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She was emptying some debris into the trash. When she turned around, he set aside the broom and dustpan and pulled her into his arms.

“Thank you,cara,” he murmured.

“For what?”

“For protecting Nonna. For being here for me. For everything.”

She pulled back so she could study his face. “Is Nonna okay? Really?”

“Si. She’s doing remarkably well considering what she’s been through today. She’s tough, perhaps the toughest woman I know, other than you.”

He could see the words pleased her, but she still didn’t want to take all the credit. “Nonna stood up to those guys without a second thought, Slash. She was amazing. From this point on, Nonna is my definition of a badass.”

He managed a smile as he released her and took the broom, sweeping the pieces of a broken dish into a pile. “She said you were pretty badass yourself, jumping on one of the guy’s back after he put his hands on her.”

“That was my threshold for violence.” She still had no idea how much it meant to him that she had protected Nonna. “I jumped on his back and attacked him with a wooden spoon aimed at a vulnerable spot on his body—in this case, his eyes—just like you told me to do.”

“That training is paying off,” he said, tossing Lexi a roll of paper towels. “It will continue.”

“That’s a good idea.” She started to scrub the wall. “At first I thought you were crazy, but you were right. There are ways all of us—regardless of size, gender or strength—can protect ourselves.”

“True. You’re a good pupil,cara.”

She threw him a glance over her shoulder and he felt a hard jolt of affection. Yeah, he had it bad for her.

“I suppose it doesn’t hurt that I’m being taught by the best either,” she said.

Just like that, the tension in his gut eased. Proof that with her around he was likely to live a lot longer.

They worked side by side until they had the kitchen as spotless as possible. It took them nearly three hours. After he changed clothes, he left Lexi at home to watch Nonna while he went to the police station to find out what had happened to the two intruders.

When he got to the police station, the men were already gone.

His irritation rose. “Gone? Where are they?” he asked the detective in charge.

“They were transferred to Rome about an hour ago.”

“On whose authority?”

“On the authority of the police chief in Rome himself. Don’t worry, sir, they will be handled appropriately. We’ll keep you informed as to what happens to them.”

In his opinion, their sudden disappearance to Rome, summoned by the police chief himself, did not bode well for justice being served. But that wasn’t a matter to be addressed by this detective, and he knew it.

“Can you provide the names of the men who broke into the house?” he asked.

“I’m sorry, sir. We’ve been told to put a lid on the investigation, as it’s being handled in Rome. It seems a bit odd, but perhaps they are involved in something else. They’ve promised to report back to us, so we can update you on all developments.”

There was nothing more to be learned here. He thanked the detective and returned home. When he told Lexi and Nonna the news, Lexi was furious.

“They transferred them?” she said. “Already? They can’t do that, can they?”

“They can and they did. It won’t stop us. We’ll hack into the police department after dinner and get their names.”

“Definitely,” she said.

He and Nonna prepared a light dinner of focaccia and paired it with a variety of cheeses, honey, grapes and olive oil. Lexi chose aLambruscowine to go with the dinner.

Nonna said something to her and Slash translated. “She said you made an excellent choice for dinner. She’s impressed.”