"Shopping day!" She twirled once then winked at me and twirled again, making her way toward the most conspicuous car I owned. "I pick this one."
I cursed. "Of course you'd pick the red Lambo." It wasn't just any red Lambo either. It was a red Lamborghini Veneno Roadster. The thing looked like a happier version of the Batmobile, minus all the toys.
"It's pretty." She ran her hands along the hood then leaned up against it. "Think she'll purr for me?"
I rolled my eyes. I hung up the keys to the Mercedes and quickly grabbed the ones to the Lamborghini. "What can I say? Italians make sexy cars. What's the last thing you did, Russia?"
"You." She blew me a kiss and opened the door. It slowly rose up above her head. With a squeal, she basically flew into the car. So much for trying to keep a low profile. Then again, if Petrov wanted her, he could be my guest; it would be so much easier shooting him in broad daylight.
I got in the car and started the engine.
"Holy…" Andi gripped the seat with her hands. "It sounds like a freaking plane!"
"Yup." I turned up Hozier and pulled out my sunglasses.
"And it vibrates…" She gripped my hand. "…almost like a motorcycle."
"Wow, if I'd known this was all it took to get you all hot and bothered, I would have skipped the shower this morning," I joked.
Andi threw her head back and shouted, "Thirteen!"
I couldn't stop the bark of laughter. "Who was better? Me or the car?"
"Aw…" She lightly punched my shoulder. "…don't ask questions you don't want the answer to." She started petting the seat. I half-expected her to start licking it and whispering sweet nothings to the leather.
"Should I leave you alone?"
"No." She freaking winked at the leather seat. "We'll catch up later." She buckled her seatbelt. "Why? Jealous?"
I shook my head. "Of a car? Never."
"You sure?"
"Positive." I pulled out of the garage. "Besides, you've seen what's under my hood. I don't think I have anything to be worried about."
"That secure, huh?"
I let out a cocky laugh. "Yes."
Her eyes narrowed. "Fine, you win. Wait!" She reached for my arm. "The hand! It's back in the house!"
I peeled out of the driveway. "One of Nixon's men is going to do the honors for us."
"And out of curiosity, what do you guys do? Just drop it off at the FedEx store, or what?"
"Where else would we drop it off?"
"But it's a hand."
"Right."
"From a person."
"Yeah."
"So you can't ship alcohol, but you can ship body parts?"
I let out a little laugh. "It's not like we actually write on the box, Human Body Part."
"Fair enough." She nodded. "Okay, so where to?"
"Downtown." I nodded. "The expensive stores, I think. After all, you're the one with no limit…"
"Are you going to be my personal shopper?"
"I wouldn't trust you with anyone else."
Her smile fell. "You think it's safe for us to be out and about?"
"Of course." I patted my leather jacket. "I have enough guns in the car to take care of us, and I hardly doubt your father's going to be at the mall. If he is, just make sure everyone ducks so I get a good shot in between his eyes."
"Look at you… dirty talk all day long."
The car fell silent for a few minutes. It was comfortable, like we'd known each other for years instead of weeks.
"Italy?"
"Russia."
Andi reached for my hand. "Thanks. I know most girls love clothes, but I really, really love clothes, and mine haven't been fitting and—"
"You're welcome," I interrupted, trying to cut off the conversation so we wouldn't talk about the giant elephant in the room.
It was no longer cancer.
But the clock.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Andi
I'D MADE HIM UNCOMFORTABLE.
I could tell from the way he clenched his jaw and drummed his fingertips against the steering wheel — like the car wasn't moving fast enough, and he wanted to hurry up and get to where we were going so he could flee the small space and actually breathe.
I knew the feeling well.
Sometimes it hurt to breathe, not because I was sick, but because the knowledge of being sick had a way of choking you physically, even if it was just a mental thing.
We made small talk until we reached downtown. There was a huge shopping center in the distance. He kept driving.
I opened my mouth to ask why, but he just shrugged and drove a few more blocks and stopped directly in front of Neimen Marcus.
"Hmm…" I tapped my chin. "…I like the way you think."
"Knew you would." He flashed me a sexy smile that had my heart skipping. We parked and suddenly, as I was getting out of the car, I felt very, very underdressed.
I was wearing combat boots, an ill-fitting Lacrosse sweatshirt, and baggy jeans. Self-consciously, I tugged the sweatshirt up over my shoulder and braced myself for the looks I knew I would get from the salesclerks.