Page 61 of Vicious Temptation

Remi

My finger taps against Papá’s ring as I watch Thiago and his teammates move through their drills on the monitor.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Valentina’s hand covers mine, stopping the movement.

“Are you finally going to tell me who he is?”

Before I can answer, she reaches for the controls and switches the camera angle.

“Hey.” I side-eye her like she just interrupted my favorite show, then immediately switch it back. “Thiago Braga.”

“No shit. I can read his ID just fine.” She narrows her eyes at me. “Who is he to you? He’s the guy from the cemetery. I know that much. I didn’t ask that day because, well…that day sucked. Then I forgot.” She pauses, studying me. “And do I really have to drag information out of you? I haven’t been gone that long. You hate me or something?”

That gets my attention enough to pull my eyes away from the screen.

I sink back into the chair with a sigh, because she’s right. Distance and time will never dull what we have, but things have changed. If she still lived here, Val would’ve known every detail by now, from the night Thiago and I met to why he showed up at the cemetery and to every scathing word we’ve exchanged in between.

“I met him one night when my car left me stranded on the side of the road. He seemed cool, and...” I hesitate, already regretting what I’m about to admit. “We might’ve kissed once.”

Her eyes widen. “You kissed him?”

“Can you not look so excited about it?” I point to the monitor. “He lied to me, Val. He made it seem like he was someone else, and then I found out he’s a cop.”

She keeps staring at me like she’s waiting for the part that explains why I’m sitting here watching him. Apparently, the cop thing isn’t enough for her.

“Look, no offense. You know Aunt Eva is like another mother to me, but that’s not my story. I’d never risk everything, everyone, for a man.”

Val nods slowly, her lips pressing together. “Okay, fair enough. So why are you sitting here watching him?”

“Because shit got complicated.” I glance back at the monitor. “He’s the one who saved Zara.”

Understanding replaces the skepticism on her face. “Okay, yeah. That complicates things.”

“Exactly.” I reach into the drawer and pull out a lollipop. “And I can’t prove it, but I feel like he’s low-key stalking me.”

Valentina turns back to the monitor and zooms in on Thiago as he absolutely shreds through a rifle course.

“Stalking, as in, he’s interested, or the creepy kind?”

“When is stalking not the creepy kind?” I scoff. “This isn’t some smutty book, Val. If a man keeps conveniently showing up everywhere you are, that shit isn’t cute.”

She snorts. “Okay, first of all, relax. He booked a training session at your range. He didn’t build a shrine for your bathwater.”

“First, the side of the road, then Sloane’s, the gym, the cemetery, and now he magically ends up here again with his entire team?” I point the lollipop at the screen. “That’s a lot of coincidences.”

“You own a gun range, Remi. And you just said he’s a cop.”

“Whose side are you on?”

“Yours.” She laughs. “I’m just saying this one actually makes sense.”

I narrow my eyes at the monitor, watching Thiago finish the course before stepping aside.

“And why is he standing like that?”

Valentina blinks. “Standing...how?”