Page 20 of Six
She still hadn’t talked to Franklin. And she still hadn’t a clue as to why he would assign Gavin to help her while she was non-operative. But shecouldsee the earnestness in Gavin’s expression. He truly wanted to help. Then again, he’d been in the area five months with zero action—he was probably bored and looking to fill his time.
“Thank you for the coffee and pastries, Gavin,” she said, before finishing off herbombolone. In the past five minutes, she’d accepted she’d have to work with him—their higher-ups would see to that—but that didn’t mean she had to jump right in feet first. She wanted to talk to Franklin, if only to unleash her annoyance on him, before making any decisions.
He sighed. “You’ll have to call on me at some point, you know.”
She shot him a saccharine smile. “Perhaps. But now is not that time.”
He held her gaze, then gave a little shake of his head. “If I walk out the front door will the alarm go off?”
She gave a single nod. “You can trot along that path though,” she said, pointing to the decomposed granite path that ran between the back and front of her house.
He rose, and the look he gave her hovered somewhere between resigned and amused. “Here,” he said, pulling out a small white card and handing it to her. “It’s my number. My real number. Use it when you’re ready.”
“And if I’m not?”
“There will come a day when you will be. Trust me, Violetta, I know that for a fact.”
She wasn’t quite sure what to make of that comment, but he didn’t give her a chance to react. He leaned over her, brushed a kiss across her cheek, then jogged down the steps and disappeared around the corner of her house. A few seconds later, his SUV started and his tires crunched on her gravel drive as he departed.
She reached for the bag of pastries he’d left on the swing and pulled out a honeycornetti. As she nibbled her way through it and sipped her coffee, she acknowledged that her response had been a childish one. It might reflect what shehopedwould happen—she didn’t want to need to use his number—but it didn’t reflect reality. If the powers that be had decided they needed to work together, then they’d have to figure out a way to work together. As was often the case in her life and with the line of work she’d chosen, what she wanted and what she hoped were irrelevant.
* * *
After Gavin left and she’d had her fill of Octo pastries, she retreated to her room and dressed for the day. Based on what she’d discovered the night before, she had more than a few things to follow up on. But before she had the chance to turn her computer on, her phone rang. By all that was holy, Franklin was finally calling her back.
“Questo gibboso, ributtante rospo.”
Ignoring her Shakespearean insult about being a bunched-up toad, he replied, “It’s lovely to speak with you, too, Six.” Even though she’d known him more than twenty-five years and he’d only ever called Six and Devil by those names, the sound of her nickname coming from his mouth always sounded awkward enough to give her pause. Like her grandmother talking about TikTok or Snapchat.
“What the fuck, Franklin?” she demanded.
He chuckled. The asshole. “You sound like Hyacinth when she realized New Joe was sent to replace Joe.” Cyn’s Joe had replaced his uncle, who also happened to be a Joe. It was confusing at first, and on occasion, they still referred to Cyn’s Joe as “New Joe.”
“He’s a good man, Six. I picked him myself,” he added.
Yet another statement that gave her pause. “Picked him for what?” Six asked, almost wishing she hadn’t. If Franklin confirmed her suspicion that he was playing matchmaker, she was going to castrate him. Or maybe go into hiding.
There weren’t many things that scared her, but the thought of Franklin playing puppeteer to her love life was one of them. But only because he was a man who didn’t fail. He was a legend in the field and a legend for a reason. If he’d decided she needed a life partner, then she was screwed.
“For you, dear. Of course.”
That ambiguous statement helped not at all. Deciding she didn’t want to pursue this line of questioning, she changed her tactic. “What exactly is he supposed to do? I get why you sent New Joe. Having someone in law enforcement is helpful. But having someone like Gavin? Someone who has as much right to operate in this country as I do—which is none—makes no sense.” Oops, she’d opened the door she hadn’t wanted to. Not that she thought Franklin would suddenly say, “You’re right! I picked him for you because I thought you’d make beautiful babies.” But she needed to stay far away from any line of discussion that could lead to her personal life.
“Never mind,” she muttered. “Just tell me, youdidsend him, right?” She believed Gavin about that, but she wanted to hear it from Franklin himself.
“Six, you will need to learn to trust him. I know he told you about meeting me.”
“Yes, well, I just learned who he was less than thirty-six hours ago, so thank you very much but I’ll continue to withhold judgment.”
He sighed. “The four of you. You give me so much trouble.”
She snorted. “If by trouble, you mean we question your interference in our personal lives, then yes, we do.” Franklin was Cyn’s uncle, but he’d more or less adopted the rest of them as his nieces once Cyn claimed them as her new best friends. Six was aware that he traveled a thin line being both their handler and a surrogate uncle. But he’d chosen that path more than twenty years ago, and he hadn’t walked away yet. If he was going to treat her like family, then she was going to return the favor.
He sighed again. “He’s a good man, Six. Give him a chance.”
“I don’t have a choice, do I?”
“Not really, no.”
