The crime boss had a not-so-secret habit of beating people to death with his combination of giant and dwarven strength, then dumping their bodies in the Aneirin River right outside his shipping yard.

  “I don’t know if Clyde sent the mystery man to my house, but he’s going to have to do a whole lot better than some random tough guy with a gun if he wants to scare me. I’ve dealt with far worse than that.”

  Silvio gave me a sympathetic look. “Of course you have.”

  I ground my teeth to keep from snarling at him. Silvio was a dear friend, but I always hated it whenever anyone gave me that look. The one that said how sorry they were that my father and my brother had been such horrible monsters, how much they sympathized with me, and especially how much they bloody pitied me. Sometimes I thought that look was even worse than how I’d always had to tiptoe around my father and my brother, never knowing what small, innocent, random thing might set them off.

  Okay, okay, so that look wasn’t that bad, but it still rubbed me the wrong way. I wasn’t a victim anymore, I was a survivor.

  Then again, when one of my friends was Gin Blanco, it was hard for folks to remember that I was a badass in my own right. Just like Silvio, Sophia, and the rest of our friends were smart, tough, strong, and capable in their own ways. But the legend of the Spider tended to eclipse us all.

  Silvio must have sensed my simmering ire, because he cleared his throat, focused on his tablet again, and started swiping through screens. “I’ll email these photos to Xavier right now. Maybe I can have some info to you in a couple of days.”

  “Anything you and Xavier can dig up would be great,” I replied, forcing my voice to remain calm and even. “Maybe this guy was creeping around on Clyde’s orders, or maybe he was just looking for a mansion to rob. Either way, I’d like to know who he was and especially who might have moved his body.”

  “I’m on it.” Silvio glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. “By the way, how are your interviews going? Have you hired a new number two yet?”

  The image of all those manila folders waiting on my desk flashed through my mind, and once again, I had to grind my teeth to keep from snarling. It took me a few seconds to unlock my jaw and answer Silvio.

  “I have some more interviews set up with potential replacements today.” A thought occurred to me, and I leaned forward and gave the vampire my warmest, friendliest, and most enticing smile. “Although I will cancel them all immediately if you come work for me, Silvio. I’ll double your salary, give you a company car, anything you want.”

  I wasn’t joking. I would double, triple, quadruple Silvio’s salary if I thought I could steal him away from Gin. He was an excellent assistant, and he would make my work life so much easier.

  He laughed and shook his head. “As tempting as your offer is, I’m happy here.”

  I let out a loud, overly dramatic sigh. “I know you are. Darn it.”

  Silvio grinned back at me, then returned to his tablet.

  By this point, it was almost one o’clock and way past time for me to go to work. I paid my bill and was waiting for Sophia to fix me a to-go lemonade when the bell over the front door chimed. I didn’t pay any attention to it, but Silvio glanced over his shoulder. His gray eyes narrowed, and his lips puckered, as though he had just bitten into something sour.

  “Remember what I said about no bad guys coming into the restaurant while Gin’s been gone?” he muttered. “Well, I was wrong about that.”

  Sophia turned away from the stoves to see who he was talking about. I also looked over at the door and froze, just like I had in Underwood’s last night.

  Because for the second time in two days, Hugh Tucker had just strolled into the restaurant where I was eating.

  Tucker stepped into the Pork Pit like he was just another hungry customer in search of a hearty barbecue lunch. He shrugged out of his long black overcoat and hung it on the rack by the front door. Mesmerized, I watched his smooth, fluid movements, along with how his dark gray suit hugged his body, hinting at the hard, lean muscles underneath. Tucker was far from the first man I’d seen in a suit, but somehow he transformed standard business attire into a work of art.

  Tucker’s eyes met mine. The corner of his mouth quirked up, as though he realized I’d been checking him out. He prowled in this direction, and I resisted the urge to look away. The second you looked away was usually the moment when the predator in front of you chose to strike, and Hugh Tucker was most definitely a predator.

  He stopped beside me and tipped his head to Silvio, then Sophia. “Well, I see most of the usual gang is here. Where’s Gin? Out killing someone on this cold day?”

  Silvio spun around on his stool and crossed his arms over his chest. “You know as well as I do that she is currently on vacation.”

  “Good for her,” Tucker murmured, then focused on me again. “Ms. Parker. May I have a word?”

  “Certainly,” I drawled. “What word would you like? Arrogant? Inscrutable? Annoying jackass?”

  He arched a black eyebrow. “That’s two words.”

  “And yet they both fit you so perfectly.”

  His eyebrow arched a little higher, but he gestured over at an empty booth. “Let me buy you a lemonade. Please.”

  Silvio and Sophia both looked at me, questions in their eyes, but I shrugged at them. I didn’t know why Tucker was here or what he wanted, but I’d play along—for now.

  Besides, we weren’t exactly enemies, and he wasn’t stupid enough to attack me in the restaurant. Not when Silvio looked like he wanted to bludgeon the vampire with his tablet, and Sophia was clutching a tomato knife with a serrated blade that was longer than her hand.

  I stood up, and Tucker held his arm out to me in a clear challenge. I rolled my eyes, but I wasn’t one to back down, so I threaded my arm through his and let him escort me over to one of the booths by the windows. Tucker waited until I was settled in one side of the booth before sliding into the opposite half.

  Sophia stalked over and slapped a menu down in front of Tucker, along with handing me a to-go cup of lemonade. Then she crossed her arms over her chest, making her biceps bulge, and glared down her nose at the vampire.

  “I’ll have a barbecue chicken platter with all the fixings, along with an unsweetened iced tea with lemon,” Tucker said.

  Sophia gave him another hot glare, then grabbed the menu and stalked back behind the counter to fix his food. Silvio returned to his tablet, although he kept sneaking glances at us, ready to leap to my aid should the need arise.

  “Unsweetened tea?” I drawled. “That’s not very Southern of you, Mr. Tucker.”

  Yes, it was a stupid thing to say, but those were the first words that popped into my mind, and I desperately needed to distract myself from the way Tucker’s shirt clung to his chest.

  “Some of us are trying to watch our intake of sweets, Ms. Parker.”

  “Well, I’ve never been one of those people. Sugar is the lifeblood of many a Southerner, myself included.”

  Amusement danced in his eyes. “I know. I can literally smell the sugar in your lemonade.” His gaze dropped to my lips. “And on you too.”

  Heat flooded my body, and I resisted the urge to shift in my seat.

  “You always seem to have one sweet treat or another nearby,” Tucker continued. “Like that dessert you were eating last night at Underwood’s. Or the petit fours you were nibbling on when we met at the Eaton Estate.”

  More heat flooded my body, and in an instant, my cheeks were burning even hotter than the restaurant’s stovetops. Several weeks ago, I had attended an auction at the Eaton Estate, along with Gin and some of our other friends. Gin had pointed out Tucker to me, and I’d been struck by how smooth, polished, and darkly handsome he was.

  “Do you remember our conversation at the Eaton Estate?” Tucker asked. “Because I certainly do.”

  A third wave of heat zipped through my body, but I shrugged, as though I was as cool and calm as he appeared to be. “We talked about some books we had both read. Nothing important.”

  After Gin had pointed him out, I’d run into Tucker later that evening, in one of the Eaton mansion’s many libraries. I had found him perusing a shelf of fantasy books, and I’d been mesmerized by the way his fingers had skimmed over the leather covers, as though the books were beautiful treasures that he needed to handle with care.

  I’d started to sneak away, but of course, Tucker had heard me with his sensitive vampire ears. Instead of hissing threats as expected, he had been a perfect gentleman, inquiring about what kinds of books I liked to read and which ones I might bid on during the auction. Our conversation had been strangely fascinating, especially since he seemed to enjoy so many of the same books and authors that I did.

  Our next encounter hadn’t been nearly as pleasant.

  Tucker had been waiting at the Mitchell family mansion when Emery Slater and her giants had kidnapped me, Gin, and Bria from the Posh boutique parking lot. Despite all the threats of violence on both sides, Tucker had once again been a perfect gentleman, offering me his arm and escorting me inside the mansion. He’d even shielded me from one of the giants who’d wanted to hit me. I didn’t need his protection, but part of me had appreciated it all the same.

  Only a few people had ever stuck up for me, much less tried to protect me. Lily Rose, Mallory, Mosley, Gin. And then Tucker, even though he was working for Mason Mitchell at the time. The vampire had a strange sense of honor that I found oddly appealing.

  Even when I’d scuffled with Tucker in the woods around the Circle family cemetery, I never thought he truly wanted to harm me, not even after I’d stabbed him in the thigh with an elemental Ice dagger so that Gin, Bria, and I could escape.

  Tucker frowned at my quick dismissal of our previous conversation. I also thought a bit of hurt flickered across his face, but he was so hard to read that I couldn’t tell for certain.

  “What do you want?” I asked, annoyed by both my attraction to him and the fact that he hadn’t told me why he was really here. “My lunch break is over, and I have a business to run.”

  “Yes, your business. That’s what I want to speak to you about.” He reached into his jacket pocket, drew out a folded piece of paper, and slid it across the tabletop to me. “I have a proposition for you.”

  His face was once again schooled into a calm, blank mask, and I couldn’t tell if there was any hidden meaning behind his cryptic words. So I grabbed the paper, opened it, and scanned the contents.

  Surprise zipped through me, and I looked up at him. “This is an offer from Clyde O’Neal to buy my shipping yard.”

  Tucker nodded. “Yes, it is. A very generous offer.”

  “So that’s what you and Clyde were celebrating at Underwood’s last night. You’re working for him now.”

  Tucker nodded again.

  My eyes narrowed. “You could have your pick of any underworld boss in Ashland, or better yet, start your own crew. So why work for Clyde O’Neal? He’s a pompous, overbearing jackass who thinks he’s bigger, stronger, tougher, and smarter than he truly is. He’ll never listen to you, no matter how good your advice is.”

  Tucker shrugged one shoulder, although I couldn’t tell if he was agreeing or disagreeing with me. “What’s that old saying? The price was right. Clyde offered me a substantial bonus for joining his organization, as long as I can meet certain performance requirements.”

  “Like getting me to sell my shipping yard to him,” I said in a cold, flat voice.

  “Something like that.”

  Disbelief filled me. After Tucker had saved me from the falling rubble at the Mitchell mansion, I’d thought… Well, I wasn’t quite sure what I’d thought. At the bare minimum, that he was as interested in me as I was in him. Then, later on, when Gin had told me that he was staying in Ashland, I’d thought… Well, once again I wasn’t quite sure what I’d thought.

  That Tucker would call me? That we might go on a date? That we might finally explore this strange attraction between us? I should have known better. Hugh Tucker was simply a duplicitous pile of danger wrapped up in an extremely handsome, appealing package. Nothing more, nothing less.

  I was such an idiot.

  Anger sizzled through me, scorching through my disbelief and embarrassment. I grabbed the paper with both hands and slowly, deliberately, ruthlessly balled it up, cramming it into as tight a knot as I could manage. Then I set the wad down on the tabletop and used my finger to flick it back over to him. The ball of paper hit Tucker’s chest and bounced off, making him flinch.

  “You can tell Clyde exactly what I think of his offer,” I growled.

  “You’re making a mistake.”

  “Why? Because I won’t give in to an arrogant bully who’s suddenly decided that he wants my shipping yard for some obscure reason?” I snorted. “Please. Do you know how many underworld bosses have threatened me over the years? I’m still here, and most of them are not.”

  Tucker shook his head. “Clyde is different.”

  “Why? Because you’re working for him now?”

  “Something like that.”

  Even more anger sizzled in my chest, and I leaned forward and stared him down. “I don’t care if you’re working for Clyde. My answer is still the same: no. So eat your food, scurry back to your new boss, and tell him the bad news. You’re good at being an errand boy.”

  Once again, I could have sworn that hurt flickered across Tucker’s face, but it was gone in an instant. Either way, the thought that I might have wounded him made something sick and oily squirm in my gut: shame.

  I knew exactly what it was like to be cut down with cruel words when you hadn’t done anything wrong, and yet here I was, doing the same thing to Tucker that my father and brother had done to me. I was better than that. I was better than them.

  I exhaled. “I’m sorry. Who you work for and how you go about it is your business, not mine.”

  Tucker’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, but he tipped his head, acknowledging my point and my apology.

  “Either way, my answer remains the same,” I continued in a calmer voice. “I’m not selling my shipping yard to Clyde O’Neal or anyone else.”

  I slid out of the booth, got to my feet, and grabbed my lemonade. I started to leave, but the image of the dead guy in the woods popped into my mind, so I stopped and looked at Tucker again.

  “And if something unfortunate were to happen to me, you can tell Clyde that he wouldn’t be able to get the shipping yard from Mallory either. We have multiple safeguards in place to prevent things like that from happening.”

  Tucker tipped his head again. “Understood. I’ll convey your message.”

  I nodded back at him, matching his politeness. “Good day, Mr. Tucker.”

  “And to you as well, Ms. Parker,” he drawled right back at me.

  I stared at him a heartbeat longer, then spun around on my heel and stalked away.

  Chapter Five

  I marched back over to where Silvio and Sophia were waiting at the counter and plopped down on my previous stool. I also set my to-go lemonade on the countertop and pushed it away. I didn’t want it anymore.

  “Problems?” Sophia rasped, still clutching that serrated knife and eyeing Tucker like she wanted to fillet him like a fish.

  “Tucker had a business proposition, but I turned him down.”

  “Did I hear you right?” Silvio asked. “Is he really working for Clyde O’Neal?”

  “I didn’t realize you were such an eavesdropper.”

  He shrugged, not the least bit chastised. “I have excellent hearing, just like most vampires do. Besides, eavesdropping has become second nature. Gin doesn’t tell me half the trouble she gets into, and I need some way to keep tabs on her. Eavesdropping is one of the many tools in my arsenal.”

  “You know that’s totally creepy, right?”

  Silvio shrugged again.

  I sighed. “But yes, Tucker is working for Clyde O’Neal.”

  “Do you need help, Lorelei?” Sophia rasped.

  “Nah. Clyde has been after my shipping yard for months, and he’s not the only underworld boss who’s approached me about selling it. I can handle him and all the others.”

  “Well, if you need anything, you just let us know,” Silvio said.

  “Anything at all,” Sophia agreed.

  As tempting as it was, I had no intention of asking them to intervene with Clyde O’Neal or any of my other enemies. That would be admitting I was too weak to handle such threats myself. And once word got around that I was asking my friends for help, well, that would make me even more of a target for all the underworld bosses. Nothing brought out the sharks like the scent of blood in the water.

  Even worse, it would make me feel weak. After my mother had been murdered, I had made a vow that I would never be weak again, that I would never let someone make me feel small and stupid and at fault the way my father and my brother so often had.

  Silvio and Sophia kept staring at me, so I forced myself to smile at them. “Of course, I’ll reach out if I need anything. That’s what friends are for, right?”

  They both nodded, not seeming to notice my tight expression or hear the blatant lie in my voice.

  I chatted with Silvio and Sophia several more minutes, then left the Pork Pit.

  Tucker had already wolfed down his food, paid, and exited the restaurant, but I still found myself scanning the people moving along the sidewalks. It would be foolish not to look for him, given that I’d just turned down his boss’s offer. At least, that’s what I told myself. But I had just lied to Silvio and Sophia, and now I was lying to myself too.

  I was looking for the vampire because I wanted to see him again, even though I knew he was employed by my enemy.

  But I didn’t spot Tucker lurking in any of the alleys, and I reached the street where my car was. When I’d parked here before lunch, the area had been teeming with people and vehicles. But now that lunch was over, everyone had vanished inside to return to work, and the street was deserted, with nary a soul in sight. I didn’t hear any whispers of emotion from the surrounding brick buildings, not like Gin did with her Stone power, but metal was an offshoot of Stone, and my magic often gave me a sense of sound and vibration, of people and objects moving around, like audible peals and invisible waves emanating from a ringing bell.