Page 32 of Gilded Touches

Flashes of fear in my mind's eye tell me this is how my father must have felt going into his deals.

“They are new in the game for us, but some background digging showed they are good buyers. They pay and I didn’t find any evidence of them leaving bodies behind after a deal. That sort of shit tends to travel through the underground.”

“It’s how we found your father’s killer,” Shayne fills in and a few pieces click together on the topic.

My shoulders relax a bit, but I clutch the diamonds a little tighter.

“There’s more to a buyer than their willingness to be paid,” I remember him telling me one time. “Their personality and their customs have to be factored in.”

He was a wealth of information I never got to tap before he was taken from me.

“Breathe, Luna.”

I look up at Voss as the elevator comes to a halt and the doors open. We turn to see the vast cavern yawn before us. Nothing, not even parked cars line either side of the large underground…” What is this place?” It’s not a parking lot. That is above us. This floor is secret and I can't see any exits.

“A place where a lot of shady shit happens, miss.”

I jump at the strange voice that comes out of nowhere. The man it belongs to steps out from the shadows, a cigarette hanging from his slips. The cherry glows angrily and throws the man’s face in a stark red.

He drags on the cigarette and lets out a curl of smoke as he speaks. “You must trust the men you walked into a dead-end place with. That tells me a lot about them.”

The man with dark eyes, darker hair and a trench coat walks closer. But what really gets me are the two other men who come out of the darkness behind him.

Epic entrance. I only wish it didn’t make my knees knock.

All three walk toward us in a slow gate like they do this kind of thing all the time.

They probably do.

“I do trust them,” I answer and when I do, the truth of my words wrap around my heart and I no longer feel scared.

The stranger gives a stiff nod. “Then we are in the right place.”

I push past Jasper and come to stand in front of him. Voss wraps an arm around my middle while Shayne comes up on my other side. One sign of danger and I know these men will step between me and death. It’s in the possessive hand on my midriff. The way Jasper's shoulder brushes mine and how Shayne places his body slightly in front of me. They want to give me the chance to be a part of their deal, but also protect me.

The one in the middle turns the sides of his coat’s collar up and the other two look like they live for shady meetings in the belly of a dark cavern. All have easy gaits and the casual confidence of being the most powerful men in the room is apparent.

Around me, I get the same energy from my men. They don’t seem nervous or on edge at all. I look at each of them with a quick glance and sure enough, they are the epitome of casual.

Some would take this time to measure dicks and remind everyone of their positions on the ladder of power, but I like that my men are past that at their age and the other guys seem to care more about the color of my shoes and the lack of my pants.

“Sorry to have interrupted whatever you four had going on.”

“Don’t be, Harlon. Did you get everything in Chicago sorted?”

Jasper reaches out and takes the middle guy’s hand first and then moves to the other’s.

Harlon. That name rings a bell. I tuck it away to do more research later.

“Not quite.”

“Lovely day for a get-together.” The one with the deep tan to Harlon’s right has an easy smile as he takes in the dreary basement with cracked cement and little else. “I thought Chicago was blistering hot this time of year, but damn. Next time we do this, let’s use a roof top or something.” He curls a lip in an arrogant grin. He’s got a deep baritone that makes him sound years older than the mid-thirties he appears.

“Ignore Santi. His ass is always hot or cold.”

“You the son of Constantine?” Shayne asks.

Ah. Yes. The son of a notorious drug lord.

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