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I had proof of what the other three had been doing. I’d done my research, and since the courts weren’t willing to lock them up and make the streets safe for the innocents trying to live their lives, I took care of what needed taking care of.
I have no regrets for my actions, and no fear of karma stopping me from doing the same in the future. But no matter how hard I tried, I was unable to enter a committed relationship with a man without telling him who I truly was beneath the shine and polish of who I let the public see.
I told one person. One single soul on this entire planet… And that person just so happens to be a cop with a duty to lock up people like me.
For now, I’m a free woman with a marriage proposal more threatening than prison could ever be.
“He sat in the box and snitched on this woman, Aubs. It was gross.”
Humored, since she can’t possibly know the thoughts flittering through my mind, Aubree shakes her head and sniggers under her breath. “I mean, he’s literally a homicide cop. Is it really snitching, or is it just… ya know… his job?”
“He was smug about it,” I grumble. “He lured her in with his sex appeal and charisma and ‘look how sexy I am inside a dark bar’.” Glancing up from Kirk’s reports, I scowl for Aubree. “He tricked her, and then he told on her.”
“And I bet he looked good doing it, too. Wanna hang out tonight and get takeout?Love Paradiseis on.”
I want to groan. Because I kinda do want to order in and watch trashy TV with my friend. What I definitelydon’twant to do is go to a fancy restaurant and sit across from a man constantly taunting me about my apparent fear of marriage.
It’s not that I’m scared. I’m just… cautious.
Besides, love shouldn’t come with a damn contract.
“Archer’s taking me out to dinner,” I sigh. “He said he’d pick me up from my apartment, so it doesn’t sound like I get much of a choice, unless I want to turn it into a wholethingand make a lot of noise.”
Which isn’t completely off the table at this point in time.
“Maybe you should give Fletch a call,” I suggest. “See if he and Moo want to hang out for the night. I know he’d appreciate the help.”
She protests under her breath, dissatisfied with my answer and grumpy that she can’t lounge around like a pig the way we so enjoy.
“Have you seen Tim recently?” With an uncharacteristic show of nervousness, Aubree brings her thumb nail up between her teeth. “Has he said anything to you?”
“You mean Tim, the guy you wanna bang, but you can’t, because he’s currently banging someone else?”
“He’s such an asshole.” Shoving off my desk and messing up Kirk’s pile of files, Aubree stalks across my office and angrily slams her hands to her hips. “He doesn’t have to make it so frickin’ weird, Minka. He doesn’t wanna date me? That’s fine.” She twists back and pins me with a glare. “It’s not like I’m gonna force him into a relationship. And hell,” her voice grows louder, “I won’t even sit around and sulk about it. But he’s being a straight prick with the way he macks on his girlfriend. He waits for me to get there, for me to see, just so he can be an asshole and remind me he doesn’t want me.”
If only she knew what I know.
He does want her, but the second he folds her into his life, the mafia ties he and Archer share will come back and bite them on the ass.
It’s ironic that we have two brothers; one who won’t date Aubree at all, who flat-out refuses, and the other won’t stop asking me for more. More commitment. More time. More, more, more.
“I think…”I think I know too much, making it impossible for me to give her appropriate advice. “Maybe you shouldn’t go by his bar for a while. Take some space. Look around and see if there’s anyone else who makes you look twice.” Then I sit taller and grin. “Fletch is single, and in need of a stepmom for Mia.”
Instantly, Aubree’s nose wrinkles in distaste. “First of all, Fletch is the least likely of everyone on this planet toeveragainsettle down. Second and third, he’s like a brother to me. Ew. And it’s never in good taste to solicit a woman to be a kid’s stepmom.” She wanders back toward my desk. “Mia has a mom. She doesn’t need another.”
“Jada’s in rehab,” I counter. “And Fletch is never going back to her, no matter how well she cleans herself up.”
Not as convinced as I am, Aubree plops into my visitor chair and singsongs under her breath, “He loved her once.” Exhaling, she elaborates, “He loved her more than he loved anyone else on this planet. Don’t be surprised if, when she’s doing better, she turns back into that person he once adored.”
Shrugging, she allows her lips to curl into a small smile. “He says she was pretty cool. A famous dancer with an awesome sense of humor and a fast wit.”
“Doctor Mayet?” At my office door, the George Stanley building’s media relations ‘go-to,’ Seraphina, waits with a lifted brow. She’s basically my assistant, but she runs the entire building and makes sure I don’t inadvertently burn it to the ground.
She’s the kind of woman we see on the magazine covers we pass on the way to work. Beautiful enough to be on aVoguecover, fit enough to be on aWomen’s Healthcover, sophisticated and stylish enough to be the face of high-end cosmetics brands.
And, unfortunately for me, mean enough to not allow me a single inch of distance from my public relations duties.
“Mayor Lawrence would like a meeting sometime this week. He said it’s your call; meet in his office, or over a coffee across the street. Either way, he’s taking the time and not letting you rain-check him again.”
