The Promise (The 'Burg #5)(153)

“Done.”

“Take your gun, Benny,” Sal advised.

Fuck.

“You got a bad feeling,” Ben guessed quietly.

“About Frankie? Don’t know. About whatever this shit is? Yes. Definitely,” Sal confirmed.

“Right. Later, Sal.”

“Later, figlio. And Benny?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re a good man.”

Great.

He had approval from Salvatore Giglia.

Sal disconnected.

Ben went to find a bigger bag.

* * * * *

“What?” Frankie asked on a muted scream thirty minutes later when Ben was in his SUV, heading down to the ’burg. He’d called Frankie to tell her he was coming for an extended visit.

She sounded partly freaked, mostly excited.

He liked the excited, wasn’t big on the freaked, and more, wasn’t big on the fact that when she found out why he was coming down, that freaked would get freaked.

“I’m headed your way. I’ll be at your place around the time you’ll be at your place and I’ll explain everything when I see you.”

She sounded a lot less excited and now quietly freaked when she asked, “Explain everything about what?”

“Babe, I’ll tell you when I see you.”

“Is everything okay?”

Absolutely not.

“I’ll see you in a few hours and explain it to you then.”

“Is Theresa okay?” she pushed.

“Yes,” he answered.

“Vinnie?”

“Yes, honey.”

“Manny and Sela?”

“Everyone’s okay, Frankie,” he said patiently. “There’s just somethin’ you need to know and somethin’ I need to do.”

She gave him a beat of silence before she stated, “This is weird, Benny.”

“I know, baby. But I’m not sayin’ anything while you’re at work. A few hours, you’ll have the story.”

“While I’m at work?” she asked leadingly.

“Babe,” he said a lot less patiently. “I’ll. Explain. Everything. When I see you.”

“Yeesh, Ben. Come on. You’re bein’ mystery man. I’m gonna be curious,” she replied.

Ben sighed.

“Oh shit,” she muttered.

“What?”

“I’m going out with Cheryl tonight.”

“Not anymore.”

“Ben, honey, she’s lookin’ forward to this.”

“She can look forward to it another night.”

“I love you. I want to see you. I’ve been away from you not three days and I’m freakin’ thrilled I’m gonna go home and you’ll be there, or I’ll be there and you’ll be there right after me. But she’s a sister. You don’t tell a sister who needs to get laid you can’t be her wingman, bagging on her last-minute.”

“You cannot be serious,” Ben stated, hoping she was not.

“I totally am.” Her voice lowered when she finished, “I’m sorry, honey. Hopefully she’ll hook up fast and I’ll get home early.”

Ben made another decision. “I’m comin’ with.”

“Holy crap, you can’t do that,” she returned immediately, sounding shocked. “I can’t be a wingman with my boyfriend with me.”

Ben clenched his teeth.

Then he said, “We’ll talk about this later too.”

She read his tone and he knew it when she replied, “Probably a good idea.”

“Leave at five, babe.”

“Like you’re headed down here and I’ll kick back and clean out my inbox,” she murmured.

“Frankie?” he called.

“What?” she answered.

“The answer to ‘leave at five, babe’ is ‘all right, honey,’” he informed her.

“Annoying,” she muttered.

At that, he grinned.

Then he said, “See you soon.”

“All right, honey.”

At that, he chuckled.

And after he told her he loved her and got it in return, he disconnected.

* * * * *

Ben had just let himself into Frankie’s place, minimized the devastation Gus could make by putting him in her guestroom, got a beer and was taking a tug, when he dropped his chin and the bottle and caught sight through her living room window of her Z sliding into her parking space.

He put the beer on her bar, headed to her door and through it, and the instant he came out from the recess of her front door, he saw her stop walking from her Z and start skip-running.

On heels.

Fucking Frankie.

He smiled.

She smiled back, threw herself in his arms, and banged him hard with her computer bag on his bicep.

“Oh, sorry,” she whispered, her face close to his.

He said nothing.

This was because he didn’t give a f**k about her bag hitting him, but he did give a f**k about the fact that her mouth was close.

So he ignored the first and took advantage of the second.

He broke the clinch, took her bag from her, then took her hand and pulled her into her apartment.

She threw her keys on the table by the door and moved in, turning the second she cleared the entryway, saying, “Well?”