Page 28 of The Killer Who Kept Me

He cocked his head, eyes shifting, and then…realization. “Oh, yeah, I do!”

“Good, and I want to hear it all.”

“Your meeting this morning, I’m not inviting myself. But maybe something I have to tell you should be discussed.”

I wasn’t sure what he meant by that, but I motioned for him to continue.

“Last week, I came to get the pickup for Ramsey, and I thought it was flawless. I did exactly what was asked of me. But a few days ago Ramsey called for me, angry. He argued that you had shown an interest in me—I’m trying to remember his exact words. I swore nothing happened, but he didn’t believe me. I wasn’t about to tell him you offered me a job.”

“How’d he know about what happened at The Vine?”

Em grimaced. “I don’t think he ever thought you and I would be having this conversation, but he slipped and told me that Brandi the bartender informed him.”

Brandi? What the fuck?She’d worked for me for years, had been vetted and everything. “You’re sure he named Brandi?”

“Positive.”

I glanced at his hand. “Is that a result of that conversation?”

He tried to move his hand, hide it. “Yeah,” he whispered.

“Thank you for that information, Em.”

He fiddled with the blanket and I could tell he was sorting through some things, so I gave him a moment to collect his thoughts.

“I…I can come to your meeting if you want. If you’re talking about Ramsey, maybe I could be helpful.”

“I appreciate that, but, Em, you need to rest. Paulo’s orders.”

“I can rest anywhere. I can’t sit in bed all day, I’ll go stir-crazy.”

There was no denying he’d maybe be able to shine a light on things, but I also wasn’t sure what else the guys would say, and upsetting him wasn’t something I wanted to do.

“Paulo is the boss. He told me he was coming over today. Let’s see what he says, can we do that at least?”

He sighed. “I guess. What did Paulo tell you about my exam?”

I’d wondered if he’d ask, and Paulo actually hadn’t told me a whole lot. “He said your pinky is definitely broken, but whoever set it was successful, and it just needs to heal.”

“I did.”

I’d figured. “He informed me there was an exam, and your body told a story that wasn’t his to tell, but that he’s monitoring it and that you asked for his discretion.”

Em’s gaze moved to the window. The curtains were pushed open enough so that he could see the backyard, the garden that was my aunt’s pride and joy.

“Thank you for giving me privacy.”

I reached over and took his unhurt hand in mine. “Em, I hope you do tell me at some point, but I’ll never press. I don’t need details to know the devil exists.”

He looked at me, a smile forming. “It’s hard to believe you’re as scary as everyone says when you’re so kind to me.”

“It’s kindness that’s earned, Em. I won’t ever hurt you. But trust me when I say, I’m a very scary man.”

He squeezed my hand, and it warmed some of the coldness in my heart.

“I’ll wait until Paulo clears me. I do want to shower, actually.”

“I had some clothes delivered. I’ll see that Martha gets them washed and up here this morning as well. We can meet up this afternoon for lunch. Deal?”

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