“Right,” I said. “I don’tsuppose you know the staff well enough to get a solid answer out of them, do you?”
Logan shrugged. “Maybe. Do I geta consultation fee?”
“You get a second cup ofcoffee,” I offered.
Logan’s face lit uplike he’d won something. I would’ve stretched to a cake for his help, so he’djust done himself out of free baked goods by being so eager.
“It’ll kill you, you know.All that caffeine,” I said, approaching the counter.
“If four years of workingwith you didn’t kill me, I figure nothing will,” he said.
The barista—a pretty redheadwith freckles like stardust dotted over her nose and cheeks—noticed me a momentlater and beamed broadly.
She was gorgeous.
And I didn’t… care.
Because all I wanted was tohelp Quinn sohe’dsmile at me like that.
I was doomed.
“Hey there,” she said,giving me an obvious once-over. “What can I get you?”
I nodded to Logan. “Whatever he’shaving,” I said. “And I have a bit of an odd question to ask you, if you don’tmind.”
“Well, I’m all yours for aslong as it takes me to make an almond milk double-shot latte with a half-shotof hazelnut syrup,” she said, pacing over to the machine. “What’s on your mind?”
I should’ve flirted back.That always greased the wheels, but…
I couldn’t do it. Icouldn’t pretend to be interested.
Under other circumstances, Iwould have been drooling a bit.
It was just that I hadsomething magical waiting for me, and I couldn’t imagine betraying that.Not even in pursuit of the answers he needed.
I wanted Quinn. For thefirst time in my life, I wantedone person, to the exclusion of allothers.
A wave of nausea washed overme at the thought, my heartbeat picking up to panicked speeds.
Oh no.
Ohno.
What did that mean? Did itmean…?
The sound of the coffeemachine rumbling into life snapped me out of it. I had a job to do.
A job to do for Quinn, who Iwanted to be grateful to me and maybe even kiss me as a thank-you when Iuntangled the whole thing.
“Can you keep a secret?” Iasked after a beat too long. People loved to feel like they were being let in onthings—and to be fair, shewas.
“Depends on the secret,”cherry-red lips informed me, quirking up at the end.
“I’m a private investigator,”I said.
Her eyes lit up. Right,good.
“So does that mean Logan’syour boyfriend? He told me he’s a bodyguard.”
