She took a deep breath and checked for any reaction to the move that blindsided him. Unsurprisingly, he showed no reaction at all. Just stood there calmly, staring back at her with that sexy, brooding charm.
“Rocco … say something,” Jemma pressed. She needed to know he was okay with this approach. While it was a good option, it wasn’t the only one. Jemma was prepared to return to the team if Rocco wasn’t on board.
He dropped his medical bag onto the chair closest to the door and walked toward her. His tongue swiped over his bottom lip, sending a tingle through her body. She sucked in a breath.
“I’m happy you’re here,” Rocco said.
“You are?”
“I can see the benefits of the arrangement,” Rocco said, passing her. She followed his movements to the bar overlooking his kitchen, where a half dozen bottles of rum were arranged near the wall. He studied them, grabbed a short bottle, and poured the dark liquid into a glass. “Want a drink?”
The last thing she needed was alcohol blurring her defenses against this man. Better to stay sober. “No, thank you.”
Rocco sat on the couch with his drink. Jemma joined him on the opposite end, careful to keep as much space between them as possible.
“I got interesting information about Eddie tonight from Dante,” Rocco said.
“El Sombro’s enforcer? Are you sure he can be trusted?” Jemma asked, unease snaking through her. Dante had sent his contingent of bodyguards to be trained by Nomar. He and his team were in the grainy videos, learning to be merciless killers from the man she’d vowed to take down.
“Yes, he can be trusted. He doesn’t reveal much, but when he does, it’s sound information,” Rocco said, easing back onto the cushions and shifting to face her.
Jemma mirrored his movement, feeling like a wife listening to her husband recap his day at work. “What did he have to say?”
“He doesn’t trust Eddie, which isn’t surprising. Dante doesn’t trust anyone.”
“He trusts you.”
“Only because he doesn’t see me as a threat. I’m a doctor and an outsider to the cartel world in his mind. Like part of a parallel universe that doesn’t intersect with theirs.”
“Which you can use to your advantage.”
Rocco tipped his head toward her, then took a long sip of rum. “Dante said Eddie has connections that don’t make sense based on the small size of his drug operations in Puerto Rico. Connections that El Sombro wants.”
Jemma sat forward, intrigued. “What connections could Eddie have that El Sombro couldn’t get? That’s an odd comment.”
“I thought so as well. Vance implied that Eddie was in town because of the shipments they want to run through the clinic, but I’m wondering if there’s a bigger reason for his involvement.”
“Tank has amassed a lot of intel on Eddie. His operations aregrowing, but he needs to establish more reliable partners within the South American cartels and with El Sombro for transportation if he wants to gobble up more territory in San Juan. It makes sense that he’d want to help make the transportation hub at the clinic a success. It also makes sense that he wouldn’t register on El Sombro’s radar unless he had something important to offer in return.”
“And it’s my job to find out what that is,” Rocco said.
“You should reach out to your old friend. Reconnect and let him know that you’re not going to make trouble for him,” Jemma said, the strategy forming in her mind. “Don’t push him, though. Be subtle and let him come to you for help. We’ve played the long game this whole time, and it’s worked. We need to do the same with Eddie.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” Rocco said, then slid his cell phone from his pocket. “I’ll text the last number I had for him and see if I get a response.”
As Rocco typed on the device, Jemma said, “It feels weird for you to agree with me. Seems like we were always on opposite sides of approach years ago.”
“I’ve changed some since then, and so have you,” Rocco said without looking at her.
“You think I’ve changed? How?” She asked, curiosity getting the better of her.
“You take more risks now than you did back then.” Rocco tossed his phone onto the coffee table, then finished the rum in his glass.
“I wouldn’t say that.”
“I would,” Rocco said. “I warned you not to tempt me, yet here you are with a new arrangement that is the ultimate temptation. Pushing me when you and I both know that’s not a good idea.”
“I think we both understand the risks and will govern ourselves accordingly.”
