Page 100 of Tough as Steele

His gaze flamed then hardened into dark lava. “Turns out Jessica was playing us all. Not that I fell for her, but the other guys did and let that get in the way of their work. You don’t follow directions, I don’t need you.”

“How did you hook up with them?” Londyn asked.

“Met Jessica in the bar, and she knew Wigg and Gaskin and vouched for them. I didn’t need much more than warm bodies to get the old lady out of the house and guard her. And guys who could keep their mouths closed. What I didn’t need was the romance drama Jessica brought.” He ended his comment with an icy glare fixed on Nate. “She tried to play me. End of story. You don’t ever play me and live. Might take me a few years to pay you back, but I always do in the end.”

“If that’s the case, why not take me out like you tried to do and failed at Mimi’s house? Missed, didn’t you.” Nate grinned.

Londyn didn’t think it was a good idea to make Holt mad right now, but Nate knew what he was doing. She needed to do her part too. She was the closest person to Holt, and she had to figure out how to get ahold of the switch without blowing anyone up. She couldn’t overpower him, but he had a large bloody bandage on his forearm, and the right kind of pressure or a solid punch to the wound might distract him long enough for her to take control of the remote.

“Did you trash Jessica’s place?” she asked to distract him.

“Made a real mess of it.” Holt chuckled. “But I had to be sure she wasn’t hiding anything I didn’t want you to see.”

“So you wanted us to find the letter?” Nate asked.

“And you obviously figured it out.” Holt shook his head. “It was so simple even a baby could find the message. I was going to lead you to Wigg. You’d have found the old lady too by that time, but she wouldn’t have been talking. ’Course that was before everything hit the fan and I had to go to plan B.”

As Holt droned on and on about his master plan to take Mimi, Londyn weighed her options. Decision made to attack the wound, she looked at Nate. He cut his gaze to her, and she signaled with as little movement as possible that she was going for the remote.

Nate cut his eyes to the side, his gaze frantic.

She couldn’t let his opinion sway her. She had to end this and do it safely.

“Sorry to interrupt,” she said to Holt, casting him a broad smile. “But you mentioned partying. Do you still want to do that?”

He ran his hands down his torso. “Eager for all of this, are you?”

“You’re sure not a hardship to look at,” she said, trying to flirt and failing miserably.

“I’ve always been eye candy to the ladies.” He grinned, somehow believing her.

She smiled back at him, fearing she might throw up as he stepped closer.

With gritted teeth, she continued to hold the fake smile. He fingered her hair, and she widened her smile. “We should get that party started.”

“Here’s the thing, sweetheart. I let you step off that switch, and your He-man there will go all kamikaze on me.”

She rested her hand on the injured arm. “And you’re already hurt.”

“Turns out Wigg liked knives. But it’ll be fine.”

“What happened to Wigg, anyway?” she asked sweetly to get him to answer.

“I went to all this work to set him up, but then I take Jessica out and he goes crazy.” Holt shook his head as if he couldn’t believe Wigg could act that way. “So now he’s taking a dirt nap out back on his property.”

This man—this lunatic—had killed three people. She wouldn’t let him kill three more.

She let her fingers trail down his arm to the edge of the bandage and peered up at him with a playful smile. “I have medical training. I could nurse you back to health.”

She heard Nate shift, and a low growl come from under his breath.

Holt locked gazes with her, his interest firmly on her and only her.

Now!Now was the time. She signaled Nate with a cut of her eyes, and with Holt’s gaze fixed to hers, she clamped her fingers around the wound and dug hard.

He yelped. She grabbed the switch and wrenched it free but remained on the step.

Nate barreled into Holt, taking him down to the ground. They wrestled. Back and forth. Evenly matched. Strength on strength. Determination matched.

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