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“And you don’t know who he is?”
He shakes his head. “Or who he works for.”
I finish my espresso and stand.
He stands too.
“I don’t want you to lie to me again, Rafa. You know I consider you a brother.”
“I know, Stefan. And I feel the same way about you. You are a brother to me.”
We stand like that for a minute and I study him.
“We good?” he asks.
“Yeah. We’re good.” I check my watch.
“How is she?”
“She’s okay. She’s tough.” I wonder how she’s going to like what I have to tell her today. “Did you put anything other than the tracker on the new phone?” I ask. Rafa was the one who set up Gabriela’s cell phone both times.
“Like what?” he asks. “Man, I’m starting to think she’s right.”
“Right about what?” I ask, noting the change of subject.
“She thinks you’re jealous of me.”
“Yeah, Gabriela likes to fuck with me.” The word fuck and Gabriela in the same sentence makes my cock stir.
“I just loaded the tracker on the phone like you wanted,” he says. “I’m going to see Clara later, by the way,” Rafa says. “Thought I’d go take her out before she loses her mind.”
I chuckle. “She bored?” Clara likes to party and she and Rafa have a lot of fun together.
He rolls his eyes. “You’d think it was the end of the world.”
“I can move her to Rome. She wanted to be closer by.”
“I’ll talk to her. Why don’t you come with me? Like old times. I miss those days.” It used to be the three of us having fun together, but I don’t feel like it anymore.
“I’ve got too much going on here. Next time.”
Rafa grins, one eye narrowing. “You like her.”
“What?”
“Gabriela.”
I just look at him.
“I saw how you looked at her at the well, Stefan. I’m not fucking blind. And if a woman looked at me the way she looks at you, hell, I’d stay home too.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Rafa.”
“Just take care you don’t like her too much. Makes her a weakness. You don’t want to make a target out of her again. Your enemies will pounce when they see it.”
I don’t like his tone.
“Relax, man. I’m messing with you,” he says when I don’t reply.
I don’t relax. “Tell Clara I said hello.” I walk to the door.
“Will do. You alone?” he asks when I’m outside.
I nod.
“Don’t do that, man. You know it’s not safe.”
“I’m just visiting my cousin. Why wouldn’t I be safe?”
“There are eyes and ears everywhere. Just be fucking careful.”
Something about all that bugs me the whole way home but when I get back and Millie tells me that one of my attorneys, Paulo Alessi, is here and waiting out on the patio, I put it out of my mind.
I walk out there to find him sitting with Gabriela. She’s in a bikini, the little pink one. Too little.
He’s laughing at something she says but stops and clears his throat nervously when he sees me. I move to stand behind her chair, putting both hands on her shoulders just to be sure everyone’s clear where we stand and to whom she belongs.
“Stefan,” he says, shifting his gaze quickly from Gabriela as he stands and extends his hand. “I got here early, and Gabriela was kind enough to keep me company.”
I take a moment before I shake his hand. “I’m late. Thought I had more time. Ready to get started?”
“Of course,” he says, picking up his briefcase.
“Nice to meet you, Paulo,” Gabriela says, standing now that I’ve removed my hands from her shoulders. She extends her hand to him.
He looks at it, then at me, doing anything and everything to not appear to be looking at her in her too little bikini.
I give the briefest nod from behind her.
“Nice to meet you,” he says with a quick shake of her hand.
“Millie,” I call out as she’s passing. “Show Paulo into my study.”
“Of course,” she says, and he follows her.
I look down at Gabriela’s ass clad in a skimpy triangle of cloth and step closer to her to cup one cheek.
“I don’t want you wearing these when I’m not around.” I squeeze, inhale the scent of sunscreen at her neck. She smells like summer. Like sunshine.
She turns her face a little. “I thought you liked me sitting by the pool,” she says, her tone seductive, like she knew what she was doing.
I give her ass a quick little smack that makes her jump.
“Hey.”
“You’re mine. You only wear these around me. Have Millie help you pick out some more modest suits.”
She rolls her eyes. “You bought them for me, remember?”
“Put something else on until I’m finished and wait for me upstairs. Then I’ll strip you naked and we’ll get back to what we were doing earlier.”
“Jealous much?” she mutters as she walks away.
I grab her ponytail and tug her backward. “Like getting your ass spanked much?”
