Her face drained of what little color there was. “Take that back.”
Leo shook his head trying to understand just what was going on. “What?”
“I do not like romance. I don’t really even like flowers.”
For a second he didn’t seem able to speak. “What do you mean you don’t like romance and flowers? They make you go all gooey inside.”
“No.” She was shaking her head and backing up from him as if she were afraid he would attack her.
“What’s wrong with me knowing things like that about you?” he asked, his temper getting the best of him.
“Because, you could use it against me.”
She could have taken a knife to his heart and it would hurt less than those words. Did the woman not know him at all? After all their time together these last few weeks, she really thought he would use it to hurt her? Anger and pain surged, but he stuffed them down. If she wanted to fight dirty, he could do it too. One thing he wouldn’t do is fight naked. He hurriedly got dressed in silence.
“Where are you going?”
He shook his head. “I don’t want to do this right now.”
Leo was raised to respect women. He also knew when to step back from a fight that wouldn’t solve anything.
“Just like that you’re running away? Because I didn’t tell you I love you back?”
“No. I am not in the mood to fight with a coward.”
The moment he said the words, he wanted to take them back. He didn’t normally fight that dirty with a woman. He opened his mouth to apologize but she shook her head. Color rushed back into her face and her eyes narrowed. “I’m not a coward.”
“Really? What do you think your abrasive personality tells people?”
“That I’m selective about who I spend time with. And apparently, I made a mistake with you. Just go.”
He wanted to argue but she was standing on the opposite side of the room, her arms crossed protectively in front of her. She was not going to talk. Leo knew if he stayed, he would only make things worse.
“You made a mistake? I’m the one who should be pissed, Maryanne.”
“What the hell do you have to be pissed about?”
“You think I would use things I know and love about you against you. If you think I would do something like that, then you don’t know me at all.”
He waited for her to deny it. Instead, she gave him a stony stare.
“I guess I have my answer.”
He turned and walked out hoping he hadn’t just made a big mistake.
Chapter Nine
Maryanne tried to focus on reading a report, but she felt her attention shift again. It had been that way for two weeks. Two very long agonizing weeks and she was getting worse by the day.
“Are you going to be bitchy for the rest of your life?” Freddy asked.
She gave her friend a nasty look. “If I want.”
Okay that was childish and he was her boss, so it probably wasn’t a good idea to snap at him. Maryanne just didn’t do well on no sleep. She wasn’t getting more than two to three hours a night. And dammit, she wasn’t eating. Even now she was sitting with a burger made just the way she loved it, and she couldn’t get into it. She nibbled.
“If this is the way you are going to treat your gay husband, I might seek a divorce.”
She looked up at him and sighed. The worried look he gave her told her he was truly concerned about her behavior. “I’m sorry. I’m just not hungry.”
“Yeah, and you’ve dropped about ten pounds—not that you didn’t need it.”
“I have not lost that much and bite me.”
He set down his burger and looked at her across her desk. “I wouldn’t have run all the way to Whataburger if I thought you were going to just stare at the food.” He took another bite and chewed it then swallowed. “Tell Freddy what the rat bastard did. Then we can go out and do margaritas and look at all the cute guys on the Riverwalk.”
She chuckled, but it sounded more like a sob.
“Oh, dear,” he said in true Freddy fashion. “This is bad.”
“He told me he loved me.”
“I will hunt down the bastard and make him cry…Wait, what?”
“He said he loved me and I freaked. I mean, I didn’t think he meant anything because we had just had sex. And so I freaked and I told him he didn’t know me. Then he said horrible things about me, like I like flowers.”
Freddy tsked. “Disgusting.”
“And how I like bubbles and crap.”
There was a beat of silence, then a sigh. “Oh, honey, when are you going to accept that a man can love you?”
She felt a sob fighting to get out and pushed it down before she answered. “When I find one who does.”
“Really. I think you found one. He’s the man for you if he can make you like this.”
“Oh, well that’s what I want in a man. One who makes me miserable when he leaves.” She rubbed her eyes. “I’ve been through this before.”
“No, you haven’t.”
She opened her eyes and frowned. “How about when I broke up with Richie?”
“You got mad. That is what you do. You get mad, then we party, then you’re better. This one...he’s different.”
She shook her head. She’d known Richie for a year before they started dating. It was true, when he left she barely paid attention. “I hardly know him.”
Freddy gave her a knowing look. “I’m assuming you’re talking about Leo and you do know him.”
“How would you know?” she asked, her voice turning a bit whinier than she would have liked.
“What’s his favorite thing to eat?”
“Pasta and red sauce, especially mine.”
“And what does it feel like when you’re laying in bed without him?”
“Like I’m living in hell,” she sobbed out. This was so not like her. She rarely cried and not in front of people. Especially not at work. She was still sniffling when her phone rang. It wasn’t a number she knew but she recognized the area code as one of the ones out of the DC area. Fear gripped her. She still hadn’t heard from her brother.
“Yes?”
“Is this Maryanne Johnson?” a woman asked on the other side.
She nodded then realized she was on the phone.
“Y-yes.”
“Good, I have a bone to pick with you.”
Freddy was studying her and then mouthed Jack. She shook her head and he visibly relaxed.
“Uh, okay.”
“Listen, I love my sons. Adore them. But I don’t want to deal with them here.”
She held the phone out and then pulled it back to her ear.
“I might be able to help if I knew who you were.”
“This is Joey Santini.”
Oh, God.
“And let me tell you, he’s been here five days and I can’t take it anymore.”
“Can I ask how you got my number?” she asked not knowing what else to say.
“I looked at his cell while he was in the shower.” She said it as if Maryanne was stupid.
“And you think this is the kind of behavior a mother should display?”
“I don’t care. I’m desperate. I want my husband to myself. I love my son, but I know that I can’t fix what’s wrong. And unless you want me down there with a gun, I would suggest you get here as soon as possible. Tomorrow’s Friday. You should be able to catch a flight.”
“Excuse me?”
“You need to fly up here and make it right. I’ll text you our address. And, don’t call him or tell him I did this. He needs to think you came on your own.”
Then the line went dead. True to her word, the address popped up in Maryanne’s text.
“Who was that?”
“Joey Santini.”
“I didn’t know Leo had a brother named Joe.”
“What?” She finally focused on Freddy. “Joey is his mom. Or, I’m assuming.”
“What did she want?”
&n
bsp; “She asked me—ordered me—to come to DC. She said Leo’s there and being a pain.”
Freddy chuckled. “Tell you what—I’ll cover for you tomorrow.”
“No. You had a day planned with Dave. It’s your anniversary.”
“He’ll understand.”
“I’m not going up there because she ordered me.” Irritation burned through her as she thought about Joey Santini. She stood up and started to pace, hoping to work off some of her temper. “The nerve of the woman. Why does she think she can just bellow out orders and I am going to follow them? I hate women who are like that. Just think I’m going to follow her orders because I’m afraid of her.”
There was a beat of silence. “Oh my God.”
She stopped and looked at Freddy. His wide smile aggravated her even more. “What?”
“You know who she sounds like?”
“Who?”
“Look in the mirror, darling. Leonardo Santini fell for a woman just like his mother.”
She settled her hands on her hips. “Are you telling me that I order people around?”
“You get off on it here at the hospital. It’s part of what makes you a great physical therapist. You’re good at pushing people. That’s why we give you some of the worst patients.”
“People don’t think I’m pushy.”
Freddy laughed. “Everyone thinks you’re bossy.”
She collapsed back into her chair. “Well, that sucks.”
Freddy waved that away. “Don’t take it that way. People love you the way you are.” He smiled. “Especially Leo.”
“I don’t know how I feel about that.”
Freddy walked around her desk and pulled her up out of her chair. “I fell for a man just like my mother too. Go to DC. Do you have the money?”
She thought about her savings account and how happy she had been to build it up. At that instant, she knew it wasn’t that important. “Yeah, I can probably swing it.”
“Go. Get your medic and then give me babies to spoil.” He kissed her on the forehead. “If you don’t, then I will never talk to you again.”
She smiled as she watched him go out the door. As soon as it closed behind him, she turned to her computer and started searching for flights.
* * * *
“Are you going to sit in here all day?” his mother asked as she leaned against the doorjamb to his room watching him.
“Well, since Dad and Vince told me I couldn’t go fishing with them today, I thought I might get some reading done.”
She smiled knowingly, and walked in to sit on the bed beside him. It brought back so many memories. His mother had always known when to listen and when to talk to help her sons. It was as if she were born knowing when they needed her, and when they needed their space.
“Maybe you shouldn’t have told Vincenti to do something that, as far as I know, is anatomically impossible.”
His ears burned when he realized that his mother had heard the argument. He hadn’t meant to say it but it was that or punch Vince. He would be in a whole lot of trouble if his mom had caught them in another fistfight.
“Sorry.”
She brushed some of his hair away from his forehead. “Considering his situation, he shouldn’t tease you about this Maryjane.”
“Maryanne.”
She nodded and patted his leg. “So, tell me what my son who hates to read is going to read today?”
“Okay, so maybe not read. I might play a few games on my tablet.”
“And, you’re going back tomorrow.”
He nodded. He had finished off his class hoping to see Maryanne at the graduation. He knew then she wouldn’t come back to him. It was partially his fault. He’d called his brother names and told him to fuck off when he told Leo he was a coward. It smarted that his brother had accused him of that, especially when he’d done the same to Maryanne. Apparently Vince thought he should have fought harder. It had been a little too much to explain to his older brother he still felt as if he were bleeding. The knife she took to him did more damage than any bullet he would take on the field.
“I have another class coming in week after next. And I have to finish up my reports about the last class.”
“You like teaching?”
He thought about it and nodded. “I didn’t know if I would, but it’s been kind of fun.”
“That’s good. Too bad it’s there in San Antonio since you will always be running into Maryjane.”
“Maryanne.”
“What?”
“Her name is Maryanne.”
He thought he saw her lips twitch. “Oh, okay. I guess it isn’t that important though.”
Not now that he screwed it up. It had only been six weeks and he should have waited. He could have waited. But there was a little part of him that had wanted more and telling her he loved her had slipped out. When she had freaked, he had reacted. Badly. She was in the wrong just as much as him, but he hadn’t made things any better. He admitted that now and he was pretty sure she wouldn’t accept the apology.
Leo heard the car outside and paid no attention. He was sitting in his room in a foul mood. Okay, he’d been in a bad mood since fourteen days ago, but he had gotten into an argument with his father. And his brother. The only one who had been understanding was his mother. She was the only one he could count on.
His mother walked over to the window and peered through the slit in the blinds.
“Is that Vince?”
“Uh…yes. I’ll take care of it.”
“I didn’t know he had a car.”
Vince usually rode his Harley everywhere.
“Of course he has a car. He lives in Virginia. You can’t ride on a motorcycle in the middle of winter. You stay here and I’ll tell him to leave you alone.”
She turned to leave then stopped to look back at him. “I love you, Leonardo.”
He smiled. “Love you too, Mom.”
She shut his door and left him to his thoughts. He was going to have to make up with his brother before he left, but he was still mad about earlier. Considering Vince had been mooning over the same girl since high school, it seemed kind of hypocritical of him to call Leo a coward. Still, they rarely let a fight get between them like this for more than a few days. And, it didn’t feel right going back to Texas without apologizing.
He just needed to get that woman out of his head. And at some point, he might be able to get her out of his heart.
There was a knock at the door.
“Not in the mood, Vince.”
There was a beat of silence. “It’s not Vince.”
He knew that voice, had hoped she would call, but when a week passed, then two, he realized she didn’t want him. The fact that she was there in his parents’ house in Warrenton, Virginia was a little too much to comprehend.
“What are you doing here?”
“Wondering why I flew up here to see you if you’re too much like a little boy to open the door.”
Dammit. He was trapped. Irritated and still hurting, he rose from the bed. “It’s unlocked.”
“Oh for the love of God.”
She opened it and stepped in. It took all of his control not to drop to his knees in front of her and beg for her to take him back. Bruises marred the delicate skin beneath her eyes, she was pale, and she looked like she’d been traveling through hell to get there. He had to fight the need to comfort. Especially when she was wearing such a mean frown. Then, she slammed the door shut behind her.
“My mother will think you’re rude.”
Maryanne snorted. “I think you don’t know the first thing about your mother. Do you know what I had to do to get here?”
His heart was in his throat and this woman was griping at him as if he were some naughty boy she had to discipline. If she could be defensive, so could he. “No, why don’t you tell me?”
“Freddy is working on his anniversary, which made Dave mad at me. I cleared out a chunk of my savings to get the last seat on a horrible flight next
to a man I’m sure used his hair to floss his teeth, and you can’t even open the door for me?”
The last word came out as a sob. For a second, he didn’t know what to say. He wasn’t accustomed to seeing her like this. Other women, sure, but Maryanne never cried. She just wasn’t the type.
“Sure, it’s okay for you to go running off, ignoring me.”
As she talked, the tears flowed. What little makeup she had on was smeared all over her face. It hurt to see her in pain, but there was a little ray of hope lighting his heart. It made him feel like a bit of a bastard but he couldn’t really help it. If she was miserable, she had been missing him.
She wiped her face with the backs of her hands smearing her makeup even more. “And I have to come here, like you’re the girl or something.”
“You said to leave you alone.”
“Well, I didn’t mean it,” she screamed. His ears were ringing from the volume. “Fine, that’s what you want. I’m gone. I’ll go back to Texas tomorrow.”
But even as she said it, she didn’t move.
“What are you here for?”
“Because I love you, you idiot. I swear I’ve never met such a stupid man before. Do you think I would fly all this way and cry in front of you if I didn’t love you?”
“Fine.”
She sniffed. “Fine.”
“I love you too.”
“I think we covered that. And how I’m a coward,” she said and this time she wailed it. He really didn’t know how to react. The worse she got the more awkward he felt. He rarely dated women who were overly emotional. It was tiring and he really didn’t know how to react.
In the end, he did the one thing he knew would work. He reached out and grabbed her. He thought she might fight him, but she didn’t. When he pulled her against him, he thought the feel of her body against his made everything right in his world.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you, Leo.”
He kissed the top of her head so happy he didn’t care what happened now. “I shouldn’t have called you a coward.”
“But it’s true.”
He leaned back and looked down at her. Her nose was red and the little bit of makeup she wore was smeared over her face, but she was the most beautiful woman in the world to him.
The Santinis: Leonardo, Book 1 Page 7
