SHE'S MY WIFE

Lorenzo moved Toby away from the window before explaining anything.

The teenager had come out of the bathroom still drying his hands on his shirt. He saw his phone in Sarah's hand and a guard standing in the doorway.

"What's happening?"

She told him. She did not soften the detail about coming downstairs alone. Toby went pale, then asked whether anyone had gone to their apartment.

Lorenzo called Bruno, his head of security, to have it checked. Sarah heard the man repeat their full address. The intimacy of that information in a stranger's mouth made her want to hide her face.

"Do you already know everything about us?"

"Only what we need to keep you safe," Lorenzo replied.

"That seems like a lot."

He accepted the accusation without arguing.

That night, Toby slept in a chair beside her bed. Lorenzo arranged a blanket, a hot meal, and a better place to sleep down the hall. Her brother refused to move.

Sarah did not fall asleep until his breathing grew slow and even.

She remained in the hospital for nine days. There were dressing changes, fever checks, and small exercises that left her crying with frustration. Once, she tried to pick up a cup with the wrong hand and dropped it. She was still staring at the water when Lorenzo came in.

"I can call somebody," she said before he spoke.

He fetched a towel and crouched beside the spill.

"I can wipe up water."

Sarah turned toward the window, embarrassed by how much that simple act affected her.

He said nothing about her tears. Afterward, he placed a fresh cup on her right side.

Clothes arrived from the apartment in a suitcase, along with Toby's schoolbooks and the chipped mug Sarah used every morning. Bruno reported that there were no signs of a break-in. She still could not imagine going home.

Lorenzo offered his family estate in Westchester. There would be visiting medical staff, room for her brother, and security that did not depend on a hospital corridor open to strangers.

"I'm not coming to work for you," Sarah clarified.

"You're coming to recover."

"Toby stays with me."

"I was already counting on that."

Her doctor approved the move once she was well enough. Sarah left in a wheelchair with a folder of instructions in her lap and the uneasy feeling that she was crossing a threshold she might not know how to cross back.

In the car, Toby put on headphones without plugging them in. Sarah noticed the loose cord.

So did Lorenzo. He did not embarrass the boy by mentioning it.

The estate gates opened onto an extensive garden. Sarah saw tall windows, old trees, and two armed men near the entrance. The beauty did nothing to disguise them.

Leo waited on the steps beside a gray-haired woman.

He ran when he saw the wheelchair, then stopped so abruptly that he nearly fell.

"I'm not going to jump on you. I remembered."

Sarah laughed.

"Good. I'd need some warning."

He pointed to a drawing taped to a downstairs door.

"That's your room. Rosa said you can't do stairs. I made a sign so you wouldn't get lost."

There were flowers, a sun, and a yellow bed. In the corner, he had written her name with one letter backward.

Sarah brushed her finger over the paper.

No one had prepared a homecoming for her since her parents died.

Rosa introduced herself as the housekeeper. She showed Sarah the call button, the medication arranged by the nurse, and the temporary changes made to the bathroom. Toby had the room next door. Leo wanted to demonstrate every light switch until his father interrupted.

"She just got here."

The boy drew back his hand.

Sarah saw Lorenzo notice. He took a breath, crouched, and tried again.

"You can finish after she's rested. Save something to show her tomorrow."

Leo considered that.

"There's a bird that taps on the window. I'll save him for tomorrow."

Sarah woke that afternoon to a quiet knock.

Lorenzo carried her chipped mug on a tray. It held tea instead of coffee.

"I checked with the nurse first," he said when he saw her expression.

She curled her right hand around the handle.

"How did you know I'd want this one?"

"Your brother said you complain about all the others."

"He's exaggerating. I complain about most of the others."

Lorenzo's mouth curved. It was the first time she had seen him smile without immediately taking it back.

He pulled a chair closer but left enough distance that she did not feel crowded.

"A driver can take Toby to school when he's ready. He doesn't have to decide today."

"He needs the routine. He just won't admit it."

"What do you need?"

Sarah looked at her leg resting on the support.

"To put on a shirt without help."

He did not offer a promise he could not keep. He simply stayed while she drank her tea.

The peace lasted until late afternoon.

Rosa knocked to announce that Mr. Vincent had arrived. Lorenzo lost his smile before he stood.

"My uncle. He'd like to meet you. You can say no."

Sarah adjusted the blanket over her legs.

"If I'm staying here, I can't hide from everyone."

Vincent Caruso entered with two men who waited by the door. His hair was silver, his manners comfortable. He looked like someone who had never needed to check a price tag.

He kissed Leo's forehead when the child appeared and thanked Sarah for saving his great-nephew.

Then he began asking questions.

Where had she been before the shots? How long had she watched the attacker? Had he said anything? Had he touched the boy's toy?

"He had a gun," Sarah answered. "I was trying to get Leo out of the way."

Vincent nodded sympathetically.

"Of course. You must be confused. A quiet place would be better for you, away from all this unpleasantness. We have a property farther north."

Sarah felt Toby move behind her chair.

"We just got here."

"And there's already been too much attention. A hotel employee living here will invite speculation. Lorenzo has a child to protect."

The room seemed to contract.

Lorenzo set down his cup. The sound of porcelain touching wood was soft and precise.

"Choose your next words carefully, Uncle."

Vincent raised his hands.

"I meant no offense. We simply need to understand this young woman's place in the house."

Sarah straightened despite the pain. She did not want Toby to witness this. She did not want to be passed from one rich man to another like an inconvenient delivery.

Lorenzo came to stand beside her.

"Her place is with me."

Vincent glanced at the hand resting on the chair near Sarah's uninjured shoulder.

"You understand what I'm asking. She isn't family."

"Yes, she is. Sarah is my wife."

No one moved.

Toby swore under his breath. Leo's mouth fell open. Sarah looked up at Lorenzo, waiting for some sign that she had misheard him.

He held his uncle's gaze.

"We married privately. I intended to tell everyone when she was feeling better. Now you know."

Vincent took several seconds to recover his smile.

He offered congratulations. He did not mention the northern property again.

When he finally left with the other men, Rosa took Leo upstairs for his bath. Toby asked with his eyes whether Sarah wanted him to stay.

"I'll call you," she said.

The door closed.

Sarah set her mug down before her hand could start shaking.

"Look at me, Lorenzo. How long do you expect me to be your wife?"