Page 37

“I have something you would like to see,” she says, holding the folder up, a mischievous smile dancing on her lips.
My brow crooks up with curiosity. “What’s there?” I ask, nudging my head towards the folder.
“Reports from six different mafia families, including the Ahmed family, which was reportedly charred to pieces only six days ago, and the mafia family who is suspected to have been led by Ezra...”
I yank the folder from her hand, toss it into the drawer of my table, and go over to where she is seated.
All the while her eyes are on me, tracking my every move.
“Before you continue, I would like to make sure you’re clean.”
“Clean?” She raises her head up at me. “What does that even mean?”
“You’ll see,” I grab her arm and pull her out of the chair, leaving barely a hair’s breadth between us.
“W…what are you doing?” she asks, blinking rapidly.
I slide my fingers into her well-arranged hair, massaging her scalp gently, then move from there to the back of her ears, trailing my fingers to her neck, sliding them down to the neckline of her dress.
She sucks in her breath sharply as my fingers linger on her neckline, stopping just above her breasts.
I resist the urge to cup them in my palms. From where I stand, they seem to be a perfect fit for me.
I swallow hard and move over the sleeves of her dress, then part her hands slightly with mine and move to her ribs. She flinches when my hand caresses her sides, still taking in those sharp breaths as if they could somehow help her bear the effects of my touch.
When my hands slide down to her hips, her brown eyes raise to catch mine.
My hands still when I see her soft, pink lips part slightly; I don’t know what shade of lipstick she has on her lips, but it sure is sexy as hell.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I’m certain she wants to yell at me, but it comes out as a whisper.
“You’re clean,” I announce, clenching my hands into fists and sliding them into my pocket.
“Wait, you thought I was a rat?”
I raise a brow at her and head back to my chair.
“Fuck you!”
“Don’t make a big deal out of it, Princess. It’s protocol.”
She purses her lips, too flustered to retort back at me, then goes back to slump into the other leather chair.
“You’re welcome, by the way,” she spits, running her lashes up and down in a disgusted look.
I shake my head and pick up my phone. If Deputy Chief Abruzzi has a lead on my family, it wouldn’t be long before he discovers that I’m the leader and not Ezra.
“Besides,” she interjects, “who’s this Ezra guy?”
“Ezra...” A fond smile touches my lips. “Ezra is the kind of man who could silence a room just by walking into it. But it isn’t just his height, though standing at six feet, he towers a little over me and most men. It is the way he carries himself. There is something effortless about the way he moves, like every step is calculated.”
Her large eyes are staring at me, clearly entranced with my description of Ezra.
“His green eyes have a way of pinning you in place, sharp enough to slice through your defenses yet warm enough to make you forget he is the most dangerous man in the room. He doesn’t need to raise his voice to command respect; his power is in the way people want to follow him.”
“He seems like an intriguing man,” she says with this dreamy look on her face.
“He’s way beyond intriguing.”