Page 28 of Dirty Little Sins

She groaned. "This is not what I need. I've got too much on my plate as it is without me having to manage more public perception. That is why I had to pay all that money. To keep our association secret. If this goes public, that just gives him incentive to share."

She was definitely pissing me off. "Look, babe. I think you should quit while you're ahead. Besides, we need to talk about that whole situation tonight. It's time to dig for some clues and get some answers. So I'm taking you out of here whether you like it or not."

I could see that my insistent tone was about to blow up in my face as her face turned crimson red and her warm eyes turned molten as she glared daggers at me.

"What's going on in here?"

Everyone in the room turned to the booming voice of Gabe, the manager of The Sinclair, who now stood in the doorway to the kitchen.

In a quicker move than should have been possible in her skyscraper heels, Nina crossed to her husband's side and he wrapped a possessive arm around her waist and pulled her close. "Shouldn't you be in bed by now?" he asked her, touching the side of her face.

"Shouldn't you?" The sass of her retort brought a smile to my face. There was something to be said for these women who weren't afraid to push the buttons of the strong men in their life. It certainly made life more interesting.

The rest of the room might have missed the stern look he gave her before he lifted his gaze to inspect everyone else, but I didn't. Plus I'd heard the rumors and seen Gabe at the Green Door club with his lovely wife shortly after they'd relocated to Vegas.

They weren't well known in the local BDSM community, but it also wasn't a secret that Gabe and his wife were well suited to some of the kinkier details this hotel often catered to.

"This is a lot of activity for a restaurant not yet open in the middle of the night."

Nina smirked at her husband. "The film crew for Zia's television show just arrived and I was checking on their room reservations."

"Is there some sort of problem? I thought all the arrangements were settled."

"They are. I just double checked." She turned away from Gabe. "Gentlemen, if you'll follow me we can get you settled for the night. Sound good?"

The cameraman groaned. "Hell yes. We've been trapped in too many airports today and I need some sleep."

The director nodded his agreement. "We do need to be fresh for tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Zia questioned. "I thought production didn't start for a few more days."

"Check your email, hon. They cut our budget again, resulting in less time to get this wrapped up. We've got to start tomorrow and have this wrapped up on opening night."

"That doesn't give us a lot of time. Is this because the official renewal hasn't come through yet."

He nodded. "Yep. So enjoy this last night of freedom. As of tomorrow morning we have full access."

I couldn't say I understood everything they'd said. But the idea they were going to give her no privacy for the next three weeks did not sound good.

Without any more talk or fanfare, the entire television crew followed Nina out of the restaurant, leaving us alone with Gabe who had a distinct frown stamped across his face.

"You probably shouldn't be here," he said to me.

I didn't bother to answer. What I did or didn't do with Zia wasn't any of his concern. I didn't care if this was his hotel. This was my town and she was mine.

"He was just leaving," Zia's sudden outburst came with a fancy new shade of red coloring her pale skin.

I tried to catch her gaze so I could let her know that wasn't happening without making it a big deal with Gabe, but she refused to meet my eyes. I didn't care much for this behavior and I couldn't wait until later when I could discuss what I expected.

"We were just leaving." I purposefully didn't frame it as a question, knowing that she would bristle but likely not start an argument in front of her boss. At this point I wasn't above manipulating the situation to get what I wanted.

I shouldn't have to remind her that not long ago she'd been in the throes of an anxiety attack in front of her coworkers and I only wanted to help her get through it.

To Gabe's credit, he said nothing and his facial expression remained stoic without a single twitch. If he was surprised, and I doubt he was, that I was taking her home, he didn't show it.

I also saw the moment when Zia gave in to my demand. Her eyes softened as did her shoulders and her body tilted slightly in my direction. Good girl. I'd definitely have to reward her for that later.

"I'll leave you to it then. If you need anything else from us let us know." Gabe turned and faced Zia. "How about a meeting tomorrow to further discuss the production? We're on board with the idea of them using this restaurant opening as material for your show, but we need to make sure the entire crew is onboard with the fact we won't tolerate them stressing you out or interfering with your schedule."

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