Page 43 of Hard Luck (Blackstone House)

“You’re certain of that?”

“Speak with Alexa—she background-checked him. But yes, his home is in San Gallicano, and he’s planning to return there.”

“We still need to dig into his personal life. He slept withyou the first night you met, right? Did he check you were single? What if he pulled the same trick with another woman and stirred up a possessive boyfriend?”

“I came onto him, not the other way around.”

“On that occasion. While you’re hanging out, can you indulge in a little light interrogation?”

“I was planning to back off.”

“Off Cole? Why? In case you get caught in the crossfire again?”

“Crossfire?” I scoffed. “I’m not worried by a little crossfire. I’m just not a fan of commitment.”

Ari tilted her head to one side. “Really? You were committed enough to fly me here from California in a hurry.”

Damn. Sometimes, I didn’t much like Ari Danner.

“I was merely doing my civic duty.”

“Well, can you carry on doing it for a bit longer? I need to understand what makes Cole tick, and you’re in a better position than me to root out that information.”

“That man is fine,” Erin added. “There’s a picture of him on his boat website, and he isn’t wearing a shirt.”

I had a knife in my bra. It would take three seconds to poke her eyes out.

“Down, girl,” Ari said, laughing.

“Just do your damn job.” I got to my feet and hobbled away, cursing the crutches as I went. “Find me a suspect, and I’ll do the rest.”

Right before I slammed the door, I heard Erin say, “Wait, isn’t this your apartment?”

Fuck my fucking life.

CHAPTER 15

JEZEBEL

“Harder.”

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You’re not fucking hurting me.”

The shrink I’d quit seeing would say I was hurting myself, but at least I was enjoying the ride.

Cole’s fingers dug into my hips as I straddled him—on a chair because my cast meant I couldn’t kneel—and I gasped as his magic cock hit exactly the right spot. He thrust up, I ground down, and we collapsed against each other as we came.

We were at a crossroads.

I’d slept at his place again last night, but that was all we’d done—sleep. When I arrived at close to midnight in answer to his “just finished work” text, he’d looked so shattered that I took pity, crawled into bed beside him, and let him pass out.

At five past eight, he’d woken me with a kiss and asked if I wanted coffee. I’d followed him downstairs, and the rest was history.

But did I want our brief affair to go the way of the dodo?

My head said I should toss him aside, but my fractured heart hesitated. And Ari wanted me to pump him for information. Maybe extending the expiration date of our not-a-relationship by a week wouldn’t hurt? Once the hit squad mystery was solved, I could vanish into thin air, and Cole could head back to the Black Diamond and wait for a more appropriate woman to come along.

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