Breaking Bones (Mariani Crime Family Series Book 2) (7 page)

Nonna lived in an apartment in an upscale retirement home off West Charleston Boulevard. She had more money than anyone could ever spend, but still insisted on personally packing her belongings rather than paying a moving company to do it for her. Ariana and I had to step over boxes to get to the kitchen to help Nonna cart out the dishes she’d prepared.

“I thought you said Angel and Markie were making dinner?” Ariana asked when Nonna pointed us to the containers littering her countertop.

“Oh, they’re making the main dish. These are just a few sides,” Nonna replied.

Ariana’s eyes bulged at the four large containers. She opened her mouth, but I nudged her before she could say something that would offend Nonna. Not like Ariana would insult Nonna on purpose, but she didn’t know anything about Italian grandmothers and their need to take care of their kids and grandkids. Based on the spread Nonna had prepared, tonight she planned to do so by stuffing us until we couldn’t breathe.

“Smells delicious,” I said, handing Ariana a container and stacking the other three in my arms.

We loaded up the Hummer and Ariana climbed into the backseat while I helped Nonna into the front. Then we took off. Nonna was never one for small talk. Maybe because she was old, she figured she only had so many words left in her and had to ration them, using only the ones that mattered most. Before we reached the main road, she turned to me and asked, “How much trouble is Carlo giving you about leaving?”

I cut my gaze to the backseat, hoping she’d get the hint I didn’t want to talk about it in front of Ariana.

Nonna clicked her tongue and looked over her shoulder at Ariana. “Men and their secrets. They think they’re so clever, hiding what they do like we’re too stupid to figure it out. Well, when this one gets himself in too deep, you come to me, dear. They treat me like some powerless old woman, but I helped Angel out of his mess and I’ll do the same for Bones here. He’ll probably be too pig-headed to ask for my help, though. They usually are.”

I glanced in the rearview mirror long enough to watch Ariana nod. “Thank you, ma’am.”

“Nonna, dear. Just call me Nonna.”

Then, before I could even argue about the way she’d totally dissed me, Nonna shifted herself to face forward and we rode the rest of the way in silence.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Ariana

I
’D ONLY MET Angel’s grandmother a few times, but she always managed to surprise me. Today was no different. “Men and their secrets. They think they’re so clever, hiding what they do like we’re too stupid to figure it out,” she said. Her words felt like a warning. Like a verbal smack upside the head that said, “Hey Bozo, pay attention. The guy you’re crushin’ on is into some serious shit.” Only I couldn’t imagine Angel’s grandma saying “crushin’” or “shit.” In fact, there was no way she could know how bad I had it for Bones. I didn’t even know.

Bones did have a lot of secrets. I was still reeling about the one he’d just shared. Working since he was ten? Coming home all bruised and broken, his mom doctoring him up without saying a word? My mom would have flipped out. What had caused Bones to come home all messed up in the first place? Bodyguard training? That’d be some pretty brutal training for a kid to endure. I’d known for some time there was more to his job by the way Bones often disappeared for “work,” leaving Angel—the body he was supposed to be guarding—behind in the condo with Markie. So what was he doing?

If the rumors about the families were true, Bones could be anything… a pimp, a drug dealer, a loan shark, a murderer. All of which made for spectacular boyfriend material. No wonder Nonna was warning me about him. The guy I was crushin’ on
was
into some serious shit.

But he was also sweet, helping Nonna out of the Hummer and offering her his arm while he carried the three hot dishes of food, leaving me the one cool container to carry. And even though he and his mom had issues, he still dropped everything to go change her light bulb. No matter what Bones did for a living that made him pretty remarkable in my eyes.

The condo smelled of sausage, onion, and garlic, instantly making my mouth water. Christmas music blared from the surround speakers, and way too many damn Christmas lights blinked from everywhere. A small but fluffy tree, twinkling with lights, ornaments, and old-fashioned tinsel sat in the corner of the living room. Lights and garland circled the floor-to-ceiling windows and hung from the bar. The tablecloth and runner were red and gold, and coordinating Christmas dinnerware had already been set. A small Christmas village had been set up on the entryway table, and I counted four poinsettias as I stepped into the living room.

“Holy crap, it looks like Santa threw up in here,” I breathed.

I heard the deep rumble of Bones chuckling behind me.

“Ari, Bones, Nonna,” Markie said. “Come over here and get in on this action.” She waved goopy hands, motioning us toward her.

Nonna slipped into the kitchen and hugged both Angel and Markie, skillfully avoiding Markie’s hands.

“You didn’t do this, did you?” I asked, setting Nonna’s dishes down on the bar so I could better evaluate the Christmas nightmare we lived in.

Bones unloaded his arms and joined me.

“I wanted to…” Markie’s gaze cut to Angel.

“We called in people,” Angel answered.

“I hate not being able to do anything, and I wanted to… I don’t know… feel Christmas? It looks great, doesn’t it?” Markie asked.

I’d never been big on the holidays—not since mom died—but if Markie had managed to eke out even an ounce of Christmas spirit, I wouldn’t be the one who squashed it… even if it made me want to pop anti-depressants. “Yeah, it looks great,” I lied.

She beamed me a smile. “Wanna help me stuff manicotti?”

I looked to Angel and asked, “You’re letting her cook? I take it her headache’s gone?”

“I’m right here.” Markie scowled. “It’s been over a month since the surgery. Now that my head’s better, you all want me to die of boredom.”

Angel winced.

“Sorry.” Markie put a hand on his arm. “Open mouth, insert foot.”

“She’s sitting.”

I glanced at the bar and realized one of the stools was missing. “Ah-ha.”

“Again, right here,” Markie huffed.

“And she promised not to overdo it,” Angel added, giving her a pointed look.

“Right,” I nodded. My sister was an adrenaline junkie. “Overdo it” was her mantra. “Let me know how that works out.”

Nonna looked to be taking over anyway, so Bones and I left them to it and headed for the living room. Bones turned down the music and sat on the sofa. I eyed the recliner, but in the end couldn’t resist Bones’s magnetic pull. I plopped down beside him, sliding my legs across his lap. It was like I needed to touch him and craved the little sparks of electricity his touch ignited. He adjusted my legs and reached for the controller. I watched him, my conversation with Nonna once again playing through my mind.

“What?” Bones asked after a while.

I said the first thing that popped in my mind. “It was nice to meet your mom today. I mean, I realize it’s not an ideal situation, but it was still nice, you know?”

He cocked his head and gave me a crooked smile. “Yeah. I’m glad you got to meet her. At least David wasn’t home. He’d probably be trying to get in your pants.”

Too bad Bones wasn’t trying to get in my pants. Hell, he wouldn’t even have to try. One more of those crooked smiles and my pants would probably combust. “Well, is he cute?” I asked.

Bones snorted and went back to the television.

“What?” I asked. “It was a reasonable question. Sounded like you were trying to set me up.”

“Definitely not,” he replied.

Which only made me wonder, why not? Was it because he liked me after all and was just playing excruciatingly hard-to-get? Or did he think I was some sort of man-eater and he was trying to protect his little brother from me? I wish I could say I felt ridiculous for my insecurities, but I knew the truth about myself and everything I was capable of. My mind wandered back to a time when Markie was away at college and I was home alone with our uncle, Jay Lawson, Boise County Deputy Chief Prosecutor. Uncle Jay had been enjoying the single life before his sister—my mom—died and left me and Markie to him. He was all sorts of bent out of shape about taking in two teen girls, and he did little to hide his feelings. For the most part, I slept at a friend’s house or stayed in my bedroom to avoid him. That particular night, I claimed a headache and went to bed early so I could sneak out and go to a party with my friend Jasmine.

Jasmine picked me up at the corner and we went to Adam Drinkwater’s. I’d always heard that the Drinkwater parties were the best, and the rager we entered that night did not disappoint. Red solo cups materialized in our hands while we were shuffled into the living room where a group of guys were bonging beer. After downing the first drink, we stumbled into the kitchen to retrieve more cups for the newcomers.

The kitchen was cloudy with pot smoke. By the time we found the cups and returned to the living room, I had a pretty strong contact high going and was almost done with my second cup of something they kept referring to as “jungle juice.” I didn’t know what was in it, but it burned going down and my entire body felt numb by the second cup.

“Let’s dance,” Jasmine said, stripping off her jacket. Before I could answer, she tugged me into the throng of gyrating bodies.

More people pressed in around us, everyone dancing with everyone. I spun around and almost ran into Markie’s boyfriend, Trent Rodgers.

“Hey, Ari,” Trent said, tipping his cup at me.

Panic was my first response. “Shit! Oh God, don’t tell my sister you saw me here,” I pleaded.

He used his free hand to mock zipping his lips. “Don’t even worry about it. Your secret is safe with me.”

Relieved, I hugged him. “Thanks, Trent.”

Trent’s eyes were glassy. “But only if you promise me a dance.”

I’d had a small crush on my sister’s boyfriend since the first time he took us both out for milkshakes. He was way cooler and more laid back than Markie, making me wonder what he saw in her. I nodded enthusiastically.

We danced through a few songs before he draped an arm over my shoulders and led me off the dance floor. “How are you? How’s everything going?”

I glanced back to make sure Jasmine was okay without me to find her giving me a thumbs up. Since there was no good way to tell her the hottie I was walking with belonged to Markie, I smiled and returned the gesture.

“School blows. Home blows. Everything’s in the crapper right now. But hey, these are the best years of my life, right?” I held up my cup in a toast. “To keepin’ it real.”

Trent laughed and tapped his cup to mine. We both drained our drinks, and then he headed off to get us refills.

“Dinner’s ready,” Markie said, bringing me back into the present.

I looked up at her smiling face—noting the tired lines around her eyes—and felt guilty for the memory. My sister was recovering from brain surgery, and I was fantasizing about her ex. I’d never confessed to Markie what had happened between me and Trent, and didn’t plan on it. If she knew what a horrible person I was, it would probably break her heart. I loved my sister, and I would choke on my guilt before I’d hurt her. Again. Determined to do just that, I pasted on a phony smile and stood. “Great. I’m starved.”

I spent the next hour defending my plate as Nonna kept trying to pile it high with food. She’d apparently taken my starving comment to heart and decided it was her personal duty to solve the problem.

“Eat up, dear. You’re too skinny. You’ll need some meat on your bones to fight the waves when we move to the coast,” she said.

Since I hadn’t decided whether or not I’d be moving with them, I cut my gaze to Markie, who conveniently kept her eyes on her plate.

“Markie says you’ve never been to the ocean. You are in for a real treat. I remember my first time. My mother took me and my sister to Pismo Beach. The sand felt so warm beneath my feet and the surfers… whew… you should have seen the bodies on those boys.”

“Nonna!” Angel said, sounding scandalized.

I giggled. Sure, the old lady was trying to fatten me up, but she was funny.

“What?” she asked. “I was young once too. I had all those urges that you kids have now.” She leaned closer to me and added, “And I wouldn’t mind seeing those surfers again, if you catch my drift.”