Passing His Guard

“Is that what you did?”

Those arresting eyes locked on her, making her pulse jump. The blood in her veins heated until she wanted to squirm in her seat under the intensity of his stare. She hated the way her body responded to him. With just a look, he turned her mind to mush and dissolved her will. Despite her claim to forget what happened between them, she knew in her heart that was nothing more than wishful thinking.

“Excuse me?”

“When you practiced law, which side of justice were you on?” She was baiting him, desperately searching for more reasons not to like this man, to think less of him. Unfortunately, she feared his answer would do little to dissuade her heart either way. In the rather small amount of time they’d spent together, she found herself liking him far too much. She liked the white-collar/blue-collar contradictions in him. He was intimidatingly intelligent, yet he spoke with the uncouth vernacular of a hard-knocks fighter. She admired the strength and courage it must have taken him to walk away from an inheritance worth millions of dollars and to forge his way in an industry that chewed up lesser men and spit them out. On the outside he appeared to be nothing more than Disco Stick Kruze, but in her heart, she knew there was so much more. There was a depth to this man that he worked hard at not letting other people see.

“Whichever side they paid me to be on. I told you I was a good attorney, Rya

His gaze swept over her, lingering in all the places that made her blood heat, her skin tingle with anticipation. How could just a look make her hot and achy? But it wasn’t just any look. It was Aiden with those u

“What about you?” he challenged. “What makes a half pint of a woman think it’d be a wise decision to become a private investigator?”

His jab hit closer to home than he ever could have known. If she continued to verbally spar with this fighter, she wasn’t going to walk away unscathed. She hesitated a moment, not sure how much she wanted to tell him, especially here. Instead, she shrugged. “My father was a PI, and I followed in his footsteps.”

In typical lawyer fashion, Aiden latched onto that one word and began his cross examination. “ ‘Was’?” His countenance turned serious and he straightened in the chair, abandoning his lazy sprawl. That too-perceptive stare locked on her, refusing to give her quarter. She immediately regretted telling him even this much. Dear God, she didn’t want to do this here, and she didn’t think she could talk about her dad and keep her emotions in check.

“Gads, you’re such a lawyer,” she mocked, trying to turn the conversation back on him, but he wouldn’t be deterred.

“You didn’t answer my question,” he pressed.

It might just be easier to tell him. Maybe then he’d understand why she didn’t want to talk about it. Deadpa

Aiden bit out a ripe curse that held more emotion than her own voice. “Jesus, I’m sorry.”

And he sincerely meant it. He turned toward her and took her hand in both of his. His grip was firm, more comforting than she wanted to admit. What would it be like to have a man like this in her corner? she wondered. From what Rya

She cleared her throat and pulled her hand away from his. Not because she didn’t want his touch or like the feeling of his hands on her—but because she liked it too much. He was hell on her defenses, and she was trying like crazy to keep a guard around her heart.

“What about your mother?”

“My mother died seven years ago. Which is exactly how long it took for my dad to ruin his life.”

The last part of her confession tumbled out before she could bite it back. Those u

“I’m very sorry, Rya

“Cancer. It devastated my dad. He took her to all the specialists he could find. And then the hospital bills began rolling in and he had to start taking a lot of extra cases to pay them. I tried to help him, but he wouldn’t let me. Said he didn’t want me involved. My mother was a strong woman. She fought so hard. But slowly the cancer began to win. In the end . . .” She couldn’t continue. The emotions were still too raw, the memories too fresh—even after all these years. Some wounds never fully healed.

Aiden muttered a curse under his breath. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that. Do you have any other family? Any siblings?”

She shook her head. “There’s no one. I’m an only child.”

“Me, too.”

His confession surprised her, though not as much as what he said next.

“I was always kinda grateful for that. I wouldn’t wish my parents on my worst enemy, let alone a brother or sister.” But he wouldn’t let the conversation remain on him, revealing just enough information about himself to make her want to open up. “How did your father die?”

“Officially? Hit-and-run. But he was murdered.”

Aiden’s brows pinched into a scowl. “Do you have any idea who did it? Have you gone to the police?”

“Yes and yes. I’ve been investigating it myself since the police determined it was a hit-and-run. There were no witnesses, at least no one that will talk, so I can’t prove who did it and the police aren’t interested in solving the case.”

“Why the hell not?” he demanded, championing her cause and making her heart melt into a puddle on the floor.

“Because they’re paid not to. Vincent Moralli is untouchable.”

Aiden muttered a foul curse, the furrow of his brow taking up a full-on scowl. “Vincent Moralli? Rya

“How do you know Vincent Moralli?”

“Who do you think kept him out of prison all these years?”

She flinched as if he’d struck her, no longer able to maintain the visage of impassivity. “You work for Moralli?” With each word, her voice hit a new octave. He winced.

“Worked,” he clarified. “Moralli is the largest client at my father’s firm.”

What were the odds of that man being the common denominator between them? Rya

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Ms. Andrews, Mr. Kruze.” The officer acknowledged Aiden with a nod but only briefly made eye contact. He was clearly uncomfortable around Aiden. Whether it was remorse over his less than gentle treatment of him, or fear that Aiden would use his influence to make trouble for him, she didn’t know. “We’ll be taking your statements separately. Ms. Andrews, if you’ll please come with me.”

Separately? A moment of alarm sent Rya

The cop nodded and stepped back in the examination room. “Whenever you’re ready.”

Once they were alone again, Aiden grasped her shoulders and turned her to face him. “Are you all right? Rya

“You can’t tell them,” she pleaded, no longer caring to disguise the desperation in her voice.