“But—”
“It’s done, Nic. Take it up with Alamandos. I’m sure he has a safehouse you can pretend to guard.” Boz keeps poking at him. “Maybe a nightclub if you’re lucky. Traumatizing women is your favorite pastime, after all.”
Nic’s expression turns to stone, but it doesn’t faze Boz. He lets go of my thigh, picks up the phone and speaks into it. “Nic is done. And when I say done, I mean don’t let him back in after you show him out. Tell June that Landyn and I are ready for breakfast.”
The next thing I know, two men in suits enter the office from the hall.
But Nic doesn’t move.
Neither does Boz.
Just when I think we’re going to have a repeat of dinner last night with guns flying, Nic juts to his feet. But he doesn’t leave before delivering my husband one last warning as he points at us from across the desk. “You might’ve fooled Damian and my uncle, but not me. Watch your back, Torres. I’ve got eyes on you. The first misstep you take, I’ll ruin you in a way that’ll make you an example to anyone else who tries to dig their way into our family.”
“I might not have Marino blood running in my veins, but at least I’m not an incapable asshat and a thief.” Boz nods to the men at the door. “Show him out—for the last time.”
Nic shrugs off one of the guards and storms out of the room. The last guard shuts the door, but not before Nic yells at them one last time to keep their hands off him.
Boz’s hand slides from my ass to my waist. I feel him exhale as he drags a hand down his face.
I should move off his lap, but I can’t. My palms are clammy, and my heart is racing.
I clinch the silk robe at my breasts and hold it tight. “Is your business always this intense? I mean, at least there weren’t any guns today, I guess.”
Boz turns to me, and the only thing I see is his chiseled jaw, full lips, and impossibly dark eyes. “Nic is a fuckwad, and everyone here knows it. He was patted down before he was allowed in the house, not that I trust him even without a gun. I wasn’t worried. He and his father are trying to make a play on Alamandos now that Damian is out of the picture. They need me out of the way.”
I lick my dry lips and swallow over the lump in my throat. “But Alamandos trusts you?”
“Damian trusted me, and Alamandos knows it. He also knows I’m capable of handling things here.” Boz puts his hands to my waist and sets me on my feet. “June will be up soon with coffee and breakfast. I need to make a phone call, then I’ll join you. We need to talk.”
Talk.
I wonder if talk is cartel code for getting naked. I don’t know how much longer he’ll let me avoid consummating our marriage.
A chill runs down my spine, and I have to hug myself again to cover my nipples from poking through the thin layers of silk.
“I’m not hungry,” I lie. I’m starving. The wine last night burned a hole in my stomach. I need coffee and food in the worst way.
Boz turns to his computer and mutters, “Then you can sit and listen. Give me five minutes. Shut the door behind you.”
His words are cold, and his order is clear. I don’t have to be told twice. I turn on my bare foot and move to the double doors that lead to our bedroom with my messy hair flowing behind me.
I don’t give a shit if talk does mean get naked.
I’m not talking, getting naked, or listening.
If my groom wants me, he’s going to have to damn well bust through the bathroom doors to get to me. I don’t care how hot Boz is or how my body reacts to him, I’m not showering with anyone.
I might not be able to hold him off forever, but it’s not happening today.
I ignore the knock on our bedroom door that’s no doubt June. If dinner last night is any indication of how good breakfast will be, it’s not easy to ignore.
I move across the room before Boz wants to join me for any type of talking—literal or metaphorical. He might like to boss me around in front of other people, but not when it’s the two of us.
He can kiss my ass.
* * *
Brax