“I stink?”she asked, feeling heat fill her cheeks.
Rafe’s eyes met hers.“That’s not what I said.”
She worked out his words in her mind and then narrowed her eyes.“You can smell my fear?Is that what you’re saying?”
Rafe’s brow rose as his lips tilted up in a curious smirk.“What would you say if I said yes?”
Roan cleared his throat and shifted in his seat.It was an odd move because he looked a little nervous.She didn’t get the impression from the quiet guy that he got nervous easily.
“I’d call B.S.”Lola lifted her chin.“Humans can’t smell fear.”
Rafe didn’t respond.He simply stared up at her as if he didn’t feel the need to argue with her.As if he knew he was right, and his confidence in that knowledge was enough that arguing meant nothing to him.
“Can you just try and stay away from them,” Roan spoke up.“Get someone else to wait on their table.”
“I’m not going to put one of my co-workers in danger,” Lola said quickly.
“But you’d put yourself in danger?”Roan practically snarled as he leaned towards her.His eyes grew even more intense with the silver color.
“I’m no more important than anyone else here.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, Lola Katz,” Rafe said.“You’ve no clue of your value, and we’re telling you that you’re in danger.This is what we do for a living.We track that kind of scum,” his head nodded in the direction of Spiky and Green Hair.“They’ve set their sights on you and you need to be careful.”
“Why are you telling me this?”Her heart beat faster as her palms began to sweat.Call it some weird sixth sense, but she believed them.And it scared the crap out of her.
“Because we don’t want anything to happen to you,” Roan answered, his voice sounding completely sincere.
She held his gaze and he seemed determined to get an answer out of her.“Okay,” Lola found herself saying.“I’ll ask Sal to deal with them.”If she told Sal those guys made her uncomfortable, then he’d make them leave.
Lola jumped when she felt an arm come around her waist and familiar cologne fill her nose.“Hey, Kitten,” Antonio’s voice broke the silent stand off and his warm breath brushed against her cheek just before he pressed a kiss there.
You have got to be kidding me,Lola internally groaned.
Roan’s eyes zeroed in on the hand pressed to Lola’s stomach and she could feel Rafe’s glare.Both guys seemed to be radiating some serious pissed-off vibes as they looked ready to take Antonio out.Was he involved in the whole sex thing?Lola had always gotten the feeling that Sal’s son was into some shady business because he was as close to a sugar daddy as she’d seen in NNP.But she’d never gotten the vibe that he was sinister orthatkind of criminal.
“Who’s this?”Roan asked, his eyes narrowed on Antonio and if looks could kill, her unwelcome suitor would be not only dead, but ash, at her feet.
Lola tried to surreptitiously squirm out of Antonio’s hold, but he just tightened his arm.“I’m Lola’s–”
“Friend,” she blurted out.“This is Antonio, the owner’s son, and a friend of mine.”
Antonio’s body tensed and she knew he was not happy with her answer.“These guys giving you problems, Lo?”he asked.“You looked a little uncomfortable.”
“If she looked alittleuncomfortable before you made your presence known,” Rafe said, “she looks downright disgusted now.”
Lola briefly closed her eyes and wondered if she could feign sickness and just take the day off.
“I’m fine, Antonio.And no, they’re not giving me any trouble.”She turned to look up at him and wished she hadn’t.It put their faces much too-intimately close.His eyes were filled with a possessiveness that made her more than uncomfortable.It freaked her the hell out.“I’ve got to get back to work,” she told him and finally managed to dislodge his hold.
His jaw clenched.“Of course.But, I’m taking you out to lunch today.So let the other girls know you’ll be off at noon for a couple hours.”
“I can’t,” she started, but he shocked her into silence as he leaned down and brushed his lips to hers.
Lola heard low growls coming from the two guys sitting at the table beside her.
“You’ll still get paid, Kitten,” Antonio whispered, his lips still practically touching hers.
He smiled at her and then glanced back at Roan and Rafe.His look beyond smug as he strutted away like a predator who’d made it clear that she washisand would take out anyone who got in the way of him.
