“Where?”
“The same place you found it.” Her dark brown eyes flicker with a challenge, a spark of the fire that used to scare me but that I’ve recently found attractive—which scares me too. “May I have it back?”
There’s a wobble to her voice, and as much as I want to use the ring to my advantage, I can’t. I know how much it means to her, but that doesn’t mean I won’t push. There’s too much at stake.
“On one condition.”
She exhales sharply. “What?”
“Answer three questions.”
On the street, a parade marches past, filling the café with music. Customers clap and sing in Italian, but all I can focus on is Cybil—on how she keeps sneaking glances at the door like she’s ready to bolt.
“Three questions,” I repeat when the noise quiets.
She crosses her arms. “Fine.”
“First—do you have a thing for dentists?”
Cybil’s forehead creases. “What?”
“Yes or no?”
“Are you considering a career change?”
“Maybe.”
She rolls her eyes. “No, I don’t have a thing for dentists.”
“What were you doing in Ramirez’s office?”
She doesn’t answer right away. And that tells me everything.
“I was there for a meeting with Mr. Edmond and Mr. Ramirez. I must’ve dropped the ring then.” She lifts her chin.
If she’s telling the truth, why wouldn’t she go back for the ring immediately? Why leave it there? Because she’s lying. The frustration returns. If she’s covering for her boss, she has no idea what kind of danger she’s in.
“And the cat?”
Her brow furrows.
“You said you climbed out on a ledge to rescue a cat.”
“Oh. The cat.” Her tone is about as convincing as a toddler with frosting on their face saying they didn’t eat the cake. “It was cute.”
“You don’t like cats.”
“I’m evolving.”
“But you got distracted by a cat on the ledge.”
She glares at me, but before she answers, her attention snags on something over my shoulder. When I go to look back, she speaks up. “Why does that bother you so much?”
My jaw clenches. “Are you serious, Cybil? You could’ve fallen and broken something—or worse.” My voice is sharper than I intend, frustration bleeding through. “And I don’t believe for one second that you’d risk your life for a cat.” I hold up her father’s ring. “But for this? I’d believe that.”
Her eyes flick to the ring and then back to my face. “So what if I did? What business is it of yours if I went back to find my father’s ring?”
My stomach tightens. Cybil has no idea that her being here—working for Earl Edmond, who’s tangled up with Lorenzo Ramirez—is very much my business. But I can’t tell her that. I can’t tell her anything.
