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A short while later, we turned onto a private drive. The property was surrounded by tall black fencing topped with barbed wire. At a word from the driver, the gate opened as we approached, then slid shut behind us. As we continued up the driveway, we passed two wolf-like dogs and a pair of leather-tough vampires, all four pairs of eyes shining in the dark.
No wonder Andre was searching for a way through Gabriel’s security.
We passed through a hedge of boxwoods taller than me and halted in front of a cedar-shingled beach house. As soon as the door locks popped, I was out of the limo. I couldn’t see the Atlantic, but I could hear it crashing somewhere beyond the house. To the east, a lighthouse flashed, and the air was heavy with brine.
On the dark road, a car drove slowly past. I cast an uneasy glance through the boxwoods, but if it was Andre, he was too smart to slow down.
The wind off the ocean tugged at my updo, teasing out more strands of hair and whipping them around my face. I swiped the strands away from my mouth, but they immediately whipped back. I’d left my shoes in the limo, and somehow, in scrambling out, I’d ripped a hole in my dress over my hip.
Gabriel rounded the limo. I slapped a hand over the rip.
He looked down at me expressionlessly, but I could’ve sworn his mouth twitched up. “Hold still.” He removed a long hair from the corner of my mouth.
“Thanks.” I gave him a tentative smile.
He stared at me another long moment, then his gaze went past me. “Airi. This is Mila. She’s not to leave the grounds without permission. When she’s outside the house, you’ll put a guard on her at all times. See that security is informed.”
I glanced over my shoulder. The bodyguard from the limo had been replaced by a woman with short, water-straight black hair and the dark, tip-tilted eyes of a Japanese ancestor. Like the other guards, she wore a crisp black uniform with a silver wolf embroidered on the pocket over her heart.
“Of course.” Airi bent her head over her phone to send the message. Her short hair swung forward to reveal a snarling wolf tattoo.
Every muscle in my body went rigid. I swallowed queasily.
For three years, I’d been hounded by Kral Syndicate enforcers. Now, I was surrounded by them.
Gabriel gripped my upper arm. “Inside.” He marched me up the front steps.
The door opened as we reached the top of the steps. A large woman in a gray dress waited in the foyer, her wiry salt-and-pepper hair in a bun, her skin a smooth light brown. At the sight of Gabriel, a grin split her face.
“Welcome home, M’sieur,” she said in a Cajun accent. “And you, Mam’selle.”
“Bon soir, Lougenia.” He smiled back.
I blinked. For a few seconds, he’d turned into the old Gabriel, not the steely-eyed Syndicate prince who’d ridden silently in the limo with me for over two hours. Then he glanced at me and the prince was back.
He moved his hand to my lower back, a not-so-subtle statement of ownership that sent a tingle up my spine. Heat pooled in my core, my body remembering how good it had been between us.
I mentally shook myself.Don’t be an ass, Mila. That was then, not now.
And I was here to help bring him down.
Guilt filled my mouth, an acid, hopeless taste.
“This is Mila,” he told Lougenia. “She’ll be staying with us for a while.” To me, he said, “Lougenia is my housekeeper. If you need anything, she’ll get it for you.”
The housekeeper gave me a warm smile. “Don’t hesitate to ask, sugar pie. Anything at all.” She glanced back at Gabriel. “She’ll be with you in the master suite?”
My muscles locked. Because however ready my body was for him, the rest of me was all tangled up: terrified for Joey, and almost as terrified for Gabriel. His security was good, but Andre had a secret weapon—me.
Plus, there was Gabriel’s coldness. Could I have sex with a man who so obviously distrusted me? Hell, I wasn’t even sure helikedme anymore.
Underneath it all was the constant awareness that Andre or one of his people were listening to every word we spoke. I was afraid to even ask too many questions in case it gave him some crucial piece of information.
Gabriel felt my tension, of course. He couldn’t read my emotions, but my taut body gave me away. He frowned down at me, his fingers tightening around my waist.
Sadness clogged my throat. I knew he thought I didn’t want him, and I hurt for us both.
“Put her in the rooms next to mine,” he said in clipped tones. “She’ll need the basics—a toothbrush, hairbrush. And clothes—she didn’t bring any luggage. Shoes, too,” he added with a glance at my bare feet.
