Page 31 of Dark Alliance
She huffs and looks back at me, a mean little sneer on her lips. “What’s wrong, Connor? Am I going to hurt your feelings?”
I might appreciate her wit, but fuck, she’s so stubborn and annoying. I’m trying to form a connection here, and what matters more than how I went about it is that we both have a mind—the same mind—for business. How can she not see that we should unite forces?
“All I did was try to form an alliance to stop the Riccis from getting swallowed by Russian parasites, and you all but walked me into a slaughterhouse.” I can pout with the best of them, so I stick out my bottom lip and make puppy eyes.
Cat’s not impressed. “I don’t know what your angle is, but your actions aren’t altruistic, so cut the crap. You think I’m supposed to trust you after that one-man Dane Ryder show? After you catfished me to get me in bed?”
Now, now, let’s not get confused. I smirk. “That’s not what catfishing means. You saw my face, and you touched my body. I had my dick?—”
“Shut up!” She smacks me on the arm.
Belinski’s head swivels in the direction of the Mustang.
I grab Cat and haul her closer. “Calm down.” I breathe the order into her ear while inhaling the cherry fragrance of her hair. “You’re going to get us caught.”
She exhales audibly and nods.
I plow ahead. “We agree on teaming up with your family to fix things. So don’t lie to me again. Okay?” My breath rustles her hair. “It really pisses me off.”
She averts her eyes. “I won’t lie if you won’t, asshole.”
I guess I’ll take that for now.
She breaks free from me and crawls to the edge of the bumper to spy on Nino and Belinski from the other end of the Mustang.
Damn, her fine ass is right in front of me. My hand twitches, and I fight the urge to slap her.
That’d probably get us both killed, and if not, she’d definitely strangle me.
“Those two are plotting to take you out.” She glances back at me, the gold in her eyes sparkling in the early evening sun. “Nino doesn’t see the laundromat as an ambush gone wrong. He’s weaving a different version of the story for Belinski.”
I’ll get to that gorilla of a brother in a minute. First, though, I’ve got more important things to discuss. “Did you like my note?” I slide my palm over her spine, the next-best thing to her ass. “I figured I should leave you a message, since that’s apparently all I’m good for.”
She whips around. “Your message just pissed them all off more, even if they didn’t know what it meant. You know the kind of strings I’m going to have to pull to untie this clusterfuck of a knot?”
I brace my hip on the Mustang’s bumper. “I can’t imagine any. I mean, you’re hiding behind a hunk of junk like I am right now, spying on your own brother. If you had any sway, you’d be in that pole barn with them.”
“I might be if you’d leave me the hell alone and let me work, but you’re an out-of-control wildfire. You’re fucking everywhere!” Her voice starts to rise again.
I grab her lapel and yank. Mostly to shut her up. “Or maybe you are.”
Yes. Cat’s the one who’s everywhere.
The solution to Finn’s Blue Hook Port attacks sits on her knees directly in front of me.
But how do I convince her that working together is the best path forward? Which new angle do I use?
“It’s a shame they don’t take you seriously. Your family.” I skim my hand down her jacket and over her breasts. “They don’t even let you speak at a meeting.” Flattery, though not a lie. They’re wasting her, and that’s a damn shame.
She tenses, her face red, her jaw clenched. “Let go of me.”
When I do, she tries to flee, knocking me temporarily on my ass. But her coat hooks on the bumper, and she falls back with an involuntary cry.
I immediately put my hand over her mouth. “Shh!”
While I’d love to sink a knife into Belinski and twist the blade, I’m not in the mood to kill Nino. Especially when offing him would screw up my plan.
In her struggles to free herself, Cat manages to elbow me in the ribs a couple times. In response, I wrap my free arm around her waist, trapping her in the process.
