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“And?” She leans forward, paperwork momentarily forgotten. “Details, woman. I’m living vicariously here.”

“And,” I bite my lip, remembering the intensity in his dark eyes, the way his hands shook as he touched me. “And it was perfect. He was perfect.”

God, I sound like a lovesick fool.

But maybe that’s exactly what I am. Maybe that’s not such a bad thing.

“You deserve it, you know.” Rissa’s voice softens. “After everything with Ryan, with James and Rose, you deserve to be happy.”

The mention of my sister and brother-in-law sends a familiar pang through my chest. Would Rose approve of Zeke? Of this complicated, messy life I’ve stumbled into?

Leo.

Guilt crashes over me like a wave. Here I am, mooning over Zeke while my nephew—my responsibility, myfamily—is still missing. What kind of aunt am I?

“Hey.” Rissa reaches across the desk to squeeze my hand. “I know that look. Stop it.”

“I should be focusing on finding Leo,” I whisper. “Not getting distracted by—”

“By what? By love?” She shakes her head. “Eve, you’re allowed to feel more than one thing at a time. Being happy about Zeke doesn’t mean you care any less about Leo.”

“Doesn’t it?” I pull my hand back, running it through my curls in frustration. “I spent last night letting him, you know, while Leo’s out there somewhere, scared and alone.”

“You spent last night finding a moment of peace in the middle of chaos.” Rissa’s tone brooks no argument. “That’s not weakness, Eve. That’s survival.”

Before I can respond, her phone buzzes with an incoming text. She glances at the screen, her expression shifting from concerned friend to focused detective in an instant.

“What is it?” I straighten in my chair, recognizing that look.

“Anonymous tip.” She turns the phone so I can see. “Meeting tomorrow at the old warehouse district to discuss the Zeke problem. All the major players supposed to be there—Marcus Barone, Alessandro Costa, the whole crew.”

My heart rate kicks up. “Could be a trap.”

“Could be our best shot at finding Leo.” She starts gathering files, her movements quick and precise. “Think about it—if they’re all gathering in one place, they must be planning something big. Maybe coordinating the next phase of whatever game they’re playing.”

She’s right. This could be exactly what we need—a chance to get ahead of them, to find out what they’re really after.

“I need to tell Zeke,” I say, already reaching for my phone.

Rissa pauses. “You sure that’s wise? If we bring vigilantes into this—”

“We agreed to work together on anything involving Leo.” I meet her gaze. “I’m not going behind his back on this, Rissa. Not when he’s finally starting to trust me.”

She studies me for a long moment before nodding. “Okay. But we need a plan first. Something concrete to bring to him.”

“Agreed.” I pull out a fresh notepad, forcing myself to think like a detective rather than a worried aunt. “So what are our options?”

“I see two main plays.” She starts pacing, the way she always does when working through a problem. “One—we go in hard. Full tactical team, element of surprise. Take them all down at once and sort through the pieces afterward.”

“Risky.” I tap my pen against the pad. “If any of them slip through the net, Leo could pay the price.”

“Option two—” She stops pacing, turning to face me. “We play it subtle. Request an invite through back channels, position ourselves as potential allies or negotiators.”

“You mean go undercover?” I frown. “After what happened last time?”

“Not you.” She gestures to herself. “Me. I’m still an unknown quantity to them. They might bite if we play it right.”

“I don’t like it.” I shake my head. The thought of sending Rissa in alone makes my stomach clench. “That’s even riskier than a raid. They’ve been watching me for weeks. I’m sure that also includes you.”