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My mouth twitches, but I somehow control the smile. He’s not funny.
“What do you want?”
“That’s a loaded question. I want a lot of things. But right now, I’m going to settle on keeping you safe.”
“I’m surrounded—”
“After all risks are neutralized, we’ll talk about the other things that I want.”
His words, the meaning, almost take my breath away. But I ignore them. “You know I’m surrounded by a whole lot of burly men with guns who’ll keep me safe, right?”
“One of those men is the one you think is trying to push drugs.”
I narrow my eyes. “Not think, know.”
“Sweetness.” It’s a warning, and I rise.
“You need to get out of my office.”
“Or what?” His gaze skims over me as I come out from behind my desk. “You gonna make me?”
“I don’t need this.” I rub a hand over my face.
“You’re shaking.”
I stare at my hand as I pull it away. Then quickly drop it to my side, bunching it in a fist. “Because this is all my fault.”
The words are out before I know it. Before I realize I’m thinking them.
He frowns, all amusement gone. “Why the fuck would you say that?”
“Ellie. I should have . . .”
“What? Tried to develop magic powers to stop it from happening? Fire the guy without evidence?”
“Maybe to the last one.”
“Because you keep saying you know?”
“I do.” I breathe out heavily. “So . . .”
Christian drops his arms, straightens from the wall, and takes a couple of steps toward me. “What? So, you should have fired him without knowing one hundred percent?” He moves closer. “Because even though I want to crush him for this, you’re right. If it is the wrong person, then you’re giving the game away to the right one to push it further underground.”
I frown. “What do you know?”
The innocence on his face is suspicious, just like his soothing and solicitous words. And he’s so close now I’m vibrating for a different reason. “Just what you’ve said.”
“Right, and you’re not looking into things. My brother being here, that’s not suspicious, either.”
Christian takes hold of my shoulders and his touch, hot and moreish, slides down into my bones. “He’s your brother. He cares.”
“I don’t trust either of you.”
“Yeah? Well, that’s just too bad,” he murmurs, his mouth skimming close to mine, making me melt inside. “This is what you’ve got.”
“A pain in my ass. Two of them.”
“Aww, sweetness, you don’t mean that about me.”
