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Rich's eyes flicked to where I sat across from his desk. "You're the face of our legitimate business, Az. We can't afford to risk you getting locked up again. Joey and Leighton are already getting the guys in place, and Craig is already set up across the street watching the security systems. That means one of us needs to go watch Craig's back, and it can't be you."

Two days ago, one of Joey's informants had called with intel the Jackals would be attacking our warehouse on Senna. None of us wanted to leave laying a trap for them up to our guys after finding out there was a mole in our organization. It had been decided that the four of them would lay in wait to catch Lenny Moretti and however many Jackals they could in the hopes of learning more about how Rinaldo Marino had managed to purchase Victoria. Or, at the very least, reveal a weakness we could exploit to get the consigliere to back off.

"We don't exactly get along." I groaned, raking a hand through my hair. "There's no guarantee she won't realize she's here alone with me and take off."

"Jace and his crew are on the grounds. If, and that's a bigif, she tries to bolt, she won't get past them." Rich replied."Besides, this could be the perfect opportunity for you to stop antagonizing her and show her who you really are."

Rich glanced at his watch as I shrugged. "I'm not promising anything."

"As much as I would love to sit here while you sort yourself out, Az, we don't have time for it. The Princess is already aware that you're her babysitter, so unless you intend to let her run, I need to head out and get in position."

"I'm not going to let her run, you know that." I balked.

"Good. Now go put on your big boy pants and watch her." Rich said, standing from his desk. "If I waste anymore time holding your hand, I'll be leaving Craig without cover."

"Go," I sighed, waving my hand at him. "I'll figure out how to hold down the fort."

Rich shook his head and strolled toward the door. He paused for just a moment and looked at me over his shoulder. "Stop acting like she's the monster under your bed. She's not going to bite." He chuckled before disappearing out of sight.

I remained in the chair for a few more minutes, gathering my thoughts. It was still early. The guys had all agreed that the best plan was to get into position around dusk in case the Jackals moved up their planned attack time. Craig had left even earlier than the rest, claiming he had more cameras he wanted to set up around the warehouse to ensure there weren't any blind spots. That meant he hadn't been home to cook dinner.

My stomach growled, allowing my mind to lock onto a plan. I couldn't remember the last time we'd had takeout; we hadn't eaten out since we arrived at the manor. Deciding I was in the mood for pizza, I allowed my feet to carry me toward the Princess's rooms. Before I could let my doubts creep back in, I knocked.

"Can I help you?" Victoria scowled after she jerked the door open.

"I thought you might be hungry." I shrugged. "Craig's not here to cook, and I'm a microwave chef, so I'm gonna order pizza. If you're interested."

Her eyes narrowed at me. "Why are you being nice to me? What's the catch, Az?"

"No catch," I replied, raising my hands in the air. "Figured I'd make the offer. But if you'd rather sit in here and sulk, be my guest."

"I'm not sulking." she scoffed before jabbing a finger into my chest. "You just have a tendency to be a raging Az-hole, so excuse me if I question your motives."

"You're not exactly a basket of roses yourself, Princess. But I'm tired of this, so I'm offering a truce. How long it lasts is up to you, I suppose." I stepped back and motioned to invite her out of her room. "I can be nice, can you?"

I walked away from the door, leaving her to her own choices, and made a quick call to place the pizza order while I made my way to my bedroom. I texted Jace to let him and his crew know we were expecting a delivery. He responded with something vaguely vulgar, reinforcing my displeasure with him being on the grounds. Ignoring his crude reply, I stuffed my phone in my jeans pocket. I gathered my Dungeons and Dragons books, notebooks, and dice bag before heading to the dining room. I barely spread my stuff on the table when the Princess strolled into the room.

"What are you doing?" She asked, pausing just inside the entryway.

"Well, since I'm stuck here tonight, I figured I'd plan out the next D&D session." I replied.

"Oh?" She perked up a bit and moved toward the table. "What does that entail?"

I allowed my eyes to roam over her, assessing her sincerity. "I can teach you, if you want. None of the guys are ever interested in DMing, so I usually do this part alone."

I pulled a chair out and motioned for her to come sit. She hesitated momentarily, looking like she wasn't sure she wanted to, before closing the distance and sitting next to me. I stared at her briefly, surprised she'd actually done it.

"So, uh, when the last session ended, your character, Elarra, killed the dragon Uldr. I have some loose plot notes going ahead, but I need to make sure I'm prepared for the return trip and what happens next."

"How do you figure that out?" she leaned closer, scanning my books and notebooks lying open on the table.

"Well, Princess. What do you think happens next?" I prodded.

"I just sort of assumed that when I killed the dragon, the game was over." She shrugged.

I chuckled softly and shook my head. "The game lasts as long as we want it to or until we finish the story."

"And you're the one that decides the story." She said as her eyes flitted to me. "No wonder you're such a prick. All that power must have gone to your head."