Enzo radiates masculine energy that feels more reckless than deliberate.
John’s tension reads like he’s trying to slow a crash he can’t prevent. They are twin storms colliding in the same space, and my sisters and I are standing in the crossfire.
I don’t even realize I’ve raised my gun. Next to me, Luna and Jules have mirrored the motion. Our three guns raised to their three.
“John?” slips from my mouth.
“Hudson?” Luna asks at the same time.
“EnzofuckingLuciano,” Jules hums, ready to go head-to-head with him.
Enzo doesn’t flinch. “Easy, ladies. We just want answers.”
“That’s rich, given you just stormed intoourspace, guns aimed. We have the upper hand here,” Jules fires back.
It’s a standoff. Six people, six guns, zero exit strategy.
Everyone starts talking over each other, shooting questions and accusations in every direction.
“Everyone shut the fuck up,” I yell, slicing through the chaos, and everyone obeys.
“Luna, did you say Hudson? Hudson-from-work Hudson?” I ask.
“Yes,” she confirms.
“The blonde or the brunette?” I ask, staring into the eyes of a man whose body I know almost as well as my own.
Luna confirms the blonde.
John/Hudson’s smile takes over his whole face.
I decide to ignore that particular clusterfuck for a moment and turn my attention to Enzo. “Hi, again. Couldn’t stay away, huh?” I feign flirtatiousness as a means of distraction. My sisters and I need a beat to make sense of what the fuck is going on here.
Jules jumps in. “Enzo, you working with the FBI now?”
“More importantly,” Luna follows, staring daggers at John—Hudson—whoever the fuck he is, “why are you walking in with Enzo Luciano?”
I can’t help but laugh. “Please. Of course, the head of organized crime is in bed with the mafia. Fucking Washington.”
“You know I’d much rather be in bed with you,” Hudson says with a wink at me.
Well, fuck, here we go.
I maintain my death-glare at him.
“Pippa?” Luna and Jules ask in unison.
I sigh. “John Doe from the casino.”
Jules closes her eyes for a moment, taking a calming breath, then opens them again.
Luna’s face goes ghost white.
Nearly imperceptibly, Enzo seems to flinch at that admission.
Hudson looks too proud of himself for a man holding a gun. “So, it seems my reputation precedes me,” he says as his smile widens. “Jane, I’m flattered.”
I roll my eyes.
