Page 86 of Cozen

Which he did.

Sort of.

“You owe me,” the man told him as he parked the car in the estate’s driveway.

Sargon was only half listening. “Mmm.”

He was too busy watching the driver of the limo get out, and move around the back to open the passenger door. Jett exited first, and then Cozen soon followed. Helped by the hand Jett held out to her.

“Did you fucking hear me?”

What was the man’s name again?

Brad.

Ben.

Barker.

Something that started with a B, anyway.

“Yeah, yeah,” Sargon said, waving a hand at the guy. “Owe you, and all that good shit.”

A couple of hours, and Sargon would be fine. He would sober up, and get back to his usual self. Not any worse for wear, either.

The whiskey hadn’t helped, though.

Not like he hoped it would.

Sargon exited the car just as Cozen and Jett stood to chat beside the limo. He leaned against the car, and pulled out a pack of smokes to light one up. This job was bad for his health—he was smoking far more than he ever had before.

The voices of the two across the way carried to him with the light May breeze. He could have done without hearing more of their conversation. He didn’t like the way Jett spoke to Cozen in a familiar way, and he couldn’t possibly like how she fed into it, either.

“You couldn’t find something to replace this with?” Jett asked. “The jeweler didn’t have anything that caught your eye?”

As he asked, he fingered the golden band tight around Cozen’s thumb. She quickly pulled her hand back, but offered a brilliant smile that would distract any man.

As long as it wasn’t Sargon …

He was catching on to this woman’s tricks.

“I don’t like to take it off,” she said. “I’ve worn it for so long now.”

“I see.” Jett gestured at the house, saying, “Guests are waiting. Care to join me?”

Like she could say no?

Cozen didn’t refuse.

Sargon wished he had more whiskey.

“You moved from California to New York?” the blonde asked.

Cozen had not listened well enough to remember the woman’s name when she was introduced to her an hour ago. She was regretting that now, considering she had been left alone with the chick to chat. “I did, yes.”

“God, why?”

“To do something different,” Cozen replied.