Passing His Guard

“The only problem I have,” Del Toro growled, “is seeing how fucking miserable that woman is, worrying about you while you’re MIA. I’m sick of her asking me if I know what’s going on with you, or why you’re avoiding her. Which I don’t and you obviously are.” He shoved Aiden a step back. “Or is this not a strip club I just found you getting lit at while Rya

“Fuck, is she really crying?” The power of Nikko’s words hit him in the gut like a sucker punch. He exhaled a defeated sigh and dragged his hand through his hair as he dropped back in his chair. “God, I’m going to lose her,” he muttered to himself, pressing the heels of his hands into his eyes until spots dotted his vision.

Seconds passed while Del Toro stared at him as if trying to puzzle out what he’d just said, then chuffed a masculine snort. “What the fuck are you talking about, man? That girl is crazy about you.”

“I’ve been lying to her. And when she finds out the truth . . .”

Nikko’s steely glare darkened. “What are you lying to her about?”

Fuck it, he might as well practice the truth on his friend. If he couldn’t say it to him, how in the hell was he going to tell Rya

“Ho-ly shit . . .”

Del Toro stared at him like the universe had just imploded. Well, Aiden’s was certainly on the cusp of doing just that, because Rya

“Oh, fuck . . .”

“Yeah, that pretty much sums it up. Not terribly helpful, though, but thanks for that.”

“Why? Why would a senator want to risk being caught for murder?”

“Rya

“This is crazy.”

“Tell me about it.”

“How long have you known?”

“I’ve suspected it for a few days. I hoped I was wrong, but when I confronted my dad about it, the bastard didn’t even try to deny it.”

“Oh, wow, man, this is really bad. Poor Rya

Aiden shot him an irritated scowl. “You think?”

Del Toro’s glare darkened, reminding him of a CFA weigh-in. That protective glint was back in his eyes, sparking Aiden’s already raw nerves.

“You want to know what I think?”

Suddenly Aiden wasn’t so sure that he did, but by the determined glare in Nikko’s eyes, the option was no

“I think you’d better tell her before she finds out some other way. She’s not stupid, Disco, and sooner or later she’s going to figure it out. Maybe you’re not giving her enough credit. You didn’t kill her dad, and it’s not like your parents are Ward and June Cleaver. Sure, she’s going to be upset at first, but I don’t think she’s going to leave you. Not if you’re up front with her. But if you lie to her about this, if you break her trust . . . you will lose her.”

If only it was that simple. In telling Rya

Having Nikko gone gave Rya

And if her doubts weren’t bad enough, Nikko’s behavior tonight further confirmed that something was definitely wrong. He might think he was hiding his emotions from her, and generally he was pretty stellar at it, but not today. He was being . . . nice. Which could only mean one thing: Nikko pitied her. He knew something he wasn’t telling her. Call her paranoid, and maybe she was, but her gut was seldom wrong about these things, and the knot in the pit of her stomach was telling her something was going on.

Now that she was finally alone, she took another pass through the living room before heading into the kitchen to uncork a bottle of Moscato. Maybe a hot, soapy bath would help unwind her nerves. She carried her glass of wine into the bathroom and set it on the tile rim of the Jacuzzi. She was about to turn on the faucet when she heard her phone ring in the other room. Her pulse quickened and hope fluttered alive in her chest as she rushed to answer the call before it rolled over to voice mail. Maybe it was Aiden calling to let her know he was all right. As she checked the caller ID, her hope was quickly replaced by dread, and the sinking feeling in her gut made her nauseous. When would this be over? When would that bastard finally get what was coming to him? Knowing from experience it would do her no good to ignore the call, Rya

“Hello.”

“Good evening, Rya

She recognized the voice, but it wasn’t Luciana’s gravelly baritone like she’d been expecting. No, this voice was smoother, more aristocratically arrogant . . . “Mr. Moralli . . . What do you want?”

His insidious chuckle made the fine hairs on the back of her neck prickle. Until meeting Vincent Moralli, Rya

“I want you to come work for me.”

What!? He was out of his freaking mind if he thought Rya

There was a long pause.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Rya

“Wow . . . you almost sound convincing. Next, I suppose you’re also going to tell me you didn’t have my father killed.”

“I didn’t.”

There was no denying the voice of truth this time. Rya

“Axel Andrews was my employee, Rya

She didn’t want to believe him, but his logic made sense. If Vincent Moralli was telling the truth, that would mean he didn’t know about her father’s hit list, which would mean he didn’t know about the flash drive, so he couldn’t have killed Henry. Had she been chasing after the wrong killer all this time? Sure Moralli was guilty of many crimes, and no question he was a very dangerous man. Hell, he was using her to threaten Aiden and forcing him to fight. “If you didn’t do it, then tell me who did.”