Page 75 of Privilege

Lucia smacked him on the chest with an opened palm. It stung, but all he did was rub the spot with his fingertips to soothe the ache. All the while, still laughing.

“Stop laughing! It’s not even funny.”

No, it really was.

“You kind of are a princess,” he muttered.

“Shut up.”

Instead of shutting up like she told him to, he just kissed her instead. The second his mouth found her silky lips, the rest of the world ceased to exist. All he could think about was getting a taste of her, and nothing else mattered. He was fucking hungry, and his lips working against hers was the only thing that might satisfy him. He nipped at her bottom lip, and pulled away before he really wanted to, but at the same time, he also didn’t want an audience.

Not that it made a difference.

A shout came from the people on the steps, anyway. Renzo rolled his eyes, and gave Lucia a look.

“What?”

He shook his head, and wet his lips. “Nothing, baby. Absolutely nothing.”

• • •

Renzo dropped the bag of takeaway on the counter, wishing he’d grabbed more food for Lucia. “Were you at the shelter today?”

She nodded, propping herself up on the edge of the counter to watch him pull items out of the bag. “Came over after my shift was done. Where’s Diego?”

“Took a trip with Rose to Brooklyn today. Where was your car, then?”

That question made her look away from him, and that was Renzo’s first sign that something was up. Maybe, if he was a smarter man, he wouldn’t push the topic, and just let it drop. But he wasn’t very smart lately, apparently, and so he asked.

“What was that about?”

“What?” Lucia asked innocently, her eyes going wide.

Too innocent, really.

Renzo peeled the wrapper off a cheeseburger, and pointed at Lucia at the same time. “That right there—you won’t look at me. What’s up with the car?”

She sighed. “Nothing, really. Just …”

“Lucia.”

She pressed her lips together in an effort to keep from smiling, and still failed. Maybe she just wasn’t that good of a liar, but he thought it was cute as hell. And probably not very good for her.

“My dad, actually,” she finally admitted.

Renzo’s arm froze as he held out the cheeseburger for her to take from him. “What?”

“My dad.” Lucia shrugged, and snagged the food from his grasp. Before taking a bite, she was quick to add, “He decided to take my car away because apparently, he thinks I’m a fucking idiot who doesn’t know how to use a cab, subway, or a bus … or that I don’t have friends to call to take me places when I want to go.”

Renzo blinked.

They took away her car?

She was eighteen.

Lucia seemed to read his expression, and the thoughts running through his head. “Yeah, I know, right. But he bought it, so he can take it. Or that’s his reasoning. I didn’t even bother to argue.”

“But why?”