Greg ran his fingers through his blond hair and looked a little worried. “Well, don’t kill me, buddy. I asked her out a few months back. She said she did not want to date anyone that worked with Noah. She said it was a conflict of interest, yet here she is dating you.”
Tony was annoyed that Greg had asked her out. She was beautiful and outgoing, so he shouldn’t be surprised. He knew she got asked out a lot and she had gone on a few dates, but nothing serious. At least she said no to Greg. That gave him some hope. “Just don’t ask her out again. Otherwise, I will have to kill you. Noah can always hire more employees.”
“Ouch.” Greg put his hand on his heart. “I won’t. I promise. Send her flowers. Give her compliments about how pretty her smile is or how nice her dress is. Just pay attention to her.”
“I should write this stuff down,” Tony joked, standing up. Greg was popular with the ladies so he had to know what he was talking about.
Greg laughed. “Just try to not think so hard. Relax around her and it will come naturally. You have been friends for months.”
“You’re right. I guess I want this to work out so bad. I really like Alicia.” Maybe he would stop at the flower shop and have some roses delivered to her work place. That was romantic, right?
Chapter Fourteen
“I told Ray we should have bought more candy,” Alana said with a shake of her head. Carlos had passed out, missing all the excitement. Their father sat with him in a booth, watching him. Lucy, their mom, had gone home earlier.
“I know.” Alicia sighed, turning off the outside light at the restaurant. “I usually shop for this holiday, but I was distracted.”
“It’s okay. We did enough tonight.” Alana gave her a sympathetic look. “Let’s go down to Jazz’s store. Hopefully, Hope and Eva’s kids will be hanging out there. I want pictures of all the cuties. Next year, I am dressing up Carlos.”
Alicia agreed, grabbing her phone to take pictures.
Alana turned to her father. “Papa, will you watch the baby for a few minutes? We’re going to Jazz’s store.”
“Of course.” He smiled fondly at his girls. “We men will be fine here.”
Alicia laughed and they walked down the street. The majority of the crowd had thinned out, but a lot of costumed people still walked up and down the sidewalks, mostly teens.
They talked about all the cute costumes they had seen tonight. Alicia felt a bump against her side and she fell against Alana. “Hey, watch it,” she told the tall person dressed in a scary mask.
The person ignored her and walked faster. It took her a second to realize she felt a sting at her side. She looked down and put her hand on her side. She looked at her palm and it was red.
“Oh my god, that is blood.” Alana gasped, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk. She pulled Alicia to the side and sat her on a bench. Her eyes were wide with fear.
“What the hell?” Alicia choked out. Her side was throbbing now and she felt like she couldn’t think. She was in shock. What the hell had that been about? “That bastard stabbed me. My shirt has a slice in it.”
“Are you girls okay?” They looked up to see Mr. Hughes/ who worked at the bank. He had a black cape on and white make-up all over his face. He was holding a bowl of candy in his hands.
“Can you call an ambulance? My sister was stabbed.” Alana’s voice was wobbly with emotion.
His eyes widened with shock. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed. Alana was wearing a light sweater over a tank top. She took the sweater off and bunched it up. She held it against her sister’s side.
Alicia leaned her head back and closed her eyes. Well, hell, this wasn’t how she wanted to end her night.
* * * *
Tony heard the information being broadcasted over the radio in his car. When he heard Alicia Garcia was the victim, his heart dropped to his feet. He sped over to the hospital. Damn it, he should have been with her. He promised her no one would hurt her and he failed her again. He was no good for her. She deserved so much better. His thoughts were going wild.
He parked in a reserved spot, but he did not care. He ran through the sliding glass doors of the ER. Holly greeted him. The fact that she looked calm comforted him some. If Alicia was in critical condition, he would see a different expression in his sister-in-law’s face.
“She is fine, Tony,” Holly assured him. “It was not as deep as we thought. The doctor is with her now.”
Alicia’s family sat in some chairs nearby. Noah and Drake stood against a wall. Holly led him to a small area enclosed by a curtain.
“What happened?” His words came out louder than he intended and the doctor jumped with fright. He dropped the instrument he had been putting away. It landed with a loud clank on the tiled floor.
“Tony?” he heard Alicia whisper. He rushed to her side. She looked pale and that worried him. He brushed her hair away from her face. “Jesus, you scared me, Alicia.”
/> “I’m okay. I need some stitches,” she explained, looking drowsy. He knew they gave her something for pain. She reached her hand out toward him and he immediately grabbed it. He kissed her knuckles. “Who did this, baby? One name and I will make sure he suffers before I kill him.”