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SERAPHINA
“Goddamn motherfucker,” I muttered under my breath as the elevator door opened in the parking garage. I hit the key fob to unlock my car at the same time the door of the car next to it opened and a woman got out. Not just any woman—Alex Avila-Butler.
I’d had my fill of dogs with bones in the last three days. Cooley was enough for an entire kennel. Not that Alex was in the parking lot waiting for me. It wasn’t like we really knew each other.
I walked the rest of the way to my car, intending to ignore her, when I heard her say my name.
I turned around. “Oh, hi, Alex.”
“Don’t pretend you didn’t see me.”
“I saw you. I didn’t think you knew my name.”
“I know a lot more than that.”
I glanced up at the security cameras. The last thing I needed was Cooley’s goons seeing me talking to her. I was having a hard enough time navigating the shark-infested waters of the DA’s office as it was.
“Sorry. No comment.”
She didn’t look directly at the camera, thankfully, but she’d seen me do it.
“Do you know if that coffee place is in this block or the next?” she asked.
I shook my head. “I heard they went out of business.”
“Damn. I could really use the caffeine. Guess I’ll have to settle for a glass of wine instead. The Mustard Seed is still open, right?”
“I don’t know. But why would you go there when you own your own tasting bar?”
“Good point. Okay, take care, Seraphina. Nice to see you.”
“You too.”
Either I was crazy, or Alex and I had agreed to meet at the wine bar she owned in Cambria.
I got in my car and drove off before she’d started hers. My hands were shaking, and I felt sick to my stomach, knowing I was about to take a dive off the tightrope I’d been walking.
I wouldn’t put it past Cooley to have me followed, nor would it surprise me if my cell phone was bugged. He’d probably found a way to hack into it too, which is why I’d blocked everyone’s number except Press’ and Beau’s.
The former had made it clear he had no intention of letting me put him in the middle of Noah and me. Which meant I didn’t need to worry about him sending a message on the subject. I’d asked him and his brother to only contact me if my sister or mom needed anything. Whether they’d picked up on why or not, didn’t matter.
Regardless, I couldn’t risk being followed to Cambria, so when I reached the turnoff for Seahorse, I took that instead and waited until I was sure Alex had followed before pulling in. The gate closed right behind me, but seconds later, I saw it reopen to let her in.
“Seems like you’re runnin’ from the law, girlfriend,” Alex said, getting out of her car after she’d parked next to me. She couldn’t have hit the nail more squarely on the head. “Do you think you’re being followed?”
“It wouldn’t surprise me. If you’re here about the payment for the auction—”
She held up her hand. “Stop right there. That isn’t why I’m here, and Ridge already took care of it.”
My cheeks flamed in embarrassment. I wasn’t only too poor to run in the same circles as Alex and her friends, but William Cooley was doing his level best to make sure if I didn’t do his bidding, I’d never practice law again.
“I’d invite you inside, but this isn’t my house.”
“Let’s take a walk on the beach.”
While she was in shorts, I was in a dress and heels. “I’ll meet you out front in a few minutes.”
She looked me up and down. “I’ll be down the way. By the Pulpit.”
