Page 73 of Savage

“I’ll just stick to my water, thanks.”

So martinis for lunch. Was this how the other half lived?

“Don’t think I’ve forgotten you didn’t answer me,” East said, tapping the table.

“Oh, I haven’t.”

“And you’re not going to, are you?”

“What was the question again?”

“Who are you?”

“My name’s Cooper.” I held my hand out to him, and he arched a brow.

“Cooper…?”

“Patterson.”

“I don’t know that name.”

“And up until a few minutes ago, I didn’t know yours.”

He scoffed as though that was the most ridiculous thing he’d ever heard. “You don’t know my name?”

“No. Sorry. Am I supposed to?”

East narrowed his eyes on me as if trying to decide if I was lying. “You’re not from New York.”

“No.”

“And you’re definitely not a new member, because we would know.”

What did this place do? Send out an email whenever someone signed up? That seemed a little pedestrian for a place that was so private and well funded.

Maybe I could weasel some information out of these two. Ask a couple of questions I had.

“How would you know?”

East smirked. “We have…connections.”

“You mean money.”

“Well, yes, everyone that sets foot in this place has money.” He looked me over and angled his head to the side. “Except maybe you, which makes me think you’re someone’s guest.”

This guy was good, and I wondered if this was how Lachlan felt when I questioned him, like I was talking in circles until I got to the actual information I wanted.

I was about to give another evasive answer when Lachlan stepped inside the restaurant, and my heart skipped several beats.

All put together in his suit and tie with his hair pushed back off his face, and those silver bracelets at his wrists, it was difficultnotto stare as he stopped and scanned the restaurant, searching me out.

I swallowed around the lump in the back of my throat.

“Ah, now the pieces are starting to fall into place,” East said.

I had no idea what he was talking about, nor did I care. I was too busy drinking in the sight of Lachlan as he started forward.It wasn’t until he stopped by the edge of our booth that I even noticed the other man behind him, which was a testament to how distracting Lachlan was, because this new guy was all kinds of intense.

East grinned at the two men, seemingly unbothered by either.

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