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“Where are you?”
“Close to my place.”
“Is Julian still with you?”
I smiled at the man in question. “Yes.”
“Are you keeping him?”
I frowned. Did he mean keeping Julian permanently or for the rest of the day? Did it really matter? “Yes.”
“All right then. Meet me at Beau’s.” As soon as he mentioned Corbin’s fiancé’s body shop, I knew exactly what I was going to do after meeting with Dax.
“We’ll be there in about twenty minutes.”
Julian was frowning at me when I hung up.
“Where do you think we’re going? I have to go back to the library.”
“You’re taking the rest of the day off.”
“I told you this morning. I need to work.”
“You told me the meeting with the donor was important. You had that meeting, and Gwen says she’s fine. I’ve got a surprise for you.”
“I don’t—”
“You’re going to like it.”
I paid for our meal, and we hurried back to my place to get Tony. As I expected, he’d had a tantrum. All the pillows were off the couch, and there was a pile of torn up tissues in the middle of the floor. He’d also managed to knock over a jar of shells. After inspecting him to make sure he didn’t have any cuts from the broken glass, I scolded him.
“You really weren’t kidding. He doesn’t like to be left alone. Do you have a crate or something for him?”
“You think he’s mad now? You should see what happens when I put him in his crate, and if I don’t go to extreme measures, he just gets himself out.”
Julian shook his head and laughed loudly.
“What?”
“I’m just thinking how much you deserve each other.”
I huffed. “That’s what my brothers say.”
“They’re right.”
“Tony’s nowhere near as much of an asshole as I am. If only more restaurants and businesses were accommodating to monkeys, I wouldn’t need to leave him.”
“I would think some of them would prefer Tony to a lot of their usual guests. At least he won’t ask for a manager.”
“He would if he could speak English,” I said, lifting the little monkey into my arms. Julian smiled at Tony as he snuggled against me. “He’s charmed you, hasn’t he?”
“Maybe.”
“Come on. Let’s go.”
“Will you at least tell me where we’re going? This is the second time you’ve kidnapped me by the way.”
I scoffed at that. “I’m hardly kidnapping you.”
“Librarian napping, then.”
He was trying to be serious, but I could tell he was fighting a smile. “I’m taking you on a date.”
“You did that. We had a lunch date, but now you refuse to take me back to work.”
“Our date is continuing with something you’ll enjoy.”
“Who are you meeting?” he asked.
“My cousin Dax.”
“The one you left with the guy you tracked down.”
“The very one. I need to debrief with him.” And Julian needed a tour of Beau’s place from Corbin or one of the other mechanics.
“That’s not a very good plan for a date. I may not have a lot of experience, and I may be kind of nerdy, but I’m pretty sure that is not at all romantic.”
I chuckled. “Torture debriefings usually are frowned upon, at least on the first date, but then, I’m not your typical man.”
“So I’ll be waiting for you in the car with Tony?”
“No way. I’m not leaving either of you in the car. Just wait until you see where we’re meeting Dax.”
He huffed. “You’re impossible.”
“That’s what makes me so fun.”
When I pulled through the gates of Beau’s body shop, I glanced over at Julian. His eyes went wide as he looked around.
“Did you bring me here because I told you I like cars?”
“I agreed to meet Dax here because of that. The shop belongs to Corbin’s fiancé. They specialize in vintage and fast cars, and they can give you a hell of a lot of power under the hood if that’s what you’re looking for.”
“Cars I shouldn’t inquire too much about the provenance of?”
I shrugged. “This is pretty much a legal operation.”
“You don’t have to lie to me.”
“Seriously. Beau did some time, and he’s been really careful since. It wasn’t his fault, by the way. He was set up, but the bastard that did that’s long gone.”
Julian didn’t say anything as I drove around to the back. I turned to look at him when I put the car in park. The color had drained from his face. “What’s wrong?”
“You’re a criminal. I’m on a date with a criminal. I’ve been librarian-napped by a criminal.”
I laid my hand over his. “Most people are criminals at least to some extent. I’m just honest about it.”
“Lance, this is—”
I put a finger over his lips. “Don’t. I won’t hurt you or anyone you care about. I won’t hurt anyone who’s not equally as bad as me or anyone who doesn’t know the score. I don’t kill innocent people. I don’t interrogate them. I don’t want to hurt them in any way.”
