Dangerous Conceit by Ali Lee
Chapter 14
Rafa entered the small restroom inside and gripped the counter for balance. He could barely breathe and turned on the cold tap, throwing water onto his face. The running water hypnotized him into a blank stare. As he watched the droplets fall from his chin to the sink below, a striking memory invaded his thoughts.
Because the temperature still felt warm for the second week of autumn, Rafa did not mind the cold shower he was forced to take due to no hot water. Shirtless but not missing his knitted cap, he sat halfway up on his bed with his arms crossed, his head propped against the headboard as he waited for Em to visit him that night.
As the door opened slightly, he expected Em to walk to the bed and lay next to him as usual; instead, he heard the voice of a stranger. “You left your door unlocked,” she said.
“Yes, I did,” he answered though a little put out. This was not the woman he wanted to see.
“Did you need a beautiful woman to keep you warm?” She came closer and tumbled on the bed beside him, placing her hand on his chest. Rafa groaned as she lifted her body and pressed her breasts against his arm. “How about you and me do a round and then we can take care of each other?”
Rafa looked at the small sealed bag she held in her hand and pushed her body off him. “I think you have the wrong room, darling. Get out of here, before hell hits the roof.” He grabbed the bag and threw it to the floor, hearing it slide across the room. “Go on. I'm not interested.”
“What?” She sounded shocked. “How could you not be interested? You’re alone and your door was unlocked. That's an invitation in this house.”
“It was an invitation. But I was looking for someone smarter with a little more class.”
With the moonlight coming through the window, Rafa managed to see the woman’s glaring eyes; she scooted from the bed, searching on her hands and knees for the bag on the floor. A minute later, the bag crinkled and she stomped to the door. “Asshole.”
Rafa laughed. He never knew who would barge in. Then, the girl he did expect came stumbling around the woman and into the room. Her figure stopped. He knew Em was staring at him with questions.
“Ah, hell.” He squeezed the back of his neck and looked at her. “Shut the door, Em—and lock it.” He pointed to the door when she demanded answers without moving at all. “Don't worry about her and come here, sweetheart.”
“She was in a bra and shorts. How am I not supposed to think anything?” Em locked the door as he said and stopped at the bed. “Who was she?”
“A hopeful.”
“A what?”
Rafa could hear the aggravation in Em’s voice. He smiled at her worried tone and sat up on the end of the bed. “You heard me.” He placed his fingers around her waist. “A hopeful. She was hoping for something that she was never going to get.”
“What's her name?” Em would not let it go.
“I don't know her name. I doubt she knew her name either.” He placed a kiss on Em's hand and pulled her between his legs. “Forget about her. I have a surprise for you, but you're going to have to wait until Friday to hear it.”
Em looked away, wondering why he would bother to mention a surprise if she had to wait for two more days to hear it. “Fine, but I have a surprise too—maybe—and now you’re also going to have to wait,” she said with slight attitude in her voice.
Rafa was not patient but if they had news to share, he supposed they could share it together. “Fine,” he returned and pulled her flush to his chest. “Then we can entertain ourselves with something else in the meantime.”
A knock on the restroom door jarred Rafa from his thoughts. He quickly grabbed a brown paper towel and rubbed the water off his face. When he came out, Angelo stared at him, waiting for him to talk.
“I have a child,” Rafa mumbled and sat at the desk. “How do I handle that type of news, knowing all the shit that girl has been through since? I can't make up for that.”
“You didn't know.” Angelo shook his head.
“Don't give me that. I should’ve looked for her instead of assuming she ditched me. I knew she was in a bad situation. I should’ve put the pieces together. You know, she had something to tell me and I never thought of pregnancy. Shows you how smart I really am. I was about to start this high paying job and had a small house set up and everything. I planned to take her with me…never thought we didn't have time to share stuff about ourselves. It had already been nine months. I didn't see that day as anything but another day.”
“Are you going to tell her now?”
“How can I tell her now? If they find out that kid is mine, she’ll be in more danger.” Rafa slammed his fist on the table. “I need to go home and sort this out in my head. Can you handle the rest of the night?”
“What about the woman out there? I made arrangements for the other three. Do I need to set her and the kid up too?”
Rafa huffed, wondering why Angelo would ask such a dumb question. “My head might be fucked up, but they’re coming home with me. You should know that.”
“Then go take care of it.” Angelo gestured his chin to the door where Lexi still laid in the other room. “Wait,” he said as Rafa started to go. “Since when have you ever gone by Giovanni?”
Rafa glanced back as he twisted the knob. “That's the name I gave her when we met. It had already grown on me by the time I trusted her. I never thought to tell her it was my middle name.”
When Rafa walked back to the sofa, he searched through the first aid kit and handed Lexi two pills. “Take these.” He held out his hand and a bottle of water. Lexi did not ask questions and swallowed with a large drink. She would take anything to alleviate her pain, but her mind was somewhere else.
“Is that why you went out with me…because you knew I was connected to Moretti? Was I your way of getting information on him?” Lexi was still confused about his true intentions. “None of it was real, was it?”
An annoyed expression spread across his face; Rafa looked directly at her. “Do I strike you as the type of man who would go through that much trouble?”
“How should I know what to think? I don't know how the Tomassi group works.”
He scorned a reply. “I can certainly tell you that we don’t work like that. Woman or not, if I want information from someone, it's going to be with my pistol at their head…not by asking them out.”
“Then why did you go out with me? I seem a little below your standards. Someone of your status doesn't ask a bartender to date him.”
“Fucking stop.” Rafa pounded his hand on the table beside him. “Quit questioning my intentions; it’s starting to piss me off.”
Angelo exited the office and pointed. “You’d better quit provoking the man, Lexi. You don't want to see Rafa's bad side. I guarantee you’re pushing his limits.”
Rafa lifted his hand to Angelo, trying to silence him, but Angelo ignored him as usual. “Does the governor know about you girls? About how Moretti uses you?”
Lexi stretched her head around so she could see Angelo. “He knows about us. I was there during one of their meetings.”
Rafa took in a deep breath and looked up at Angelo who was about to leave the two alone. “You were right about Pearson. He’s no good for anyone. Enter me. I’ll run against him.”
Angelo stopped cold at his sudden willingness, not sure if he should give Rafa more time to think this through. It did not seem like a sound decision on his part, rather he made the decision in the heat of anger. “Are you sure? Don't you need some time to settle everything?” Angelo raised his brow and emphasized his words.
“You don't want me to run anymore?” Rafa answered disgruntled.
Angelo did want Rafa to run for governor; he also wanted him to make the choice when his head was right. After a moment's thought, Angelo concluded that Rafa would not change his mind even if given more time to think over the situation.
“Consider it done.” He nodded and walked out of the room.
Rafa let out a tired breath and returned his attention to Lexi's back. “How are you feeling?” he asked, receiving a nod in response. “Fast working meds, huh?” He began wiping the swollen welts with a sterile solution and white cloths. “You know, I never had ulterior motives with you, so don't ever say that again. If you had been honest with me from the start, I could have prevented all this.” He let the area dry and rubbed ointment overtop before laying a large, fresh bandage.
“Well…if you had told me how you knew me when I asked, I probably would have told you sooner.”
“Fair enough.” He leaned back in the chair next to the sofa and crossed one leg over the other. She still did not put it together, that he knew her outside of the current situation. While his mind processed all the new changes he was about to see through, Lexi tried to sit, taking his focus to her.
“Are you running for governor?” She pulled her knees higher and lifted the dress straps back over her arms, speaking with a much softer tone from before.
“Looks that way. The Moretti shit with the governor makes Angelo look like a saint.”
“Does that mean he’s going to help us?”
“He already has. He arranged for each of your friends to stay with someone where all of you will be safe. You’re going to stay with me.”
Lexi shook her head. “I can't go anywhere without Maura. Getting help has been about her. It was never about us. We didn't have the money or connections to get guns or phones or anything else we needed, so we couldn't go after Moretti yet.”
“Maura comes too,” Rafa lifted her chin with his thumb, “and we will take care of Moretti. You don't have to worry about that anymore. Why don’t you tell me more about Maura’s father.”
“Why, are you going to search for him?”
Rafa coughed at her question before clearing his throat. “Let's just say I'm interested.”
“What's to tell? I didn't really know him that well, honestly. We would talk for hours but sort of left out the personal. It was like us being together was an escape from reality.” Lexi looked up for the right words. “He was someone I felt comfortable with. He’d take my mind off the hell going on at home, but I don't think Giovanni was his real name anymore. Abby would have found him already if it was. She’s a techie genius.” Lexi let out a sigh and stared at the wall in front of her. “Gio saved me one night from some asshole on the street. He probably thought I’d go to the cops and tossed me a name. If he had known my stepfather worked for the force, I doubt he would’ve taken me home with him at all.”
“Your stepfather worked for the police department? Well, that explains a lot.” Rafa rubbed his face.
“What do you mean by that?” Lexi asked; the questioning look in her eyes was not going to let his statement slide.
“It means nothing. A man I know called them about the nickname Moretti gave you; they got all tight-lipped after that.”
Lexi sank into the sofa. “They’re going to scour the city for me now.”
“They won't ever get you. Even if they find you, they won't make it past the front gate of my house.” Then Rafa had a thought. “How come this Gio didn't know you were pregnant?”
“I was going to tell him. I had every intention; but I went home one night and Royce pushed me inside a car. I had no idea what was going on. That’s when I met Moretti. About three months went by—my first escape. I went back to find Gio, but he was gone. The guys he lived with said he came here, to Miami. I waited in his room for two days before Moretti's men found me again. No matter where I went, they always found me.”
Rafa said nothing. If there was ever a moment to damn himself, it was now. He condemned himself for not staying in Homestead for longer than he did. His mind filled with regret when a tap came at the door, saving him from further self-admonition.
“Mr. Paolini.” A woman held up some clothes with the hangers attached and wrapped in plastic.
“Thank you.” He handed her some money and shut the door again. “Put this on, Lexi. We’re getting out of here.”
“But what about Maura?”
“We will go get her. I already told you she could come; you’re both coming to my house.”
“For how long? We rented a small house a few days ago. Should I keep paying on it until all of this is over? Not that I'm not grateful, but I mean, when we’re able to leave, we need a place to go.”
“Alexis,” Rafa noticed the worry in her eyes and leaned down, placing a gentle kiss on her head, “I know you don’t understand, but you don’t need to worry that I’ll send you to the streets. You’ll be safe at my place. All right?”
Lexi was at a loss for a moment and looked at him. Something in his tone reassured her, though she could not place what it was. “All right,” she finally answered.
“Good, now get dressed. I can't take you out of here like that.”