He pulled my hand from the water and grabbed a napkin from a dispenser on the wall. He wiped droplets from me instead of letting me do it myself. “I had her step away from full-time nannying because she wanted more than what was available to her.”
He evaded the real reason, and I found myself digging in deeper. “Wanted more from her job, from whatever group you’re in, or from you?”
He threw the napkin past me, where there must have been a garbage can, and looked down at me for a moment. I swear his mouth curled a tiny bit on one side, like I was amusing him. “You can’t help but ask questions, can you?”
“I think at this point it’s best to get as much of the whole picture as possible.” I took a deep breath, my words echoing through the room. Why did I need knowledge about my elusive boss when really I just needed to keep this position long enough to get paid and live through it?
Because I wanted it.
Because I thought about him constantly, couldn’t take my mind off him or what was happening in his office. With Valerie and without her.
Still, Jameson contemplated how much he wanted to tell me. His arm was still around my waist, and mindlessly, he rubbed my back. The man was obviously comfortable around women—from the way he held me to the way he’d handled my anxiety to even how he maintained my eye contact.
He wasn’t what I was used to. So confident that he could command the room, control emotions of everybody in it.
“Valerie needed a clear line of what our relationship was and what it wasn’t. She’s here now only to provide therapy to Franny and to visit. She was relieved of any further duties unless—”
“I can do my jobby myself.” My words were final and almost rabid. I was protective now, ready to pounce if he insinuated I couldn’t. “Unless you want Valerie here for your own …” I looked away, stopping myself.
“My own what?”
“Never mind.” I shook my head.
He leaned in though, and I felt his breath on my cheek. “Does it help your whole picture to know who I am and am not sleeping with, Mia?”
I jerked back and caught his stare. “Of course not. I don’t care about your personal life. I agreed to stay here for my protection and for a salary. To be an employee.”
“Yet, you’re asking about my sex life. Are you not?”
“You’re accusing me of that when you’re holding my waist right up against you, Jameson? Not very professional,” I pointed out.
The smile that whipped across his face was fast. I’d never been on the receiving end of it like that. Franny normally was the one who got his genuine smiles. Taking it in and reveling inits brilliance wasn’t something I had time for. I was sparring with the man, for God’s sake, but I wanted a picture of it, a framed painted portrait to remember it by.
“Do you think I care about professionalism, Ms. Darling?”
“You must, to some extent, with the secrets you keep. Why sneak around risking Franny’s safety and not tell the police that someone is after you if you’re not doing anything wrong?”
“Because I know I can control and take care of what the police can’t.” He leaned in and whispered, “I don’t keep secrets because I want them hidden, I keep them because people can’t handle knowing them. Can you?”
I looked him up and down. Had it been three weeks ago at the academy, I would have laughed nervously and backed down. I would have skittered around the question and acted like I didn’t hear it. I’d been taught to not ruffle feathers and to be thankful for everything I got.
Maybe the push was small and maybe my voice shook when I answered, but I still quietly answered, “Yes.”
“You want the whole picture—tell me what you think could possibly be worse than a motorcycle club.”
“The mob. Part of the Armanelli Family.” They’d been infamous for years. Most of Chicago knew of them, and they were revered nationwide.
“Try again,” he told me, and my breath caught.
The murmurs when I was young had been around. People had conspiracy theories about everything and everyone.
Still, saying the name felt silly when it probably wasn’t true.
“A Diamond?”
He didn’t answer yes or no, but he stepped back, letting his hands drop to his sides. The silence spoke volumes, and a tiny ringing started in my ears, like a siren or an alarm. It echoed over and over around me and sank into my skin, my veins, my bones.
“No.” I shook my head once. “That’s impossible. The Diamonds are of myths and legends.”
