Fantasy Man (15 page)

That would be so much worse than him being killed in a plane crash, because it would be her fault. If anything happened to Reif because of her…

Reif dropped the curtain and came toward her. He set the gun on the nightstand and stood for a moment in the narrow space between the beds. “It’s okay. The cops are hauling him in.”

She nodded, although in the dark he probably couldn’t see. She shuddered as she tried to get herself and her emotions under control.

“You okay?” Reif’s hand brushed her shoulder and everything inside her broke loose at once. She grabbed on to his hand as if it were a lifeline and pulled him toward her, tugging him off balance so that he toppled on top of her. She wrapped her arms around him, kissing him everywhere she could.

They grappled with each other, losing themselves in the moment. Reif’s anger and frustration coupled with her desperation created an out-of-control need in both of them. No gentleness, no soft words or slow caresses. Just grasping and panting until they were pounding against each other harder than the rain outside.

Afterwards, when her heart rate had returned to normal and she could speak again, Quinn asked, “Are you still mad at me?”

Reif rolled his head back and forth on the pillow in answer to her question. “I don’t think I was ever really mad at you. More like terrified.”

“Of what?”

“Of something happening to you.”

“Because I act like an idiot.”

“Your words, not mine. But that’s not it either.”

“Afraid it will be your fault?”

He shook his head again. “If I lost you, it wouldn’t matter whose fault it was.”

“That’s what I thought when I woke up. If they had found me with you, they’d kill us both. They’d kill you and I’d know it was my fault.” She snuggled closer and kissed his neck. “But it was the idea of losing you that scared me most.”

“Were you manipulating me just now?”

“How do you mean?”

“Trying to get me in bed with you so I wouldn’t be mad at you anymore.”

Quinn laid back with an exasperated gasp. “God, you make me out like I’m some kind of super con artist. I love you. I was afraid I might never get to be with you this way again. I was desperate. And scared.”

Reif turned on his side to look at her even though she could hardly see him. “You played me. From the very beginning.”

She started to interrupt but he put a finger to her lips.

“You took risks you never should have taken and I let you because I didn’t know how much danger you were in. You didn’t want me to know.”

“I wanted to
live
! I watched a seventeen-year-old boy
die
!
After the attack on the safe house, I thought it was just a matter of time before I was next. I decided I was going to live every day like it was my last. I don’t regret what happened between us that first morning. I wanted you and you were there for me. I didn’t want to hide in a corner if I only had days or weeks or months left, don’t you see? I’ve been hiding in a corner since my mother died.”

“I understand.”

“I can’t just…what?” Quinn wasn’t expecting that response.

“It was true in Vegas and it’s true now. There are no foolproof guarantees of safety, but you still have to trust me. You have to
promise
me you won’t take any more unnecessary risks until this is settled.”

“I promise. Besides, it’s the only way I can keep you safe too.”

She moved closer to him, but he moved away.

“God, this bed is lumpy.” He shifted some more. “Wait. What the hell is this?”

She felt fake fur brush against her arm. “It’s Bubba Two.” She took it from him.

“Bubba Two?”

“The cat you bought me. Remember?”

“You were packing in a panic to flee from a hitman, and you took the time to pack
this
?”

“Yes.”

“You sleep with it?”

“
Yes
,” Quinn said a bit testily.

“You’re a twenty-three-year-old married woman and you sleep with a stuffed animal.”

“Well at least you’ve admitted to being married again.”

Reif chuckled.

She edged closer to him and kissed his ear. “Besides, I only sleep with him when I can’t sleep with you.”

“Oh, well, in that case.” He snatched the toy from her and tossed it carelessly aside. “Bubba Two can have my bed.”

Chapter Twenty

The next morning, when Reif went to get a fast-food breakfast for them, Quinn insisted he bring the ferrets inside so they could run around for a bit. Reluctantly, Reif did so. He balled up the wrappers from his breakfast sandwich and hash browns and tossed them across the room for the ferrets. Their interest in them lasted about thirty seconds. Quinn and Reif had decided to drive straight through to Coral Bay, swapping the wheel every time they stopped for gas.

“The only thing is…” Quinn began.

“What?”

“Those two.” She pointed at the ferrets who were digging inside the waste paper can they’d knocked over. They managed to get the lid off an empty drink cup and the melted ice drained into the carpet. “We’ll have to let them out some of the time while we’re driving. They can’t be caged up for two whole days.”

Reif rubbed his eyelids. His eyes were still bloodshot but he wasn’t sneezing as much. “I’m going to need some more pills.”

When Quinn wasn’t driving she let the ferrets out for an hour or so, doing her best to keep them away from Reif. But once, when she was settling Pudge back into the carrier, Fudge leapt into the passenger seat. He seemed to like Reif. Quinn wasn’t a hundred percent sure, but she thought Reif’s attitude toward the wily creatures had softened a bit. Fudge set his feet on the center console and sniffed Reif’s sleeve, then gave a tiny sneeze.

Reif picked up his package of allergy medication and held it out to the ferret. “Want one?”

Quinn stirred as Reif pulled into a gas station the next night. He turned off the ignition and rubbed his eyes. Quinn yawned and looked around. It was one-fifteen in the morning if the clock on the dash could be trusted.

“Want me to drive for a while?” she asked as they got out.

“Yes. I’m beat,” Reif admitted. “Let’s pay for the gas and get some coffee or something.”

“Where are we now, anyway?”

“God, I don’t know. Hell?”

Quinn giggled. “I’m thinking Mississippi.”

He slung an arm over her shoulders. “Same thing.”

Except for a lone clerk behind the counter the place was deserted. He looked up and nodded when they stepped through the door. Reif handed him a couple of twenties. “Forty on pump two.”

The kid nodded and rang it up.

“Restroom?”

The kid pointed and they made their way back along a corridor crowded with excess merchandise, a water fountain and a hand truck.

Reif stood guard outside the door of the restroom until Quinn was done before he took his turn. There was a self-serve coffee bar and soft drink fountain nearby. Quinn poured herself a large coffee and moved into the pastries aisle. The muffins and donuts looked pretty picked over. Quinn bent down to peruse the pre-packaged goods.

She heard the door buzz as it opened.

“Open the register. Give me all the cash.”

Are you kidding me?
Quinn peeked around the corner to see an armed man wearing low-rider jeans and a black hoodie with the hood up to obscure his face. He was only a few feet away from her.

Had she somehow upset the delicate balance of the universe by asserting her independence and making her own decisions? At this rate she’d be struck by lightning
and
swept away in a hurricane before she made it back to Florida.

She glanced up and saw her reflection in the big round security mirror mounted above the hallway to the restrooms. The gunman hadn’t noticed her, despite the fact she was right behind him. Apparently he hadn’t noticed the Escalade sitting at the pump either.

She looked back to the counter. The clerk had his hands up. “Don’t shoot, man. I’m new here. I…I can’t just open the register. I don’t think it works like that.”

“Open it. Or I shoot you. Your choice.”

“Look, I have to ring something up. It has to be a cash sale or the register won’t open. I don’t have keys to unlock it. I swear.”

“Oh for fuck’s…” The gunman slid a packet of beef jerky over. “Ring that up!” The robber was trying to play it cool but there was a tremor in his voice. Even from her vantage point Quinn could see the hand holding the gun shake. It seemed like neither he nor the clerk knew what they were doing.

“Okay, okay. I think that’ll work.” The clerk scanned the beef jerky. Quinn heard the restroom door open.

In two seconds Reif would appear at the end of the corridor. The robber would turn, see him, and realize he had another witness to worry about. He was already unstable. Throw another person into the mix and who knew what would happen.

Quinn had a sudden flashback of Julio falling to the ground in the parking garage, a bullet in his chest, staring at Quinn in stunned surprise. That wasn’t going to happen now. Not when she had a chance to do something.

She pulled the lid off the coffee cup and lunged toward the gunman. The robber had turned toward the restrooms, training his gun in that direction, when the coffee hit him square in the face. She barreled into his legs, leading with her shoulder, knocking the man into the counter.

The would-be thief cried out in pain, hot coffee all over him. Quinn’s tackle hadn’t toppled him, but it had thrown him off balance. The night clerk fought to wrestle the gun out of his hand.

The robber pulled himself away from the clerk, gun in hand, just in time for Reif’s fist to connect with his chin. He spun around, dazed, and dropped face first on the floor.

Carefully, Quinn picked up the gun and set it on the counter.

“You got an alarm?” Reif asked the clerk. Reif had the robber face down on the floor and was keeping him there with a knee in his back while he held on to his wrists. The guy’s hoodie had come away from his face. He looked young, desperate and was quietly whimpering.

“Already hit it.”

“Anything back there I can secure him with?”

The clerk came out from behind the counter with a roll of packing tape. He and Reif secured the guy’s feet and ankles. He wasn’t going anywhere.

Reif got up and took Quinn’s arm. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

“Hey, where are you going? You guys are witnesses,” the clerk yelled after them.

“Don’t worry. You got this,” Reif called back.

They could hear sirens in the distance. “Shit.” Reif opened the gas tank and started pumping gas. “Get in,” he said to Quinn. “We’ve got to get out of here before the cops show up. Six hours answering questions is the last thing we need.”

Quinn slid behind the wheel and adjusted the seat and the steering wheel. She checked on the ferrets, who were still sleeping. She was kind of amazed just how much they slept. She couldn’t tell if Reif was mad at her for acting the way she did. He better not be. She’d saved his life. Potentially. Still, she was pretty sure she had a lecture coming her way about risk and safety.

Well, he could yell all he wanted. She’d rather have him alive and mad at her than lying on the floor of a convenience store in the middle of nowhere bleeding to death.

Reif finished with the gas and hastily screwed the gas cap back on. Quinn started the car and put it in gear. He didn’t have to tell her to step on it once he was in.

They managed to pull away just as the siren lights became visible in the distance in the opposite direction.

“Good instincts back there,” he said once they were clear.

Quinn glowed at the compliment. “Really?”

“I surprised him. He probably would have shot me if you hadn’t jumped him like that.”

“That’s what I was afraid of.”

“Coffee to the face was a nice touch. You did good.”

“I thought you’d be mad at me.”

“Why? For saving my life?”

“For putting myself at risk.”

Reif ruminated on that for a minute. “Yeah, alright, I see why you’d think that. But there’s a world of difference between putting yourself in a bad position, and dealing with a bad position you find yourself in the middle of. Like I said, you did good. You saved my life, Q. Thanks.”

Quinn grinned. “Yeah, well, I’ll let you save mine sometime. Then we’ll be even.”

“Deal.”

Chapter Twenty-One

Late that night they reached the cut-rate motel on the outskirts of Coral Bay. The only person they both trusted was Tony, and he’d told them to come here.

Reif circled the lot, looking for any sign that the location had been compromised. When he was satisfied he parked a short distance from the rooms, killed the lights and left the engine running.

The key cards for two adjoining rooms on the ground floor were hidden in the landscaping near the stairs.

“Slide over here after I get out,” Reif told Quinn. “If anything happens, floor it and go. Call Tony or your dad. Do whatever you have to do. Got it?”

“Got it.”

“Promise me.”

“No. I’m supposed to leave you here to die fighting my fight? I can’t!”

“Don’t you get it? If you don’t survive then none of this matters! Stop trying to be a hero for chrissakes.”

“You’re only saying that because you want to be the hero.”

Reif flashed a quick smile. “I’m the guy. That’s my job.”

“Yeah, but you’re my guy. You’re my hero. I can’t let anything bad happen to you.”

Reif looked around at the darkened, nearly deserted parking area. There were only a few cars parked outside the rooms, most of which were dark. The orange security lights barely penetrated the night. Tony couldn’t have chosen a more desolate non-descript place for them to hole up.

Although it was near the interstate, other chains boasted better accommodations and free breakfasts. This place probably didn’t even have vending machines and if it did they were probably on the blink.

A crumbling service road ran along the back of the property, separated from the parking area by a chain link fence, obscured by unkempt landscaping and weeds.

“Honestly, I don’t think there’s going to be a problem. But if there is I need to know I can trust you. Can I?”

“Yes, but—”

“No buts. Promise me again, if anything happens, you go and don’t look back.”

“I…” Quinn stared at him. This was what she’d signed on for. Better or worse. She just hadn’t wanted to accept what worse could entail. “…promise.”

He kissed her hard, then he was out of the car heading across the parking lot to the stairs. Quinn squinted to keep track of him in the poor light until she saw him disappear inside the motel room door.

She didn’t realize she’d been holding her breath the whole time until she finally saw him coming back.

He opened the back door and grabbed their bags. “Let’s go.”

* * * * *

A half hour later Quinn sat in the middle of one of the flimsy beds and towel dried her hair. She’d stored Fudge and Pudge in the adjoining room’s bathroom and let them run loose in there. “Aren’t you going to take a shower?”

Reif had done little except check and recheck his guns and peer out the door’s peephole or the edge of the curtain.

“No.”

“What’s the matter?”

“Nothing.” Reif looked away uncomfortably, but not before she saw something in his eyes.

She scrambled off the bed and forced him to look at her. “
What?
”

Reif was having a hard time containing his emotions. He was worn down, exhausted, on edge. “What if I’m not up to it? That’s what I keep thinking. If they find us and I blow it and they kill you—”

“Not happening,” she said, wrapping her arms around him. It was the best feeling in the world. She took in his scent, the texture of his T-shirt, the reassurance of his strength. “For one thing I couldn’t live with the guilt.” She tilted her head back. “I mean, that would really
suck
.”

That got a reluctant smile out of him. He bent and kissed her, relaxing a little bit. “Tony said your dad will be here soon. Try and get some sleep, okay?”

“What about you? You must be exhausted.”

“Not until you’re surrounded by armed guards and you step off the witness stand after you testify. Then I’ll consider sleep.”

Quinn didn’t think she’d sleep a wink. Not with Reif sitting in the chair next to the window. Not knowing how easily she might be found. It would be a simple thing to mount an attack on this motel room. Tony was very closemouthed. Only a select few even knew where they were. But the reason Tony had sent her away in the first place was because there was a mole somewhere. As far as Quinn knew, they still hadn’t found it.

She woke at midnight. A bit of weak light seeped around the edges of the curtain. She turned on the nightstand lamp. Reif was still in the chair, elbows on his knees. He wasn’t looking out the window. He was looking at her.

She smiled. “Hi.”

He looked wrecked. Dark circles under his eyes, beard stubble, his eyes bloodshot. She’d done this to him.

“Look at you. I’m a terrible wife.”

“Yeah, but I don’t think I’d have you any other way. Besides, I think I’d have more luck training those ferrets.”

She stuck her tongue out at him.

“Just need the bathroom a minute, okay?”

“Sure.”

He took another peek out the edge of the curtain before he picked up Vinnie’s gun and gave it to her. “Use it if you have to.”

“Okay.” Quinn held on to the gun and tried to imagine herself as the femme fatale of a noir film, checking her reflection in the mirror, but the severity of their situation drained away any fun she might have had. The fact she was wearing Hello Kitty pajamas didn’t help.

The toilet flushed and water ran in the bathroom. There was a tiny tap on the door. Quinn’s heart started racing. She tiptoed toward it, staying to one side.

“Antonia’s Pizza. I got two pies.”

Quinn breathed a sigh of relief at hearing the proper passwords. Any deviation, for example Antoni
o’
s Pizza or only one pie, and she’d have to prepare for the worst. Still she looked through the peephole before she unlocked the door and turned the knob. Her father slipped inside and relocked it. He wrapped his arms around her in a bear hug, anxiously kissing her hair while murmuring the Italian nicknames he’d called her since childhood.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, Dad.”

The bathroom door opened. Quinn let go of her father and Rocco shook hands with Reif. “Thank you for keeping my daughter safe.”

“She didn’t make it easy, sir.”

Rocco gave him an understanding smile. “She never does.”

“What happens now?” Quinn asked.

“We wait.”

“Where’s Tony?”

Rocco glanced at his watch. “He should be here soon.”

“You think they’ll come after us—me, I mean, here?”

“We’re not taking any chances. Dave and Colin are in an unmarked car across the parking lot, keeping watch.

Quinn rubbed her eyes. The strain of the past few days along with that of the past few months were taking their toll on her.

“You need to get some sleep,” Rocco informed her.

“I’m fine,” Quinn assured him. “Reif’s the one who needs to sleep.”

Reif insisted he didn’t, looking at Quinn as if she’d insulted his manhood.

“I’ve got to make a couple of calls and talk with Tony when he gets here. We can use the other room, but I’d feel better if you weren’t alone.” Rocco looked to Reif. “Are you up to standing guard awhile longer?”

Quinn almost laughed out loud. If her dad had known what she had pulled the past couple of months, Reif would be the
last
person he’d entrust with her safety, or her honor.

Reif nodded. “If I can get a shower and some caffeine into my system, I’ll be good to go.”

While Reif showered, Quinn brewed a pot of the motel’s sub-standard coffee for him.

She explained how she’d come by the ferrets as she followed her dad into the adjoining room to introduce him to Fudge and Pudge.

They scurried over to sniff his shoes and pants leg before losing interest. “They look like oversized rats,” he said in disgust.

“They’re not rats, Dad. They’re very sweet. And really no trouble at all,” Quinn assured him.

“What’s that?” He pointed to a small brown mound in the corner.

“Oh, well. Sometimes they leave little surprises like that around.” She grabbed a wad of toilet paper and disposed of the gift.

“I think you should lock them up,” Rocco said.

“Halleluiah!” Reif called out from the other room. She had no idea how he’d heard that.

“Dad they’ve been cooped up in the car with us. They just need a litter tray, is all. They’ll be fine. In fact, they’ll probably curl up somewhere to sleep and you won’t even notice them.”

Rocco didn’t look convinced but he didn’t argue further. “You’re the one who needs to sleep. You’ve got a big day tomorrow.”

She hugged him and went back to the other room.

Reif was dressed and sipping coffee from a Styrofoam cup.

“I wish you could get in bed with me,” Quinn said. “I know you’re exhausted.”

“I’ll be okay.”

“Okay.” Quinn crawled under the covers. Reif took a seat in one of the chairs. “Come over here by me,” she said. Reif moved the chair closer to the bed. Quinn turned out the light. “Now come here and kiss me,” she whispered.

Reif glanced at the adjoining door. He could hear the murmur of conversation from Rocco’s end of a phone call.

“Do you want us to get caught?”

“Exciting, isn’t it?”

“Quinn…”

“We’re married, remember?”

“What I remember is Tony telling me about your dad’s extensive collection of antique torture devices.”

“Come on. This could be our last night on Earth. Who are you more afraid of? The mob or my dad?”

“You got a coin I can flip?”

“Would you just kiss me already?”

He leaned forward and touched his lips to Quinn’s. She sighed and clasped her hands around his neck.

“I miss you,” she whispered, her breath hot against his ear. “Having you here, like this.”

“I know. Me too. When this is over, let’s take a trip somewhere.”

“A honeymoon? A real one?” He could hear the smile in her voice.

“Definitely. You deserve that.”

“So do you.”

“And a real wedding.”

“Oh, yeah. I forgot about the wedding.”

“Get some sleep, Q.”

“Okay.” She snuggled down in the bed. “Reif?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too,” he whispered, even though she’d already fallen asleep.

* * * * *

“I can’t believe you stayed there all night,” Quinn said when she woke up.

Reif stretched his arms. “It wasn’t that bad. Don’t tell your dad and Tony, but I might have dozed off a couple of times.”

“I don’t see how.” The wood chair had a low back and a small curved seat, hardly built for comfort. “Wait. Tony’s here?”

“He poked his head in a couple of hours ago. He and your dad were conferencing but it’s been quiet for a while now. Maybe they’re trying to get some sleep.”

Quinn sat up and reached for her robe. Reif watched the way she lifted her hair away from the collar and let it fall back down.

“God, you’re gorgeous.”

Quinn grinned. “And you’re sleep-deprived. Want to stretch out here for a minute while I’m in the bathroom?”

They stood at the same time. “Don’t let me fall asleep. Your dad will have my head.”

When Quinn came back out she found Reif’s top half reclining across the bed, but his feet were on the floor. His eyes shot open when Quinn straddled him.

“What the?”

She brushed her fingertips along the two-day stubble of beard. “Shhh. I like this look. It’s ruggedly sexy.”

He ran his hands along her thighs under her untied robe. “I like this. It’s soft and sexy.”

Time and place and the connecting door were forgotten as they concentrated on each other. Reif rolled so she was beneath him. He drew back and played with her hair. “I can’t wait until this is over. We can tell everyone we’re married and get on with our lives.”

“I know.” She hugged him closer, wrapping her arms and legs around him.

He kissed her and was about to disentangle himself when a sound from the doorway snared his attention. Before he could move he was yanked off the bed and shoved against the wall.

“You fucking… How dare you?” Rocco growled. “I trust you to look out for my daughter, to protect her and what do you do? You try to
seduce
her?” He swung a fist at Reif’s chin which Reif barely managed to avoid. Rocco was older and shorter, but he had fatherly anger on his side.

“It’s not what you think!”

“Daddy, stop it. Let me explain,” Quinn cried.

“I know what I saw.” Rocco went at Reif again. “You low-down, no-good dirty scumbag. Quinn is not like other young women—”

“Believe me, I know—” Reif sneezed.

“Pop, what’s going on?” Tony entered the room bleary-eyed, wearing a T-shirt and jeans.

“This
friend
of yours compromised your sister.”

“Reif? No—”

“I know what I saw!” Reif continued to deflect his blows but Rocco was tough and persistent and he landed several.

“Daddy, we’re married!” Quinn’s loud statement froze everyone.

Her father stared at her. Tony’s gaze went from his sister to his best friend and back. When it returned to Reif, he looked like a kicked puppy.

Rocco spoke before anyone else could. “No. You did not marry this—this
scoundrel
! You would not. You would do it properly. He would come to me, ask for my blessing. There would be a suitable engagement period. A wedding in the church.” He switched his attention to Reif. “You took advantage of my daughter. That I can never forgive.”

Tony came toward him. “What the hell, Reif? I ask you to look out for her and you go behind my back, sleep with my sister?”

“Tony, come on, you know me better than that.” Reif was angry now. He sneezed three times in quick succession.

Quinn cleared her throat. “Excuse me, Tony, but you’ve got a lot of nerve to talk after what you did to Emma.”

Now it was Reif’s turn to stare at Tony. “Emma?”

“Who’s Emma?” Rocco asked.

“She’s my sister.” Reif looked from Tony to Quinn and back. “Are you—did you—you knocked her up and just left her?”

“Anthony!” Rocco blustered. “What is this?”

“I can explain,” Tony tried as Reif advanced on him.

“You no-good, dirty, rotten sonofabitch! She’s my sister for chrissakes!”