Kiss a Frog (The Book Club Series 1)

by Jade, Scarlett

  Her heart pounded as the door opened, and she blew out a breath of relief as she saw Luca. He’d procured a scrub top from somewhere, and she smiled as he came to sit beside her. “So, did you get the calls made?”

  “Yep. Your family and friends are on the way. I called my parents too. My mother said she wants to meet the girl who made me give up the FBI.” Luca plopped down in the chair beside her casually.

  “Wait, what? You-you gave up the FBI?” Lily stammered.

  “I’m not going to be married to the job. I can’t do that. Not anymore.”

  “What are you saying?”

  Luca seemed to be grateful not to answer as a knock came at the door. “You have visitors. I’ll let myself out.” His hand cupped her cheek, and she closed her eyes against the emotion coursing through her. Before she could say anything, he opened the door and her best friends came in the door. He disappeared, and Lily felt lost.

  Abby’s face was a mask of horror, and tears filled Laura’s eyes. “Oh my God!” they screamed together, and Lily winced.

  “Shh. This is a hospital.”

  “Where the hell have you been? I had to run the store by myself today! No one died, and the store didn’t burn down, but Paul is really freakin’ pissed. Then I get a call that you’ve had an accident and I should come to the hospital. You look like hell!” Abby railed, tugging at the ends of her blonde hair, a nervous habit she’d had since Lily had known her.

  Laura sobbed and threw herself onto the bed. “Lily, are you okay?”

  Lily sucked in a gasp at the pain ricocheting through her arm. “Get off!”

  Laura scrambled off the bed and sobbed harder. “Are you dying?”

  Lily gripped her arm and shook her head firmly. “No! I just got flippin’ shot!”

  “Holy shit, so it was the mob! I told Paul that you were worried, and he told me I needed to stop watching so much TV.” Abby smirked.

  “Yeah, it was. I don’t know how much I can say, but everything is over.”

  “Oh, my gosh, and that was the coffee shop guy! That’s who you were seeing!” Laura squealed.

  “Yeah. I don’t know what will happen between us, though.”

  Abby plopped on the edge of the bed. “He’s obviously in love with you.”

  Lily chuckled, grimacing at the pain in her arm. “You’re crazy.”

  “Uh, hello, have you not read any romance books? Guy shoots up mob for girl. Girl better not be stupid and let him go. Kiss your frog, Lily, and find out if he can be your Prince Charming.” Abby swooned.

  “You know something I thought about when I was sitting in the mobster’s house? I would’ve given anything to have that stupid book to read.” Lily giggled.

  “See? Maybe if you’d just read it then your life wouldn’t be a mess and you wouldn’t have a new hole blown in your ass.” Abby threw her hands in the air and sighed.

  “I’m so glad you’re gonna be okay,” Laura interjected. “We have a killer birthday party to plan for you now that you almost died.”

  “Wait, you weren’t going to plan a killer birthday party before I almost died? What great freakin’ friends you are!”

  “Well…I mean, now that you almost died, we realize how much you deserve a party.” Abby offered.

  “You guys suck. If I wasn’t in agonizing pain, I would yell, but I am, so you’re getting a pass.” Lily pouted.

  “Did he call your parents?” Laura asked, switching subjects.

  “Yeah…this is going to be more fun than sitting on a porcupine when you squat to pee in the woods,” Lily complained.

  “You’re so dramatic. It won’t be that bad.” Abby rolled her eyes in disgust. “Your parents are awesome!”

  “Mmhm, that’s because you don’t have them as your parents. They think I should emulate the two of you. Well, the one of you, now that Abby’s working in retail hell with me.”

  “Look, let’s not throw my mistakes up at me right now. This is all about Lily getting better!” Abby scolded.

  “Fine. Well, you two better get out of here before Mom and Dad show up. I’m pretty sure you don’t want your awesome memories of them to be ruined by her dinosaur shrieks of anger.” Lily chuckled.

  She jumped as Abby leaned over and kissed her forehead. “I’m glad you’re okay, I kinda think I’d miss you if you were gone. I was really worried.”

  Her eyes went huge, and she stared in shock at Abby. “Are you high? Did aliens abduct you? Where is this kindness coming from?”

  Abby soughed and pursed her lips. “I can show emotion, dammit. My best friend got shot, and I’m a little shaken up.”

  Lily turned her gaze to Laura. “Mark it on the calendar, the ice queen is friendly.”

  Abby huffed and flounced off the bed. “Whatever, you guys!”

  Laura leaned down and carefully hugged her, and Lily patted her back. “I’m okay.” She reassured her friend.

  “I’m glad, ‘cause I would really hate to not have you anymore.” Laura sniffled.

  Lily pointed at the door. “Go away. My spidey senses are tingling, and I think I hear my mother’s shrieks already. Better go.”

  Abby and Laura waved awkwardly and blew kisses as they left her room, and Lily blew out a breath of relief. She dozed off and woke to find her mother standing over her with a disapproving look on her face. Lily jumped and squeaked, “What the hell, Mom?”

  “Lily Audrey Halloway, what am I going to do with you?” Patty tapped her foot against the floor, the heel clicking with each motion.

  “Mom, I’m fine,” Lily groaned.

  “Well, according to the doctor you got shot out at the harbor. Your dad is outside talking with the FBI. I’m going to give you one chance to tell me the truth. I want it right now.” Patty insisted.

  Lily smiled up at her mother. “Mom. I’m almost thirty.”

  “Young lady, I don’t care if you’re eighty, I’m your mother, and I’m going to haunt you forever. So go ahead and tell me what I want to know, I’m not going to get off you about this,” Patty squawked, her pale cheeks flushing with anger.

  “Okay, okay, Mom. The FBI needed my help to take out Lorenzo Caprice. I helped, I got caught in the crossfire, and all is fine.” Lily explained.

  “So it’s true what the agent said, you’re a hero!”

  “I don’t really consider myself to be a hero, Mom.”

  “My baby girl helped the FBI!” Patty gasped. “I’m so proud.”

  “I think that’s the first time I’ve ever heard you say that, Mom.”

  “What? Lily I’ve always been proud of you! I might’ve been hard on you sometimes but it was because I love you! I’ve always, always been proud of you.” Patty perched on the edge of her bed. “And may I just say, that man out there is all kinds of yummy. Please tell me I’ll have grandbabies before I die.”

  Lily smirked and shook her head. “I don’t know right now.”

  “Don’t tell me you’re going to let him go!” Patty gasped in horror.

  “Mom, if it’s meant to be we’ll work it out, okay?”

  “Of course, but good Lord, he made my ovaries act like they wanted to work again. That man is a baby maker if I’ve ever seen one!” Patty fanned herself.

  “Mother!” Lily shrieked, her cheeks flaming with color.

  “Oh stop, don’t even pretend you weren’t thinking the same thing.” Patty chuckled.

  Lily wanted to cover her head with the blanket and hide, but she was saved from dying of embarrassment by her father walking in the room. “Dad!”

  “Hey, sweetheart.” Rodd Halloway bent and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

  “So you talked to the FBI?”

  “They said my girl helped them capture mobsters. I never knew you had it in you, Lily-Pad.” Rodd ruffled her hair, and Lily grimaced at her childhood nickname.

  “So, I’m not a total disappointment to you?” She muttered.

  “What? You’ve never been a disappointment to us. Sure, we would’ve loved t
o see you go to college, and we still would, but you’ve made a decent life for yourself, Lily-Pad. We’re unconditionally proud of you.” Rodd insisted.

  “Exactly. We just rode you about school because that’s what parents are supposed to do!” Patty straightened the blankets on the bed.

  A knock came at the door and Luca peeked in. “I’m going to um, head out.”

  “Oh,” Lily mumbled, her hopes dashed. “I see. Well, be safe, I guess.”

  “I’ll see you soon,” Luca promised. “I just have some things to tie up.”

  Lily grimaced as Patty looked between them and dimpled up at Luca. “Well, I know Lily will be right here waiting for you.”

  “Mom!” Lily hissed. “See you around, Luca. Take care of yourself.”

  “Bye, Lily. Mr. and Mrs. Halloway, it was a pleasure.” Luca smiled and left the room.

  Lily groaned. “Don’t make this into more than what it is, Mom.”

  “Oh, I’m not. That boy is crazy about you, that much is obvious. I don’t know why you’re being stubborn about this.” Patty huffed and looked at Rodd. “Isn’t that right, dear?”

  Rodd lowered himself into the chair by the bed. “That’s right, dear.”

  Lily closed her eyes and let out a fake snore, hoping her parents would get the hint. Leave me alone!

  Chapter Seventeen

  Loose Ends

  Luca was exhausted. He’d spent hours driving from DC to Boston, and then back with no sleep. He ran purely on adrenaline. Lily was safe, and he had to be at the bureau first thing Monday morning, so he could finalize leaving. The agents left in Boston were tying up any loose ends to make sure that Lily’s name wouldn’t be in the papers and few would know what really happened out on the pier.

  It was better that way. If her name and picture were splashed through the papers and the TV stations, her life could be at risk. There were still a few rats they didn’t capture when they flushed the nest. They were small time, petty criminals, but if one would take out Lily Halloway, then he could rise quickly through the mob ranks and become a big deal. The FBI wouldn’t allow that to happen. He wouldn’t allow that to happen.

  He fought the urge to call his boss and find out how she was. It’s a superficial gunshot wound, and she’ll be fine. She’s mad at me for leaving her there alone, and I’ve gone and done it again. But I have to tie things up here, then I’ll be back. She was surrounded by her parents and I didn’t feel comfortable saying that I was coming to finish what we started. I figured she’d know. Why do men assume women know things? Her eyes gave her away, just like they always do. She was hurt, and I was stupid and left anyway.

  Rolling over in bed, he wrapped his arms around his pillow. I need sleep. But she’s haunting me. Sleep claimed him as the sun rose over the horizon. I’ll just rest for a little while.

  Ringing woke him from his slumber, and he rolled over in bed to locate the source. His phone jangled on the nightstand. “Hello?”

  “Kellam here. Where are you?”

  “I’m in bed trying to get some sleep. I feel like death.” Luca flipped to his back and rubbed his eyes. “What time is it?”

  “Ten. Get here to the office so we can finish things up. I also need to debrief you on the situation.”

  Luca yawned and stretched slightly. “I’ll be there in an hour.” He hung up and forced himself out of the bed.

  Stumbling to the shower, he turned the water to cold and bathed quickly, the icy stream jolting him from his slumber. Shivering, he shut off the water and toweled himself dry before meandering into the bedroom and finding clothes to wear. Pulling jeans, a black T-shirt, and a gray hoodie on his muscular frame, he hurried downstairs to find something with caffeine. Locating a soda in the fridge, he popped the tab and drained it in three gulps. Okay, I’m awake enough to drive. Sliding his feet into a pair of sneakers by the door, he grasped his wallet and keys and left the apartment.

  A brisk breeze welcomed him as he stepped outside, and he squinted against the bright sunshine. Ambling to his car, he opened the door and slid behind the wheel. The engine of the Buick purred to life, and he pulled out into traffic. DC traffic was always brutal, and today was no exception. Finding a parking spot near the bureau, he pulled in and cut the engine. Checking his watch, he grimaced at the time. Being in the military meant you hated to be late, and he was currently fifteen minutes past the time he’d promised.

  Striding briskly along the sidewalk, he hurried into the bureau. With no ID, he was stopped at the front desk. “Call Kellam, tell him to meet me here.” The balding man behind the desk obliged him and within minutes Kellam came down the hall.

  “Let’s go, De Soros.”

  Luca jammed his hands in the pockets of his hoodie and followed Kellam down the hall. Traversing the familiar turns of the building, they ended up in his office a few moments later. “Sorry I’m late,” Luca mumbled.

  “No problem. You don’t work for me anymore anyway, right?”

  Luca grinned and shrugged as he sat in the chair in front of Kellam’s glossy black desk. “I guess not, but old habits die hard.”

  “It’s really a shame you’re walking away. I haven’t put any paperwork through, and I have your badge right here. I’m giving you a chance to take back those words said in the van. Things were tense, you were worried about the girl, and everyone says things they don’t mean in the heat of the moment.”

  Luca stared at the badge Kellam slid across the desk. Is this what I want? Do I really want to give up my career? I’m good at what I do.

  “I’m not interested in being a special agent. I can’t put my family at risk anymore. Do you know how many times I got to see my family in the last three years? Then come to find out the CIA and FBI are working behind my back and keeping stuff from me? You bastards pulled her in, and she could’ve been killed. All of this made the allure of the job tarnished. I used to live for the thrill, but now I realize I’m thirty-four and I don’t even have a family. I want that. I can’t be married to the job, Kellam. I’m not you. I thought I was, for a long time.” Luca sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

  “You fucked up a Federal investigation, De Soros, and if I wanted to be a real bastard, I could bring you up on charges. You know what your duty was, and the expectations. Then a girl comes along and you mess it all up.”

  “I know I messed up, and I can’t go back and change things. When I saw Caprice in the restaurant I panicked, then I saw guys following us into the movie theater. We at least took them down, right? We got the job done.”

  Kellam leaned back in his chair and tapped a pencil on the desk. “We did. We got lucky, De Soros. Really damn lucky. All it would’ve taken was one misstep and an agent would’ve been killed.”

  “But we all know he was after me. In a way I was your bait, just like Lily became mine. I’m not comfortable going into anymore missions without knowing everything. Hell, I thought I did. But then all this other shit comes out, and I realize I knew nothing at all. It’s unnerving to realize that the people you thought had your back were using you.”

  “Don’t get your emotions in this. We have been trying to take down Caprice for years. You were just an agent that was handy. We would’ve done the same to anyone else, and we have in the past. You, as well as anyone should know there are levels in government. The right hand doesn’t always know what the left is doing. We knew you weren’t the agent to put into the mob, you would’ve blown it. So yes, we used you to keep him focused on while we worked on the inside. Call it bait, call it doing your job, whatever makes you sleep at night.”

  Luca nodded and clenched his jaw. “Is Lily safe?”

  “She’s safe. There’s really no one left that knows of her existence. We’ve told her to go about her life. The papers worked with us and nothing was mentioned of a gun fight at the pier. It’s as though it never happened. We wiped the place of evidence and the civilians have nothing to worry about. They think maybe some gang activity happened out at the pier. That’
s the lines we fed some people who asked questions. It’s over and done with. If you want to walk, De Soros, I’m not gonna stop you. You’re just being a dumb ass. You have potential with the bureau if you can keep your emotions out of it. That’s why you were picked, you were a hard ass coming out of the military. Now you’re getting soft. Toughen up. Walk away from this girl, and we’ll make it worth your time.”

  Luca sneered at Kellam. “I can’t do that.”

  “So you’re going to throw away ten years in the bureau. For what? A piece of pussy? Come on, De Soros, be reasonable.” Kellam laughed.

  “I am being reasonable. I’m done. I’m not going to be dangled in front of some criminal as bait. What’s next, my baby sister being used? My mom? No thanks.”

  Kellam picked up the badge on the desk and tossed it into the trashcan beside him. “If that’s what you want, then I’ll draw up the paperwork and you’ll be done.”

  “Do it.”

  He walked out of the bureau half an hour later with a sheaf of papers in his hand, detailing his career with the bureau. The weight that had burdened his shoulders for so long was simply gone, and he couldn’t wait to tell his mom the good news. Claudia Laurence had long hated his dangerous work, and now she didn’t have to worry anymore.

  Pulling out his phone, he called his mother as he unlocked his car door. “Mom?”

  “Luca, what’s up? Is everything okay, bambino?” He couldn’t help but smile at the endearment.

  “Yeah, Mom, I’m fine. I need to talk to you.” Sliding behind the wheel, he started the car. “I’ll be at the hotel in half an hour. I love you.”

  When he’d told them to leave Boston, there’d been no plan in place, so he was paying for a hotel until they could go home. Olivia hated him for making her leave her job and school, but he’d had no choice, it had been to keep her safe. I should’ve made Lily come too. I could’ve convinced her. He smirked, thinking of tossing her over his shoulder and making her come with him. She wouldn’t have gone for it.