AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He quirked a brow. "Seriously. Not all..." His lips twitched. "Irishmenare ‘meat and potatoes’ kind of guys."
"No? Just most of them?"
"I feel stereotyped," he retorted.
I frowned at him, because I’d been about to say that men in his position couldn’t be anything other than stereotyped, but he was here to help me, wasn’t he? Not to kill me. Like he said would happen if I didn’t listen?
Any amusement at a mobster appreciating chai having died, I rasped, "What are you doing here?"
"You’ve come to my father’s attention, Ms. Daniels... May I call you Savannah?"
Unease unfurled inside me. "If you want."
He hummed. "Well, Savannah, no one wants to come to Aidan Sr.’s attention, do they? As I’m sure you’ll know from your research."
Slowly, I shook my head.
I was a bulldog where a story was concerned, had known I might piss people off, but could never have anticipated that the Five Points’ heir would be the one to come to threaten me.
That was taking things up to so high of a notch, I couldn’t even see it overhead.
"How have I?" I rasped, my hand tightening about my cup. "I don’t understand. I also don’t understand what you’re doing here? You’re trying to help me?"
He rubbed his chin. "My brother’s a massive fan of your father. I’m not altogether sure he’d be happy if Dagger’s daughter were to end up on life support because of something that happened in our family’s history."
I tensed. "You’re doing this because of your brother?"
"That, and..." He shrugged. "My father’s very annoyed at what you’re doing."
"Isn’t that more reason to comply?"
"I’m not a yes-man," he countered softly. "I don’t jump when he tells me to—"
"But do you ask how high?" I retorted.
He smirked. "No. When he told me about you, and I did my research, I learned a few things. You’re not a person who wastes time. You go after a story with all the zeal of a bloodhound who’s caught the scent of blood.
"I read the fluff and the heavy-hitting stories and came across a strong voice. One who doesn’t dissemble. Who cuts through the bullshit." He wafted a hand at me. "That was how I knew you were all act when you came in. I saw you calculating the odds of what would let you manipulate me the easiest the second our eyes met." His smirk deepened. "You might be accustomed to dealing with morons, but we raise them smart in my line of work."
"Kill or be killed," I rasped.
"Pretty much." His gaze darted from me to Suzy, and I saw she’d brought a tray over. My small plate of toast was on there as well as Aidan’s order.
Jesus, I wasn’t hungry.
I was nervous.
Nerves made the gnawing ache in my belly have different connotations.
How, in less than five minutes with me, had he managed to figure out that I tended to play a role?
Was it just dumb luck or had he really read through the many and varied editorials and articles I’d written over the years? Not even my mom had that level of dedication.
The second Suzy darted away, her cheeks just as pink as before, I questioned, "Exactly how much of my editorial portfolio have you read?"
He raised his cup to his lips and with a measured glance at me, took a deep sip. After he swallowed, he murmured, "Every piece I could get my hands on. Including the articles you wrote in college." He hitched a shoulder. "I’m thorough."
"Why?" I muttered, aghast and bewildered at the extent of his research into me.
