite greeting before reaching inside my trunk.
“It’s nice to meet you,” I respond as they grab my suitcases, leaving my weekender bag in my passenger seat for me to hold. The one with my toiletries andessentials. I almost smile thinking about what’s buried at the bottom of this bag, but bite down on my lip. Just as I step toward the door, Mauro beats me to it.
“I can handle this one,” I quickly say. “It’s not heavy.”
He completely ignores me and curls his arms around the bag, carrying it against his chest as he turns to head inside.
Oh no.
“Wait, Mauro!” I run after him, crossing the threshold just as the other two men appear before him.
“All set, boss.” The second one gives a salute, and the two of them turn to leave, but not before I slide across the floor on my wet boots. At the last second, Mauro turns with the bag still in his hands, and I crash directly into it, my fingers gripping his biceps for stability.
His hold on the bag doesn’t falter, and relief swims through me that the contents didn’t spill on the floor between us.
Phew,that could have been bad—
A loud thrumming noise echoes inside the bag.
Please tell me I’m dreaming.
