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What was happening right now? Why was this happening? No. I pulled away and tossed the towel onto the counter.

“I guess that’s why Gideon’s the boss, huh?”

Danny chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his neck. “Yeah.”

I didn’t understand why I was having the thoughts I was for my best friend. We’d always been close since the first day we’d worked together. There were some people you’d meet and instantly click with, and that was Danny for me. But never in all the years I’d been by his side had I ever thought about kissing him, and yeah, that was exactly what had passed through my mind.

A sudden pang in my chest throbbed, and I pressed my hand there.

“You okay?” Danny asked.

“Yeah, um, I’m going to use the bathroom.” I didn’t wait to hear what he had to say; I rushed down the hall and shut the door.

I rubbed at the ache and hung my head. “I won’t betray you, Mila,” I whispered. Fuck, my head was so messed up. Sexual thoughts about Danny. I could almost hear Mila’s laugh. Maybe talking to that therapist would be a good idea. I wasn’t gay. I’d never looked at a guy and wanted to bend him over—no, this all had to be some sort of trauma response.

A knock made me jump. “Alex, Gideon wants us,” Danny called.

“Okay, be right there.”

I splashed water on my face, shook off the weird-as-fuck thoughts, and went to hear what Gideon had decided.

I wasn’t sure I was hearing Gideon right. “You’re going to trust him?”

“I didn’t say that. But he has more information than we do, and it could be vital to taking Vladimir down.”

“He could claim to give us info and have us walk right into a trap!” How was he considering any of this?

“Do you think this is my first rodeo, Alex?” Gideon tilted his head and narrowed his eyes.

“He’s not Monica Calvern, Gideon.” Monica Calvern was Benito’s wife…well, widow now. She’d come forward and told the world the abuse she and her kids had endured at his hand, and the confession had been instrumental in him losing his run for governor.

“I’m aware, Alex, and I know that just because someone was mistreated doesn’t mean they automatically want to seek revenge on the ones who have wronged them.”

“Then what, you sift through every little thing he says?”

“Yes,” Gideon answered without hesitation. “I made you a promise that I intend to keep, and if that means keeping Maksim alive long enough to deliver his father to you, I’ll do that.”

“Don’t you think Maksim realizes that once he’s outlasted his usefulness, you’ll kill him?” Danny asked Gideon.

“I think he does, but I also believe he thinks he can convince us otherwise.”

“Alex, no one is asking you to work with him. As a matter of fact, Toni is going to keep an eye on him while he does his nerdy hacker bullshit.” Penn smiled, and Toni shot him the finger.

“Toni?” I quirked a brow. “You’re going to babysit?”

He shrugged. “He’ll be tied up most of the time, and you all are gonna call me to validate pretty much everything he says, anyway. This way we cut out the middleman.”

I hated all of this but as I looked at Gideon’s face, I saw he was willing to do whatever it took to give me what he thought I needed.

“You’re the boss. I’ll trust your judgment.”

“Thank you.” Gideon rose from his chair. “Maksim is sleeping now. Toni will have to go home and get things he needs, and he’ll be back tomorrow. Can you two keep an eye on him tonight?”

I turned to Danny, who nodded. “Sure.”

After Penn and Danny did a quick grocery run, they all left me and Danny to keep an eye on Maksim.

“You can sleep first if you want,” Danny offered.