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“You know that idea I had percolating in my brain?” Abe hesitantly started. “You think Trent would be up for giving us a hand?”
Dom’s hand stopped in midair as he was about to place the last bite of sandwich into his open mouth. Muscles tensed for a second before Dom lowered his hand and looked at him. “Actor Trent?”
“Yes.”
“Is your idea crazy and dangerous?”
“Yes.”
Dom stared at him for a second before nodding, his face breaking out in a wide grin. “Then yes, I think he would. He seemed a little jealous of my effective defenestration of his stalker and is looking for a little real-life action.”
Abe looked down at the last couple of bites of his sandwich, no longer feeling quite so hungry. “Don’t worry. I think my idea is gonna have plenty of action.”Chapter SixteenAbe wanted to smack himself as he walked through Washington Park in the waning sunlight three days later. The film crew that had set up in the park the previous week was now gone, and the green space was largely back to its usual beauty. There were a few families crossing the area, but it was mostly adults strolling through, on their way to the restaurants and bars that filled Over-the-Rhine. His pulse was racing, and a cold sweat had broken out across his arms as he slowed his pace the closer he got to the chosen meeting spot.
After leaving Dom at Royce’s, he’d stopped by his house and quickly changed clothes before driving to downtown Cincinnati. The entire time, he had at least one person from Ward Security murmuring in his ear. By the time he left his house, he’d picked up a tail. It wasn’t the same car he’d spotted the one day he’d met Shane and Quinn for lunch. This was an SUV with the windows tinted so dark he couldn’t see the occupants. He didn’t know if James was in that SUV, but he was counting on the fact that James knew exactly where to find him now.
“Abe! Hey Abe!” called a voice that was so close to being Dom’s. Close, but the difference was like needles in his ears. That voice was a little rougher, a little sharper in its edge. It didn’t carry the love he could feel emanating from Dom, and it was all he could do not to flinch.
“That is not me, sexy,” Dom whispered to him through the tiny earwig buried deep in his ear canal. He wanted to reassure Dom that he wasn’t fooled. That the voice would never fool him, but he couldn’t risk it. Instead, he plastered a smile on his face and turned toward the man who had Dom’s face.
“There you are!” he called back, throwing his hands up. “I was beginning to think you’d forgotten.” As James approached, he noted a little hitch in his step as if he was slightly thrown by Abe’s words, but it never showed on his face.
As much as it killed him, Abe had to admit that there was a startling similarity between Dom and James. They had the same build, the same walk, the same wide grin, but the most glaring difference was in their eyes. They might have the same shade of green, but there was nothing warm and gentle in James’s eyes. Only malice and cold calculation. This man he would never mistake for Dom, but for the next hour, he had to pretend if he was ever going to save Dom’s life and possibly even his own.
“Sorry, Abe. Traffic was worse than I’d expected,” James said with a little shrug. “Unfortunately, I just got a call from the office.”
“Rowe?”
“Yeah, um…I need to head in to help with something, and I was wondering if you’d come with me and then we could go out.”
“But—”
James’s hand clamped down on Abe’s upper arm as he started to argue. The man leaned forward for a kiss, and Abe fought not to clench up. He had to act natural. If he didn’t kiss James, then the man would know that he was faking. He could do this for Dom.
Just before James’s lips reached his, a blessedly familiar voice cried out.
“Dom! Abe!”
Abe’s head snapped up to see Trent briskly walking across the park toward them. He was dressed in a pair of dark jeans that nicely accentuated his powerful legs and a loose shirt. A ballcap was pulled low and a pair of dark sunglasses helped to hide his face. The damn actor had absolutely perfect timing.
“Hey!” Abe said, catching himself before he could shout out Trent’s name. They were still in a very public place, and they couldn’t risk drawing a mob of fans to the man. But the sudden distraction was enough for James to loosen his hold on Abe’s arm, so he could pull away.
“Are you guys ready for a great dinner and a little dancing?” Trent asked when he was standing next to Abe. Trent pulled off his sunglasses, giving James a good view of his face.
