Tristan stood his ground calmly. “She wanted to talk to you. Said it wasurgent.”
Jarod skewered Tristan with his black gaze before setting it onme.
“Get me my clothes,” hebarked.
I scanned the room forthem.
“Notyou,” he said, his voice low but in no waycalm.
Tristan unhanded me and moved away, then tossed Jarod a small white towel to sop up the water ribboning down his arms and legs, matting the dark hairs to his tautskin.
“Leaving already, Monsieur Adler?” the ministerasked.
Without turning, Jarod said, “We’re done here. I’ll let you discuss the finer points withTristan.”
He tossed the towel aside, then took the clothes Tristan tendered, yanking on each item with a ferocity that belied the extent of anger brewing beneath that steady, fearsome body ofhis.
As he belted his pants, he shot his gaze to the bearded guard and hissed, “Out of my fucking way, or I’ll have your pregnant girlfriend stop by your wife’s Zumba class and introduceherself.”
Anger and fear made the bodyguard’s bald head sweat. Without consulting his boss, he unbolted thedoor.
“Go!” Jarod’s order set me inmotion.
I marched down the blue-tiled hallway, heart banging in time with Jarod’sfootfalls.
The scantily clad woman, who’d greeted us, scurried out from behind her welcome desk. “Is everything okay, MonsieurAdler?”
Even though it wasn’t her fault, he glared at her, which made her shrink back. Without answering, he stepped past the lattice doors and into the courtyard, matching my rapidstrides.
He didn’t speak a word to me the entire way back to his house. Barely even glanced my way. Not wanting to make a scene in front of his driver, I didn’t say anything, but my own anger rose steadily as the car bumped over the cobbled street of the grayingcity.
Chapter 44
When we got backto his house, Jarod ordered me into his bedroom, and even though I wanted to tell him that intruding on his meeting hadn’t been my idea, I sealed my lips and climbed hisstairs.
The sound of his voice must’ve alerted Muriel he was home, because she popped out of the pantry. When she caught sight of me, she blinked. I cut my eyes to the bedroom door and shoved itwide.
Jarod marched in behind me, then slammed the door shut. “What the fuck,Leigh?”
“I thought you were getting a massage!” I growled rightback.
“Did my line of work slip your mind?” He plowed his hands through his damp locks. “The prime minister is a wormy sleazebag. Want to know what his last assignment was? Make his mistress vanish after he strangled her todeath!”
A gasp burst out of me. I didn’t ask whether he’d made the corpse disappear. I doubted he’d have had a second meeting with the man if he’d failed that first job. I also didn’t ask why he was still conducting business with a murderer, because his line of businesshadn’tslipped mymind.
“Those are the types of people I deal with, and you just walk in like I’m at a fucking tea party! Fuck!” Jarod’s voice clanged over the panes of glass that glowed cerulean from the dwindlingdaylight.
“I’m sorry, but Tristan told me you were at a spa. He didn’t mention anything about a businessmeeting.”
Jarod halted his mad pacing, but his wild pulse kept gorging the artery in his neck. “It doesn’t make any fucking sense. Why would he do that?” Even though I wished he’d trusted my word, he scanned the air around my hips for a tumblingfeather.
My annoyance turned to disappointment. “Probably so I would catch you with another woman and leave once and forall.”
Jarod’s lashes hit his browbone. I locked my hands at my sides and squashed my lips together before I shared Tristan’s warning, the one about leeches. I was afraid it would be the drop that made Jarod’s anger boil over, but not at hisfriend.
Atme.
After several long minutes, he exhaled wearily, the fight draining from him. “Why did you come back,Feather?”
