Page 29 of Reckless Seduction
“His crooked snout won’t be easy to cover,” Ava teases. Kiernan lifts his gaze to glare at her. “But a little concealer will cover up his bruising.”
“I won’t be wearing any of that girly shite.”
Down girl.
Damn, he is even hotter when he is mad. The slight deepening of his native accent has my body shivering and my thighs clamping together beneath the table. Who knew I had a thing for accents?
“Actors wear it all the time.”
“Do I look like a fucking actor to you?”
“Of course not,” Ava admits. Kiernan shoots her a smug smile. “Actors are way better looking than your ugly mug.”
His smug smile drops like a bomb.
Biting my lip, I do my best to hold back the laughter, hoping neither twin will notice with their attention fixed on their sister. Kiernan’s large hand squeezes my thigh under the table, telling me he didn’t miss it.
“Enough, you three.”
“Three?” Seamus’s eyes widen at his father in mock disbelief. “What did I do? I am literally just sitting here.”
“Reason enough.” Liam winks at his son. “Now, let’s get down to business.”
“To defeat the Huns…” Seamus finishes in song. Everyone at the table shakes with laughter, including me.
“The lord gave me idiots for sons.” Liam shakes his head.
“We don’t need them both at the gala anymore,” Ava speaks up, graciously accepting a cup of coffee from one of the attendants.
“Would you like a cup of coffee, Bailey?” Ava asks, her brilliant green eyes finding mine.
“Yes, please.” I smile at her gratefully. The attendant nods at me before taking my empty plate and retreating to the kitchen.
“They make the best coffee here.” Ava smiles. “Nan says they get their coffee from a small farm in Guatemala that hand-picks their beans to make sure they roast just right.”
“Our sister is a coffee nut.”
Ava shrugs. “Just a little. But what I am really into is information. And you, Bailey, have all the information we need. Don’t you?” The sweet smile she’s adorned throughout lunch drops faster than a guillotine. In its place stands the smile of a shark that smells blood in the water. My blood.
“I don’t understand.” I glance from one twin to the other, eyes wide, but they give nothing away. Their faces are nothing more than stoic masks, unrelenting.
“Why are you so interested in interviewing the women at the port?” Ava graciously accepts her coffee mug from the returning attendant, pressing it tightly between both of her hands. The look in her eyes is calculating and cold. A far cry from the jovial, carefree woman who had been there just moments ago.
“Who wouldn’t want a scoop like that?” A shrug of my shoulders conveys an insouciance I don’t feel. “That was one of the biggest human trafficking busts in years.”
Ava huffs mirthlessly, her head shaking slightly as she continues to eye me from across the table.
“I don’t believe that.”
“Believe what you want.” I frown, no doubt giving away my air of nonchalance.
Tension in the room is strung tight, and I am walking a thin rope above a pool of hungry, hungry sharks that won’t hesitate to devour me if I give them a chance.
“I think you were looking for someone,” Matthias speaks up. “A Lina Davenport, if I’m not mistaken.”
“Monty has a big fucking mouth,” I growl, wincing slightly when Seamus’s hand tightens on my thigh in warning.
“Watch your language,” he warns. My nostrils flare as I meet his hard stare with one of my own.
