“How?!”
“—and because she was concerned about you,” he steamrolled over my objection. “She asked a friend to make sure you were safe. It killed two birds with one stone because that friend has apparently been watching over me recently.” At that, the pinched look around his eyes deepened. “That same friend is the reason why there were explosions last night.
“Transplanted Albanians took her out for murdering one of their leaders back in the homeland. It’s why your hotel was at the center of the blast. She stayed there too.”
Horror filled me. “How do you know any of this? I doubt the cops are as well-informed as you.”
Even as I asked the question, the notion he was holding something back hit me. I just didn’t know how to pull apart his words to find it.
“Martinez told me.”
I staggered over to the bed and plunked my ass down. “Is this real? It’s like something from a Le Carré novel!”
“You read spy thrillers?”
“I do. Not that my genre of choice is relevant?—”
“Nothing about you is irrelevant,duci.”
The term of endearment combined with the way he crooned it sought to distract me by shoving me down the path to being bug-eyed and breathless again.
No.
Concentrate.
The man might be doing something sadistic to your hormones, Kitty Frasier,but this is important.
Focus.
I scowled at him. “How did Star know we were coming here?”
“You’ll have to ask her.”
“How?! I don’t know her!”
He shrugged. “We’re not best buds either. I told her I had urgent news and she called hours later.”
“Yeah, but she called. I’m surprised she knows I exist.”
“Your brothers work for Aidan O’Donnelly. Maybe that’s how it came up.”
My brow furrowed as something occurred to me. “What are you doing here?”
“What?”
“Mexico. Martinez didn’t expect you?—”
“I contacted the previous owners of this territory,” he demurred, but it only tripped more of my triggers.
“You really came on business?”
“Why else would I be here?”
“What’s going on, Stan?” I jabbed the air with my finger. “I know you’re not telling me something.”
His gaze dropped to my chest. And that was the moment I noticed my towel had slipped a couple of inches.
I was still decently covered but?—
