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His electronics and metal detectors were no match for what I packed. Jewelry could hide more than anyone would believe, as could shoes, purses, and hair accessories. Plus, the type of equipment I used never came up on any scanner.
This was a dance we’d played for years, and out of respect for each other’s intelligence, we never pretended to be anything other than what we were.
Predators.
We’d run across each other in his former life as an antiquities dealer specializing in high-tech weapons. I’d hired him for projects requiring an untraceable touch. However, once Kir had brought him into the fold of King Holdings, our association shifted to polite acknowledgments with no further business dealings.
He would have done well in Solon if not for his need for stability, family, and a solid future. Things that weren’t guaranteed until complete retirement from the organization. And even then, it was questionable because of our high-risk lifestyle.
“Have my guests arrived?”
“Yes. Some are mingling among other attendants, and others are at your table. We will inform them you are on premises and ready for play.”
As soon as he spoke, three attendants for the club left the holding area to follow through on Amir’s words.
“Thank you. Would you also ask Mr. King to visit me once he arrives?”
He studied me for a second. “So we’re clear, you’re referring to Kir. Am I correct?”
I couldn’t fault him for the question. The number of private games he’d coordinated for Sam and me over the years were too numerous to count.
Those days were long gone.
No more liaisons in clubs or penthouses or spots around the world.
I wouldn’t lie to myself and think we wouldn’t fuck each other’s brains out if given a chance. Our attraction would remain intense and visceral.
But in the end, it would be sex, nothing more.
Pushing down my riot of emotions and keeping my face devoid of emotion, I answered, “That is who I’m expecting since he is the brother on the schedule.”
He nodded and stepped to the side as one of his team members approached. “Caso will show you to your table.”
A few minutes later, I approached the impeccably dressed men and women at my table. They ranged in age from early twenties to mid-sixties. All garnered a net worth of at least one hundred million dollars and straddled the worlds of legitimate society and the syndicate.
I’d helped them all out of a jam or two in the past. Except for one blue-eyed brunette, who scanned me from head to toe as I neared the empty seat across from her.
She preferred to create situations others fell inside and then churn the pot.
“Ahh, there she is. Signorina Patel, we are ready to play. Yes?” Marianna Sonnita asked in a cultured Italian accent, giving a quick glance to the man who would sit to my left.
Of course, she’d placed the target next to me. The woman had at least eight inches on me and six bodyguards milling the room’s periphery. They could grab the idiot if he made a run for it when we set things in motion.
Something in my gut screamed we had a runner.
If it turned into a cleanup situation as it had when the dick had tried to manhandle Danika, Kir would never let me hear the end of it.
In that case, the idiot shouldn’t have tried to blackmail Danika into sleeping with him to keep quiet about her activities at the club. An angry woman with a sharp blade could cause a lot of damage.
“Absolutely, Signora Sonnita.”
“I hope you are ready for a challenge. We have some tough players at the table tonight.” She lifted her champagne glass, and the table laughed.
Oh hell, we had a volatile one.
Maybe I should have gotten engaged instead of coming here.
13
