Mob Mistress by Renee Rose Read Free Book Online Page A

things just didn’t work out between us. He’s too controlling. He gets off on being the one in charge, you know?”
    Lexi made a non-committal sound.
    “Listen, do you have his new number? Because I tried to call him this week, but it sounds like he swapped phones out again. He does that a lot, you know.”
    “What do you mean?”
    Stacy shrugged. “Something about keeping lines secure. I have no idea. But every so often, he dumps his number and starts over with a new phone.”
    “Oh. Well how are you supposed to get a hold of him then?” she asked, wondering if that was the reason he hadn’t returned her texts.
    “Oh, you don’t have his new number, either?” Stacy asked with a saccharine smile. She opened her phone. “I could give you his home number.”
    She narrowed her eyes. “Why don’t you just call his home number, then?”
    “Well, I have, but it’s a land line and I don’t want to leave a message, you know.”
    She didn’t trust Stacy even the slightest bit, but her story about the phones might be true. She took out her own phone and scrolled through the contacts to Bobby’s name. “Yeah, I will take that home number, if you don’t mind,” she said.
    “No problem,” Stacy said, handing her the phone.
    She took it and copied the numbers into her contacts, trying to figure out if she dared call him there. One of the rules had been to use discretion with his immediate family. Somehow she doubted calling his home phone would be considered discrete. Still, she wanted the option just in case.
    “May I see the number you have for him?” Stacy asked when she had finished.
    “Sure,” she said, although the warning bells in her head told her it was a bad idea. Bobby had said not to talk about him with anyone. But how could she refuse when Stacy had just shared with her?
    She showed her the number and the other woman shook her head. “No, that’s the same one I had. It’s no good. Thanks, anyway,” she said, slipping off the barstool and taking her second drink with her.
    Gina leaned her forearms on the bar. “That was weird.”
    “I know. I kept waiting for her head to spin around and fire to come out of her mouth or something. You don’t really think she was being helpful, do you?”
    Gina shook her head. “No. She wants him back and is trying to keep her enemies close. I’d watch out for that one, if I were you.”
    “I will,” she said.
    She took the train home and sat on the sofa considering. Why hadn’t Bobby called? Was this a normal time span between dates for him? She wished she’d asked Stacy.
    If he did have a new phone, why hadn’t he given her the new number? Could he have lost her number?
    She considered calling his house. If his wife answered, she would just hang up. If he answered, she would apologize for the way their last date ended and let him know she missed him.
    She picked up the phone and dialed, her heart rate increasing as she waited for someone to pick up.
     
    * * * * *
     
    The house phone rang and he picked it up.
    “Hello?”
    “Um, hi!”
    He recognized Lexi’s voice.
    He blew out his breath. “Why are you calling me here?” he demanded. He didn’t even know how she got the number. “I’ll call you right back.” He hung up and called back with his cell phone.
    “What the hell, Lexi? Landlines are almost always tapped. Now the Feds have your number, you know. Did you want to be on their watch list?”
    “Oh God. I’m sorry,” she said, sounding nervous. “I just —”
    “Why didn’t you call my cell? I texted you the new number!”
    “No you didn’t!” she protested.
    “Where did you get my home number?”
    She didn’t answer.
    He needed to see her face to get to the root of this. “Are you at home?”
    “Um, yes, uh huh,” she said in an overly-agreeable voice.
    “I’ll be right over.”
    He drove to her place, trying to decipher her behavior. She said she hadn’t received his text with his new number. But how and why had she