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“When have I heard that before?”
The two of us glare at each other from across the room until Jock steps in. “If Bernardi is gearing up, we’ll need all the men we can get together.”
“Thank you,” Vincent mutters. It can’t be easy for him, accepting Jock’s assistance. The two of them have never exactly gotten along.
“Just do me a favor?” I drop into my chair with a sigh. “This time around, don’t go off half-cocked. You get an idea in your head, you come to me first. Got it?”
“Who, me?” He grins before polishing off his drink. “When have you ever known me to go off half-cocked?”
“Don’t start with me. I have too much on my mind as it is.”
“Which is why I came in to speak with you,” Jock interjects. “I assume you’ve seen news coverage of the fire.”
“I have.” And it caused me no small amount of glee first thing this morning, watching live footage of the smoldering building as firefighters doused what was left of the flames.
“What fire?” Vincent asks, looking back and forth between us.
I pinch the bridge of my nose in response to a twinge of pain. My younger brother always did know how to insert himself into a situation at the worst possible time. “One of Bernardi’s properties.”
“So you’ve been stirring shit, too?” He lifts his glass to me, miraculously full once again.
“It’s a long story.” I stare expectantly at Jock. “Any word on that situation? Have your guys heard anything?”
“What situation?” Vincent asks. I nearly have to bite my tongue off to keep from snapping at him. Jock saves the day as always, stepping in to catch him up on the high points while I fight to regain hold of my temper. Of all times for him to decide to show up. Until now, at least I’ve been able to tell myself he’s staying out of trouble, keeping quiet, laying low.
“But we’re not absolutely sure it was Bernardi behind that girl’s death?” Vincent turns to me, one brow lifted.
“You tell me. You’re the one who got on a plane and flew halfway around the world when you knew damn well I wanted you over there, not here. You must have felt there was a reason, right?” I sit back in my chair, shaking my head. “No, it’s all too clear. He wants to start another war. He’s never been satisfied with the peace we made—I knew it at the time, we all did. And one of the conditions of that peace was you getting the hell out of the country and staying that way.”
“If he already had one of our girls killed, the peace was over before I ever got on that plane.” Even Jock doesn’t have a comeback for that.
Vincent polishes off what’s left of his drink and leaves the glass on the cart. “I’m wiped out. I assume you haven’t given my room away to any other hot piece of ass?”
Jock barely strangles back a snort. “I’m going to make a few phone calls.” In other words, he doesn’t want to be around for what he knows is coming next. Fucking coward.
“Speaking of which,” I say to my brother, “stay away from her.”
“Delilah?” He appears to savor the name, letting it roll off his tongue.
“Drop the innocent act. You know exactly who I mean. She’s off-limits.”
He holds up both hands, palms facing me. “That’s all you have to say. She’s your woman.”
“She’s not… never mind. If it wasn’t for the attack at the establishment, she’d be working off a debt as we speak. I have nowhere to put her right now, and I don’t trust her out on her own.”
“So it’s entirely business.”
“Of course,” I murmur, watching him intently. “By the way, in case you were wondering? You’re no better at hiding what’s on your mind than you ever were before.”
“And what does that mean?”
“We both know what it means.” I lower my brow, holding his gaze. “I’m serious. Lay off her.”
“Fine. Consider her laid off.” Yeah, right. Even if there wasn’t a slight twitch of his lips to give him away, I wouldn’t believe him. He tends to forget I’ve known him since the minute he was born, and while I don’t doubt there’s decency in him, I know for a fact he has a tendency to fuck himself over.
Unfortunately, he tends to fuck everybody else over in the process.
***
