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What the fuck had she done and why?

“Wait right here,” I told them before heading toward the garage.

“Do you want us to walk the perimeter?” Gio called after me.

“Not yet. Give us some space and privacy. If you smell fire, head inside.” I went in through the access door, heading toward her Mazda. The hood was warm. Goddamn, the woman was clever.

What the hell had she done?

I walked into the house, closing the door after me. As I listened for any sounds, I was struck by how eerily quiet it really was. So much so I kept the weapon in my hands.

It was entirely possible she’d been forced to supply my soldiers with brownies. If so, there was another possibility this was an ambush. I walked slowly, remaining close to the walls as I headed through the house.

Just before I shifted by the kitchen doorway, I noticed a bottle of wine positioned on the end of the island. Curious, I headed closer, noticing at least a glass was missing, the counter splashed with strings of red that had yet to dry.

There were brownies covered in plastic wrap on the back counter, but nothing appeared amiss.

Still keeping quiet, I moved toward the living room. The moment I walked inside, I felt a presence, the slight crackle of electricity more jazzed than usual.

In a million years, I wouldn’t have expected to be faced with the sight in front of me. I wasn’t certain whether to laugh, become angry, or envelop her with admiration.

Sitting with her bare feet tucked up underneath her, Carmella had a glass of wine in one hand, the gun I’d provided for her in the other.

And splashed across her face was a knowing smile.

CHAPTER24

Carmella

Seeing Alejandro standing only a few feet away should do nothing but make me even angrier than I already was. Sadly, that wasn’t happening.

He’d only grabbed a leather jacket when leaving the house. There was nothing like the sight of a muscular man in supple brown leather. I couldn’t believe I was still attracted to the hunky criminal mastermind when he’d obviously been lying to me.

Possibly to my entire family and the people he’d been working for.

He slowly lowered his weapon, preparing to slide it into his jacket.

“Not so fast, dear husband of mine. Put the weapon right here on the table in front of me. Don’t try anything. Contrary to what you obviously believe, I am my father’s daughter. He not only taught me to shoot, he also ensured I was a skilled marksman. Trust me, I won’t hesitate to pull the trigger. I also have martial art training, which I have kept up with.”

I didn’t need to lift my weapon nor was I going to give him the impression his presence bothered me in the least.

What had and continued to bother the hell out of me were the images of him with a woman and a little girl. It was obvious they were a little family by their body language. Yes, the woman had been pissed at him, but the little girl had welcomed him with open arms.

Alejandro narrowed his eyes. “What exactly do you think you’re doing?”

To give him some incentive, I raised my arm, pointing the barrel at his chest. “I’d hate to get blood on your crisp white shirt.” Then I took a gulp of wine, even half closing my eyes for icing on the cake.

He shook his head, his expression holding his initial surprise. But at least he took me seriously, holding out his weapon as he took slow and careful steps in my direction. When he was near the table, he bent over, all the while keeping his eyes locked on mine. He held the gun gingerly, keeping the barrel of his Glock pointed in another direction.

“You drugged my men.”

“You seem to forget, I’m a doctor. I knew what I could use that would temporarily take them out of commission without causing permanent harm.”

“You have me curious,” he said slyly. “Did you plan this all along?”

“No, but I have a medical bag where I keep a few essentials. Something dawned on me and my feminine instinct said you were lying to me. Turns out I was right. I happen to know quite a bit about what a limited volume of particular drugs will do to a human body. At least temporarily. There won’t be any long-term effects.”

“Well, I guess there’s that.”