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She’d followed my orders, keeping the phone with her. When she dialed the number, I backed away, giving her space.
“Hey, Shelly. It’s Whitney.” She locked eyes with mine. “No, I’m just at a place with cellphone reception. Did anything arrive for me? It could be a large envelope.” As she chewed on her bottom lip, her eyes opened wide. “Really. Nothing? No, it was just something I ordered a couple months ago. Keep a look out. If anything arrives, send me an email. I appreciate you looking.”
“No package?” I asked after she’d ended the call.
“Nothing.”
I took a deep breath. What in the fuck kind of game had Theodore involved her in? “There is a chance he didn’t get to send it to you before his untimely death.”
“He made it sound past tense as if I should expect the arrival. I don’t know where else he’d send it.”
The news wasn’t something I wanted to hear but at this point, I couldn’t do anything about it. “Go enjoy your day. We’ll talk more later. However, we may be taking a short trip to Miami if necessary. Besides, you’ll need to arrange for movers.”
Whitney grinned. “Why not keep the condo for a quick getaway?”
“Perhaps.”
“I will need to see if my company has a firm in Philly. I’m assuming we won’t be moving to Miami.” While she was trying to return to a level of playfulness, I sensed she was as frustrated as I was.
“Not a chance on moving.” Laughing, I cupped the side of her face, rubbing my thumb across her lips roughly. “Don’t take any chances.”
“And what if I do?”
“The consequences will be painful.”
“You know how to drive a girl crazy.” She took my thumb into her mouth, the sizzle in her eyes keeping me fully aroused. Sadly, the meeting with the Brotherhood was important. I backed away, shaking my head then leaving the room before I second guessed myself again.
As soon as I walked outside, Jonas moved away from the car where he was standing. “Are you positive you don’t want me to go with you?”
“No. I’m certain it won’t hurt your feelings to guard Elena and Whitney for a few hours.”
He grinned like a kid. “Not in the least.”
I looked toward the sun, gauging what I wanted to say to him. I’d checked his phone records, hoping I wouldn’t find out he’d deceived me. There’d been no calls to anyone I didn’t know. Still, the nagging remained. “We need to find out how the Armenians had advance warning about our attack.”
“You really think they did?” He wasn’t surprised but curious as to my reasoning.
Nodding, I glanced around the grounds, my chest as tight as before. “I’m certain of it. We lost two good men because someone tipped them off.” I turned my head, staring into his eyes.
While he nodded in understanding, there were no outward signs that he thought he’d been caught in a lie. “I’ll find out, Phoenix, if it’s the last goddamn thing I do.”
“Good. I knew I could count on you. You’re my most trusted man, loyal to a fault.”
“I appreciate that.”
A few seconds ticked by, and I took a chance that I could trust him implicitly.
“I’ve given my approval for your… union. However,” I said as I slowly turned my head in his direction, “if you ever hurt my sister, or fuck with my family, you’ll have me to deal with.”
“You know what I feel about Elena. I’ll never allow anyone to touch her but me. As far as your family, you know how I feel about your father. Where is this coming from?”
“I’m learning that trust is as valuable a commodity as rare diamonds. Take care of Elena and Whitney with your life. I won’t require Whitney to live in a bubble, but something is brewing. I can feel it.”
“Nothing will happen.”
Nothing.
The same word had been used too many times in my life. That’s when all hell had broken loose.
