Page 145 of Summer Heat
Maybe her opinion of Sugar was a tad too harsh, and Nicola did like that Girls Like Guns shirt. The way it was poured over Sugar, Nicola bet Cash and every man in the room liked it too. Well, except for Jared. He’d need a two-by-four to the brain to notice anyone but himself.
Jared droned on about tactical this and strategic that, all very important. Too bad she wasn’t listening.
“Princess.” Jared’s raspy voice pulled her from her pity party of one.
“Hmm?”
“You and me and Cash. Dining room. Now.”
Great. Where was Cash anyway? Chasing after his Sugar? What the eff? It didn’t matter. They were on two completely different paths. How had she not noticed that? Here she was, choking up over nostalgic thoughts from last night. And there he was, searching out a woman made for fantasies, who threw herself at his boots. Ugh.
Sugar could have him. Nicola knew better. Her job was her life. One game was enough. No need to play two at a time, and Cash was the player king, just like Rocco had said. Freakin’ awesome. She’d either misread Cash, or maybe hoped she hadn’t heard the truth.
“Princess, move your caboose,” Jared called from the hallway.
Yeah, yeah. Coming. She followed his steps to the dining room, strangling both her hands around her coffee cup. No one would notice that they shook if she didn’t let go. Her adrenaline after the quick-flash Sugar-showdown needed to wear off.
Cash stepped over the threshold. Sapphire eyes caressed her, and she vividly remembered clinging to him last night. The memory made her ache.
“Nic, I need to talk to you for a sec—”
“No, you don’t.” Jared put his box marked EXPLOSIVES on the fancy dining room table and pulled a switchblade from his waist. “My time, my agenda. And your mamsy-pansy baloney concerns come later.”
For the first time, Nicola was glad for Jared’s interruptions. She had no interest in hearing the whos and whys and hows of Sugar and Cash. Even if Cash hadn’t known that Nicola was alive, he could at least have the decency to knock boots with someone a little less vamp-on-display. Though her belt buckle was kinda awesome. I wonder where she found that thing. Whatever. Sugar and her glammed-up face, super fun shirt, and awesome belt buckle could go somewhere else.
Jared pulled out the brick of ammo and put it on the delicate lace tablecloth. He took out another box. What the—?
“Jared. Stop. Right now.” She moved fast, almost dropping her coffee mug and pushing the man over.
“Princess, what the hell?”
Nicola picked up the box, examined it, then unpacked each small box from the larger one.
Jared tried to take the one in her hands. “Get off my—”
“Jared, shut up.” If this hadn’t been a big what-the-hell moment, she might’ve looked up to see how Twinkle Toes reacted to such an order. But nope. She was dizzy with questions.
She popped open the box top and rolled out the large round. Blue tipped with a fleck of red. Incendiary and armor piercing, just as requested. Matching the mark on the boxes, there were the micro-engraved letters ‘AS’ on the bottom of the round.
That egocentric jerk.
“Where did—” Nicola smirked “—Sugar get this?”
Jared made a move for the ammo again. “I don’t ask questions. I didn’t even call her.”
Cash spoke up. “Winters called her.”
She pointed to the base of the round, ignored Cash, and handed the bullet to Jared. “AS. Antilla Smooth. This is his product. He likes to use his initials for his watermark. Your girl buys from a nasty, illegal arms dealer.”
“She’s legit.” Cash stepped forward to defend that woman.
Freakin’ awesome. “Yeah, she totally looks it.”
Jared nudged Cash back. “I’m not going to separate you two, and you’re still working together. So deal. Now.”
They both murmured about nothing to get over. The tension in this room would choke a horse.
Jared gathered the small boxes and dumped them into the bigger one. “I have to roll out. What’s here is here. I suggest the two of you find some way to work together with your clothes on, and move forward on the butler. Do your jobs.”
