Deadly Games - Cate Noble [46]
Inside the store he grabbed a cart. “Fine. We had an argument. Now I’m apologizing. I was wrong. You were right. Better?”
To his amazement, she smiled. Briefly. It was the first time she’d done so, and Rocco felt … dazzled.
“Your tone was a bit mocking,” she said. “But, I agree. You were wrong. Turn here.” She pointed toward health and beauty.
The shampoo aisle was crowded, so Rocco kept quiet even though something about her response “You were wrong” didn’t sit right.
He watched as Gena grabbed a pink bottle and flipped the cap open. She wrinkled her nose at the smell and put the offending bottle back on the shelf. Then she grabbed a green bottle. That one must have been really bad because she shuddered. Next up was a white bottle. It made the cut and landed in the basket.
Curious, he grabbed the green bottle and sniffed. Girly and fruity, but not repulsive.
“What?” she looked at him.
“Nothing. I just realized I’ve never been shopping with you.”
He’d shopped for her, but that had usually involved only lingerie and jewelry stores. The memory of stripping away sexy underwear, leaving her wearing nothing but a sparkling gold chain, had him white-knuckling the cart’s handle.
“You can see you missed a lot,” she said.
“I suppose you’re used to shopping at, uh, other stores.”
She started to say something, then stopped. “Once upon a time, maybe. I’ve since learned to be more frugal.”
She turned at the next aisle and selected toothpaste, a toothbrush, and floss. He followed her up and down a few aisles. She added fewer items than he’d have expected, especially in cosmetics. Not that Gena needed a lot of make-up, but he recalled a trip they’d taken once. It had seemed half her luggage was a traveling salon.
Still, seeing her wearing so little make-up now made him realize how young she looked. At thirty, she could pass for a college freshman.
Gena grabbed a neon-colored toiletry bag from an end-cap display. “Done here.”
They headed to women’s clothing next. In less than five minutes Gena picked out three pairs of jeans and three shirts. She was even faster in lingerie, grabbing underwear, bras, and socks.
“Shoes?” he asked.
“My sneakers are fine.” She leaned against the cart and rubbed her head. “I think that’s it.”
He realized she was exhausted; on the verge of collapse. “Come on. We’ll grab a suitcase and leave.”
He paid for their purchases with cash. She limped as they walked out of the store, and this time she didn’t protest when he put an arm around her shoulders and helped her to the car.
“Where to next?” she asked after he started the engine.
“It’s late and we both need sleep. We’ll get a room, call it a night, and hit the road early in the morning.”
“Do I get my own room?”
“No. I’ll get double beds. I know it’s awkward, but I’m not letting you out of my sight again.” He braced for her protests, prepared to go gangster on her if necessary. This wasn’t optional.
Instead she shrugged. “I’m too tired to argue, though I probably won’t be able to sleep. When I close my eyes, I see … Lupe.”
“You can watch movies all night.” Rocco headed back in the direction they’d come, toward one of the busier roads with lots of newer hotels and restaurants.
A short time later, he carried their stuff to a second-floor room at the Holiday Inn.
“You can have the bathroom first,” he said. “I’ll get ice and some sodas. It’s just two doors down.”
While out of the room, he checked the selection of snacks in the vending machine, just in case he could tempt her to eat more.
A7. Ding Dongs. His current favorite.
B1. Creme-filled chocolate cupcakes. His childhood favorite.
C3. Twinkies. Not.
He scanned the lower rows for something healthy. Granola-fied. Gena had read the list of ingredients off his box of Ding Dongs once.
“What language is this?” she’d teased. “Do you know what this stuff does to you?”
“Yeah. Chocolate makes me horny,” he’d defended.
His eyes locked onto G9. Chocolate M&M’s. He had a flashback. “Does this make you horny?” He and Gena had been in a movie theater.