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Had looked after her.
He wouldn’t want to now.
“There were a few rumors at the time. Let me try and remember. One was that he was asked to find something and then he gave it to someone else. Another was that he hadn’t been able to source something and the person who hired him killed him because he wouldn’t refund them. No one ever found out the full truth, though.”
“I . . . Mama took off with me after he died. I don’t remember him at all. I didn’t even know about you until she disappeared. I overheard Jake and Elsie talking about you. It sounded like you might know something about his death. And I thought . . . I thought if I could get close to you, I might be able to find some information about my dad, and why my mama went on the run with me after he died.”
“You think they are related?”
“I don’t know. She never told me anything much about him. But after his death, she moved us around a lot. It seemed like she was running from someone. Four years ago, she disappeared. In one of the notes she left, she said that he wouldn’t let her live a normal life.”
“And you thought I might know who she was running from?” he asked incredulously.
“I thought if you knew something about my dad’s death, that it might give me a clue as to where she is or who she is running from.”
“You thought I might have killed him.”
She winced. “Before I met you, I thought that it might be a possibility. Now . . .” Well, he was capable of killing. But only if the person deserved it. “If you say you had nothing to do with it. I believe you. Finding Mama . . . what happened to her and my dad, it became . . . my obsession. You became my obsession.”
He was silent for so long that she thought she was going to be ill. Did he have something to do with her dad’s death?
He stood and moved away from her. It should have been easier to breathe, but it wasn’t. It felt like he was closing himself off from her.
You deserve it.
“I had nothing to do with your father’s death. And I have no idea who killed him. He wasn’t one of my men, or I would have looked into his murder.”
Her world felt like it was crumbling. It was hard to breathe. Everything was muffled.
“Cat! Cat!” he said sharply, bringing her back into the present.
Would he ever call her Pequeña again?
Did she deserve that?
Not really.
“Have you talked to anyone else about his death?” he asked.
“No. Sampson told me that I wasn’t to go around asking questions and getting myself killed.”
“Your friend, Sampson.”
She winced at the whip of displeasure in his voice. Better than icy cold. But not by much.
“Yes.”
“He is one of the friends who yelled at you?”
Did he seem upset at that? Did he still care?
“Yes. He’s quite protective.”
“Not protective enough,” he snapped. “He couldn’t talk you out of finding me, obviously.”
“No. He tried to, but I wouldn’t listen. It’s not his fault. My friends all tried to stop me. But I just . . . I needed to find Mama. I miss her so much.”
Her voice cracked. Was that . . . did his cold expression warm slightly?
It was hard to tell.
“After I got to know you, I wanted to come clean. But I thought you’d be upset with me, so I figured it was better to keep it to myself.”
“How is that decision working out for you now?”
“Not good, to be honest.”
“Finally, some honesty,” he drawled.
She winced. Mierda. This was exactly what she deserved.
“I know that you’re mad at me and you have every right. I lied to you about who I really am. But I had nothing to do with Vince attacking me. You have to believe that.”
The look on his face told her that he didn’t have to do anything he didn’t want to do.
“I guess you want me to leave now, huh?”
Pain stole her breath. She was on the verge of a panic attack. How was she supposed to go on living without him?
“Sit down,” he commanded as she stood.
She sat down immediately. Damn body, always obeying him, even when he seemed to hate her.
“You can’t want me to stay.”
“I still have questions. After you answer them, then I’ll decide what to do with you.”
Well, that didn’t sound ominous or anything. Her brain was telling her to run.
While her heart wanted her to stay.
She was so fucked.
“Was wanting me a lie? Are you really a Little or did you just pretend to be because I’m a Daddy Dom?”
She gaped at him. What the hell? Did he really think that she was that good of a liar?
