Page 3

“It’s my name,” I told him on a tired sigh.

“Her last name doesn’t matter,” Quinton said.

I jumped at the sound of his voice and sudden appearance.

Quinton never interrupted my afternoon meetings with Adrian. Never. No one did.

Quinton walked towards me on bare feet, which is how he’d managed to enter the study without being heard. He usually wore cowboy boots everywhere.

Today, he wore dark blue jeans, a towel around his shoulders, and nothing else. His jeans rode low on his slim hips.

I had to force myself to look up from the dark trail of hair leading down into his jeans.

“If she needs a new last name,” Quinton said in his deep voice, “she can have mine.”

I grinned at Quinton and shook my head. “I don’t need a new last name, but thanks anyways.”

Quinton shrugged his shoulders, and I noticed how tense his body was.

“When you’re ready for it, babe, you just let me know, and Iwillmake it happen.”

The smile immediately slid off my face.

“What exactly are you talking about?” I asked in a rush. I had a sneaking suspicion he meant I could take on his last name when he slid a ring on my finger. And knowing Quint, it would probably be one with a really big freaking rock.

Quinton flashed me a big grin before he wiped his face completely blank and his head swiveled to the side and he glared angrily at Adrian.

Better Adrian than me.

“Yourdriverjust knocked on my front door,” Quinton growled at Adrian. “You want to explain to me exactly what in the fuck is going on here?”

I sat up straight in my chair as I eyed Adrian. Adrian the badass Council member paled under Quinton’s angry eyes.

“What’s this?” I asked in a careful voice, not understanding why Adrian’s driver knocking on the front door would have Quinton so upset. “His driver drops him off every time he comes here. You know this, Quinton. He doesn’t drive himself anywhere. I don’t think any of the Council members do.”

And wasn’t that the truth. Adrian was a total snob who did next to nothing for himself. I doubted he even picked out what clothes he was going to wear for the day. He certainly didn’t drive himself places, it was beneath him.

I wondered what I would have to do to get my own driver. It would probably be fun for a while, but then I would miss driving my Rover around.

“Yeah,” Quinton ground out, “but have you ever seen his driver before?”

I shook my head.

“No,” I said.

It had never seemed important before. I had assumed it was just some Council underling; I’d thought they probably had plenty of them staying at the motel with them.

“Well, this one’s really fucking special,” Quinton growled. “I cannot believe you had the balls to bring him here, Adrian. You took this one too far.”

“What’s going on?” I demanded to know. “Quinton? Who knocked on the door? Who’s here?”

Quinton nodded his head in Adrian’s direction. “Why don’t you ask him. He’s the one who brought the asshole here.”

“Adrian?” I asked in quiet, hesitant voice. My stomach started to knot up, and I had a really bad feeling about what was going on. I didn’t think I was going to like this. If Quinton didn’t like it, then I knew it was bad news and I certainly wouldn’t like it.

Adrian calmly stood up from the chair and spread his arms wide.

“Now, now, Quinton.” Adrian said in a mocking voice. “You are spoiling my surprise.”