Page 98 of Blue Moon

“Uh, I’m not sure that’s allowed. My contract states?—”

“I’ll take her.” Romeo Serafini strode past him and scooped Venus into his arms. “Did you have a security breach or a party?”

“Uh, the second one?”

“You remember you have a show tonight?”

Aisha stumbled out of the bedroom. “No problem, we’re porfesh…prosef…professionals.”

He raised his gaze to the ceiling. “Santo cielo.”

The housekeeper must have called for reinforcements, because a server appeared with painkillers and fruit juice.

“We’ll be fine,” I promised. “Totally fine.”

“I see now why you need the ‘bodyguard.’” Romeo made little air quotes around the “bodyguard” part. “To save you from yourself.”

“Hey, that’s not fair.” He just stared at me, Rocky at his side, and okay, maybe it was a little bit fair. “Walk the dog, would you?”

It was the first time I’d seen him laugh.

“Whatever you say, principessa.”

27

RYDER

“The plane just landed, sweetheart. The driver says we’ll be there in forty-five minutes.”

In reality, Ryder had been in Tbilisi for three days, scheming with Khatia and Ana. At first, they’d been working to a more relaxed timetable, but after the news of Julius Whitlow’s death emerged, Ryder had brought the schedule forward because he wanted to get back to Vegas.

The police still had no suspects and no clear motive for the murder, assuming it was murder because there were no autopsy results yet. There were no signs of a disturbance at the property, although Whitlow’s father said Julius had an extensive watch collection, and unless there was a second safe the cops were yet to find, several of the more expensive models appeared to be missing.

At the moment, the police were working on the theory that a targeted theft had gone wrong, but Ryder refused to rule out the possibility of revenge. Even Ron Hill—who was being remarkably talkative—said the man was a creep. He’d warned his former assistant to stay away from Whitlow unless another member of staff was present.

As for Luna, she’d hated him, but she still wanted to go to his funeral. To spit on his grave when nobody was looking, she said. Ryder suspected that her reputation mattered to her more than she’d ever let on, and now she was in self-preservation mode. People would expect her to pay her final respects. Tongues would wag if she was a no-show. And even if she skipped the wake, she’d still have to face Amethyst at the burial, so she’d need somebody to lean on.

All of which meant Tripp’s golfing weekend with the boys had been unexpectedly cancelled, and what better way to fill the time than by flying to Georgia to hook up with a hot blonde?

They’d agreed to meet at Tres Amigos at one p.m. Elene had made the reservation, and even though she’d offered to meet Tripp at the airport, he’d opted to take a car. Partly because the jet was in France today, but mainly because they’d decided that getting Elene into a limo would be the easiest way to control her. To get her alone for a little chat. Tamaz, one of Khatia’s colleagues, was doing the honours behind the wheel while Ana would be following on a motorcycle, ready to step in just in case anything went wrong.

Khatia was already at Tres Amigos, dining with another Blackwood colleague, and Ron Hill was in a holding cell at the office.

All the pieces were in place.

Ryder just had to play his part, and play it convincingly.

“I’m about to leave my apartment,” Elene said.

“If we get lost, I’ll call you.” Ryder forced softness into his voice and wished he were on his way to meet Luna instead. “Can’t wait to see you.”

Khatia spoke in Ryder’s ear as soon as he hung up. His miniaturised earpiece was glued into his ear canal, and he was grateful that he hadn’t been to a barber in a while. Luna hadn’t been a fan of longer hair at first, but now she admitted it had grown on her as well as on him.

“Naira is in the café opposite Tres Amigos, and Guram found a spot on a bench around the corner. He brought sandwiches and a newspaper.”

“And a covert camera?”

“Of course.”

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