Page 226 of The Last Good Man

“No.”

Hepops a mintinto his mouth and slides a cigarette between his lips without lighting it.

My eyes are trained on him while he slowly moves around the bed as if sunk in thought. He pulls the chair closer to the edge of the mattress while I roll onto my side to face him. He sitsin front ofme.

Running his hands through his hair, he stretches his body, his cigarette still dangling from his lips.

“How are things?” he asks around his cigarette, not looking at me before leaning forward, propping his elbows on his knees, and bringing his beautiful eyes to me.

“Things are good,” I say, folding my arm under my head. “I slept well in your bed.”

Tipping his gaze down, he flashes a knowing smile.

A moment later, he straightens his back, removes his cigarette from his lips, sets his ankle over his knee, and stares down at me.

“Can you tell me more about your life?” I ask quietly.

A thoughtful look slides over his face.

“You got what you needed from your PI,” he rasps. “You’ve seen the rest of it.”

I think about it for a moment.

“You brought Marco to my firm. Was that a coincidence?”

He clicks his tongue.

“He was looking for a company to help him manage his money. It just happened that I knew about it. The presentation was good, and he liked your people.”

I push up a little and prop my head against the headboard.

“How did you get in business with Marco Costa?”

A soft smile pulls at his lips.

“You know who he is?”

“I do now.”

His smile fades.

“I met one of his men in prison. We struck up a friendship, and he offered me protection. He was Costa’s right hand.”

“That’s all?”

He weighs his words.

“He thought I could do stuff for them. I said I would if they protected my family while I was inside. They did, and I remained loyal to them. Other than that, things just worked between us,” he says.

“What about your father? What happened between the two of you?”

He flicks his cigarette, the tension in his body growing.

A sigh leaves his chest before he speaks again.

“My father couldn’t protect his family and my sister paid for that.”

He pauses, his eyes tipped down, staring blankly.

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