Mia looked refreshed. It was a familiar expression, one that usually appeared after she’d finished a piece. I placed the tray on our table and smiled.
“Hey, big brother,” she said, hopping up and giving me a quick hug.
“How are you doing?” I asked, sliding into my seat.
“Better than you I’d say. You look like shit.” She grinned right before taking a bite of a taco.
“Appreciate it. Wish I could say the same of you, but you look great.”
“I finished a piece. I’m sure you know which one I’m talking about. And I started another. Hannah’s agreed to let me paint a series. At first, she wanted nothing to do with it. Not a model, blah, blah. But once I explained to her how easy it would be, she finally agreed. Actually, I think it was the modeling fee that helped persuade her.”
“Ah.” I nodded. “Another way to stockpile money for when she’s ready to hit the road.”
Mia nodded sympathetically. “Yeah. Probably so.”
“Do you think she’s a flight risk?” I asked.
My sister burst into laughter.
“Sorry. Lack of sleep.”
“Glad you apologized because I didn’t want to have to beat your ass. You and I both know she’s not just a client, a flight risk. And you better figure out which way you want to go with her because it’s one or the other with her. She can’t be treated like your past girlfriends.”
“I haven’t had girlfriends. You know I don’t do girlfriends.”
“Exactly. That’s my point. She’s too—” my sister stopped.
“She’s too what?” I prompted.
“Nothing. I don’t want to say. It’s not my place.”
“Oh, no. You can’t stop and start like that. She’s too what?” I asked, digging my fork into the burrito.
My sister looked at me, her brows furrowed. “Inexperienced.”
And the water continued to be muddied.
“You okay over there?” she laughed.
I nodded and took a bite of the burrito. “Listen, I’ve found out some more information about the group she used to be involved with. There’s some evidence that ties the NLC and at least one drug cartel together. I think she found out something about it and they know that she knows. At least that’s my guess.”
“Shit. Are you gonna get the feds involved?” Mia asked.
I shook my head. “Not yet. I need her cooperation. And there are too many loose ends that I need to follow.”
“Poor thing. No wonder she’s scared shitless.”
“I think she’d probably clobber you if she heard you say that.” I smiled.
“You’ve got it bad. I’ve never seen you like this.”
Ignoring her, I continued, “You okay with her staying at your place? I mean if you actually used the security system I set up for you, everything should be just fine. But getting you to do that is an entirely different story.”
“She needs somewhere to be,” Mia said, her expression softening. “And I can’t let the subject of my paintings run off. I’ll see about dragging it out. The one thing I’ve learned about her is that she never wants to let anyone down. Remember that.”
I smiled. “Thanks. I’ve gotta head to San Antonio tonight. New client.”
“A real client?” she teased.
“Yes. It’s a paying client. Thanks for the concern. But not nearly as interesting of a case as Hannah’s.”
Swallowing another bite of the burrito, I began telling my sister everything that I’d uncovered about Hannah and the NLC’s mysterious connection to the drug world.
Hannah
Several days had gone by and I’d heard nothing from Luke. Apparently, finding a place to meet my specifications was just as hard as I’d predicted, which was what I wanted, right? Pick a place that didn’t exist so I didn’t go out with him. But the truth was I was hugely disappointed. I had two days off from Buttons, today and tomorrow, and both were taken up with modeling for Mia. I stayed in my bed and stretched out my legs, feeling the cool crispness of the sheets against my skin. There were plenty of days where I just wanted to hide from everything and stay in bed. Today was one of those days. It had been extremely uneventful since moving into Mia’s home and that had me worried. The NLC wouldn’t let me off this easily, not with everything I knew.
Yeah. This was definitely a day I wanted to stay in bed. I let out a sigh and shifted onto my side, grabbing my cell. My heart sped up when I saw there was finally a text on it. There were only two people who would text me. One was upstairs and the other was Luke. I quickly opened the message.
Sorry for the delay. I was out of town and your request took a bit of time. I’ve got the perfect place all lined up. I’ll pick you up tomorrow at eleven.
My heart pumped with excitement as I reread his message. I wondered where he was taking me, but then my mind raced with worry. Where was this going? It couldn’t go anywhere. But I wanted it to so badly. And then I thought about Mia. I had promised her I’d sit there for her all day tomorrow.
I promised your sister that I’d help her with something tomorrow. I can’t back out. I’m so sorry. Is there another day?
I actually felt relieved sending that message. This wasn’t what I needed to do. What I needed to do was continue stockpiling my money in preparation to leave.
Nice try. Mia’s fine with it. I’ll see you at eleven.
My heart fluttered, and I texted back.
Looking forward to it.
He texted back.
Sure you are.
I tossed my phone on the bed and let out a laugh. This would be good. We’d go out. He’d see how boring I was, and then he’d no longer feel the need to interfere. Easy as that. I threw off the covers and walked into the bathroom to brush my teeth. I heard Mia in the kitchen, grinding coffee beans. There was something so easy about living here. I didn’t feel out of place. I felt safe, and I felt like I fit in without any judgment.
I’d felt nothing but judged back at home. I always felt out of place, slightly out of step with everyone else. And no matter what I did, I never felt comfortable in my own skin, and that was a horrible feeling. I assumed it was because I didn’t really know who I was, but the longer I was away, I realized I knew exactly who I was. But the problem was that I knew there was no place for me in the only world I’d known. Scary thought.
I tossed my toothbrush on the counter and decided on a cup of coffee before a shower. Then I could find out what Mia wanted me to wear for our little session. I had to admit there was a tiny part of me that was excited about being painted. This would be considered so taboo back at home. Art was considered a frivolous commodity. But when I looked at Mia’s paintings, I knew her works were an expression of being, of existing, in a world that made no sense. Her paintings provided a feeling of empowerment, and that certainly wouldn’t be what anyone in the NLC would want its members to feel.
“Good morning,” Mia said, pouring a cup of coffee. “Want some oatmeal?”
“Sounds great. Thank you.” I grabbed a mug and poured myself a cup of coffee as Mia scooped the grains into the bowl and added water.
“Today’s going to be amazing. I can feel it.”
“You’re going to have to tell me what to do every step of the way. I’ve never done anything remotely like this. We didn’t even have school pictures,” I laughed.
“That’s not a completely bad thing,” she joked.
“True.” I took a sip of coffee. “So what’s my wardrobe?”
“I wanted to start with the most difficult one so you’d see even the most complicated session is no big deal.” She smiled.
“So says the woman on the other end of the brush.”
“Seriously. You’ll see. There’s a boutique down the street I thought we could hit up. I called down already and asked them to pull some dresses that fit the feel I’m going for.”
I took a deep breath in. “Okay. I’ll follow your lead.”
The microwave beeped and Mia took th
e bowl of oatmeal out and placed it in front of me.
“Eat up. It’s going to be grueling,” she teased. “I’ll go hop in the shower.”
I grinned and nodded as she wandered down the hall. This was going to be fun and getting paid on my off day didn’t hurt either. I quickly downed my oatmeal and went to get ready. It wasn’t until I hopped out of the shower and got dressed that I saw another text had come over my phone. I wondered what else Luke had to say. Maybe he was cancelling. I picked up my phone and clicked on the message, nearly dropping my phone the moment I saw the words.
You can run but you can’t hide
I didn’t recognize the area code, but I didn’t need to. They’d found me. Again. There was no playing pretend in my life. What few moments of relief I had were few and far between. My hands trembled as I put the phone on the nightstand. I didn’t understand how they got the number. Did that mean they knew where I was staying? Or were they trying to flush me out, hoping I’d make a mistake so they could find my location.
“You ready?” Mia asked, knocking gently on my door.
Heat began rolling up my neck, settling in my cheeks. I wanted to tell her.
But I didn’t.
“I’m ready,” I said, opening the door, trying to sound as bright and cheery as possible.
“Well, you seem extremely happy.”
Damn! I went too far. I wasn’t a very good actress. My mind flashed to the plans I had with her brother and was thrilled I at least had an excuse. “I’m looking forward to today and tomorrow.”
Mia grinned. “Enough said.”
I followed her down the stairs and she stopped in front of the door but didn’t open it. She grabbed a bag of supplies. “I need to confess something.”
“What’s that?” I asked.
“It’s not going to be just you and me today.”
My heart fluttered at the thought of Luke joining us.
“Who else will be there?”
She twisted her lips and glanced out the window.
“My brother’s intentions are good. Please don’t get the wrong idea. He’s worried about you, about me being with you.”
“Okay…”
“So, he’s got one of his guys on us. He promised it would only be for a few weeks. He figured he’d let me tell you so that you wouldn’t get mad at him and cancel your date tomorrow.”
I laughed.
This was another example about my theory on people’s coping abilities. We could pretend that things weren’t as bad as they were and let time essentially dampen the fear. Yesterday I would have been upset because I’d convinced myself things had gotten better. I let time play its cruel trick on me, letting me think I was in control. Today, reality hit me like hammer to the toe. There was no escaping my reality, and I was grateful to have an extra pair of eyes watching over Mia and me.
“I’m glad it was you who delivered the message,” I replied, smiling.
She opened the door and waved for the stranger who was standing on the sidewalk to come over to us.
“This is Mitch,” Mia said. “He’s been with my brother’s firm forever. Since the beginning, right?”
Mitch nodded, keeping his stern expression in place. I was surprised Mia wasn’t able to crack it.
“Nice to meet you,” I said, as I walked outside.
“Pleasure is mine.” He took a step back and I was impressed with his size. He had to be at least a foot taller than me, and I wasn’t particularly short at five-foot-seven. He was dressed in a dark suit and wore aviator shades.
“Won’t he stick out like a sore thumb everywhere we go? He looks like secret service on steroids,” I asked Mia.
“My brother wanted the message to be loud and clear to whoever’s going to try to say hi to you next.”
I nodded and followed her down the stairs with Mitch close behind.
“We’ll see which dress feels the best, and then we’ll walk over to this amazing botanical garden that’s about two blocks away. It’s a hidden gem in this town. The white camellias are gorgeous right now, and I think if we can find something like a vivid red to put you in, it will be spectacular.”
Mia stopped in front of a storefront that looked like a cross between bohemian and vintage. I’d never been able to splurge on anything other than the basics, but I’d always dreamed of being able to dress in a way that made a statement.
“I’ll be stationed here if you need anything,” Mitch replied, his expression unchanged. He stood next to the entrance, and I couldn’t help but chuckle once I turned around. He definitely wouldn’t be the store’s idea of a welcoming committee.
“Hey, girl,” a woman from behind the counter crooned.
“Morning, Melanie,” Mia sang, giving her a quick kiss on each cheek. “This is my friend, roommate, and latest victim, Mia.”
“She’s lovely. I can see why you’d want to paint her,” Melanie said, walking over to greet me. Her lips began to make their way to my cheek and I froze in place, but Mia’s laughter somehow put me at ease, and I reciprocated the air kiss before turning to teasingly glare at Mia.
“Melanie works in sculpture,” Mia said.
“But to pay the bills I work in this lovely establishment,” Melanie laughed. “But enough about the struggling artist. I have several lovely gowns for you. I’ve got mermaid and empire pulled out. They’re hanging in the back dressing room,” Melanie said, pointing toward the hall. “I’ll let you two be.”
“Thanks, Melanie,” Mia replied, grabbing my hand. “This should be easy enough.”
When we got to the dressing room I was beyond dazzled with the selection. It seemed like there was every shade of red imaginable in our small dressing room, and I wanted them all.
“I think this might be the one,” Mia said, handling a flowing, red dress with a neckline that was a deep v. “Beautiful. Look at this detail.”
I held it up and she took a step back. “Yep. Gotta try it on,” she said, smiling.
Mia began taking it off the hanger as I slipped my shirt over my head. She helped bring the dress over my shoulders as I felt the fabric fall around me. Working my shorts off, I flung them in the corner and glanced down, shocked by the amount of skin that was showing.
“Perfection,” Mia whispered.
I looked in the mirror in awe as I imagined another life, another way of existing where I would slip this on for an evening.
“You like?” Mia asked.
“It’s perfect.”
“Well, that was the easiest wardrobe selection in my career. You might as well keep it on and we’ll just keep your clothes here for after. Melanie lets me borrow the merchandise. Although, I think if my brother saw you in that dress he’d buy it for you.”
My chest tightened when she mentioned her brother, but all I did was laugh.
“We found it,” Mia told Melanie as I followed her back into the shop. “Mind if I keep these here?”
“That is the one, isn’t it?” Melanie said, nodding in response to Mia’s question. “Exquisite.”
“Thank you,” I muttered, a little unnerved by the amount of attention. “I just realized I’m going to have to walk to the garden in this.”
“Don’t give it another thought. It’s L.A. No one will think twice. They’ll probably think you’re famous and it’s their fault for not knowing who you are.”
I laughed as we walked outside to greet Mitch, who looked like he hadn’t moved a muscle, and all three of us began walking down the sidewalk. Regardless of what Mia had said, I was sure we were quite a sight.
“Okay. Here we are,” she replied, standing in front of a gated entrance. “They’re closed to the public today so we’ve got the place to ourselves.” She pressed a button on the gate and a woman’s voice greeted us.
“It’s Mia.”
“Thought it might be,” the lady laughed, as the lock clicked.
The gardens were absolutely gorgeous. It was amazing to think that this many things could be blooming at this ti
me of year. It definitely wasn’t like this back at home.
Home. I needed to quit saying that. I took a deep breath and smelled the fresh scent of foliage and flowers as I followed the path through the gardens alongside the Victorian home.
“I think we’ll head to the back,” Mia explained.
“Sounds good to me,” I laughed.
The front was beautifully manicured, but the backyard was more natural. There was a wildness about the landscape, and the flowering shrubs and meandering paths only added to the mystery that surrounded the space.
“I was thinking we’d start over there,” she said, pointing to the far corner. She set her bag down and began grabbing equipment out of it. “If we can tuck you in there, make it look like you’re coming out of the woods…”
“That would be amazing,” I finished
“Let’s get your shoes off. Do you mind?” she asked.
I flung off my flip-flops and laughed, realizing I’d never even given my shoes a thought. They really wouldn’t have worked. “Good call.”
Working with Mia turned into such fun as she pulled me in one direction and then tugged me in the other. Many of the shots had me wrapped within the greenery, and I couldn’t even imagine what the images might look like. After hours that felt like minutes, Mia surprised me with her announcement.
“One last shot and I think we’ve got enough for this session.”
“I’ll give it my all,” I laughed. “And I’ll be the first to admit that I’m happy you talked me into it.”
“I knew it. Okay, flip your head over and work your fingers through your hair,” Mia instructed.
I started laughing as I followed her directions and worked my fingers through the blond strands. There was something about the sea air that made my hair tangle more easily.
This was the last shot of the afternoon, and I was a cross between exhausted and disappointed. I’d had far more fun than I thought I ever would, and it took my cares completely away. Plus, it was added money. During all of these shots with Mia, it somehow made me reflect on what I needed to do. I knew tomorrow I would tell Luke everything, including about the text I got today. It was time to stop running and start facing my reality. But I didn’t quite want the fantasy to end.
Hidden Sins Page 15
