Page 42

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” I hated that he went there. I was over Trissa. Why did everyone insist that I wasn’t?
His tired laugh echoed in the small space. “Killian, I sniff out lies for a living. And besides, you’re not that great of a liar. Barely a step above Trissa, and that’s only due to your performing skills. We all knew how you felt about her then. I can see you feel something for her now.”
“Fuck you, Judd.” I paced the room. “If you see anything, it’s sexual attraction.”
He shook his head and raised his eyebrows.
“Did everyone fucking know?” I ground out through clenched teeth. So much for thinking I’d been subtle back then. That I’d been able to keep my infatuation under wraps.
He shrugged. “Everyone except her. I never knew what she saw in Peter. He was arrogant then, too. The only time he was decent was with Jane.”
Peter had a fucked up childhood, which was not uncommon in the group home. Most of us were too old to be considered for adoption, so we aged out of the system. At least we got to stay in one place while we did it. Unlike the rest of us, Peter and his younger sister kept getting jerked around by their asshole parents. It made me grateful my own were dead.
“It’s probably good that the old feelings aren’t resurging for you then,” Judd said, his attention returning to the paperwork before him.
“Is that so?” Knowing Judd, he had more to say and would only say it when he was ready. It drove me crazy.
“Yup.” He signed his name with a flourish to the next paper. He knew what he was doing.
I gritted my teeth to stop myself from sayingand …
“Anyway, we’ll keep you here until morning. Your lawyer will come in, raise hell about some technicality, and we’ll release you. Should keep your cover safe.”
My fucking cover.
I’d have to talk to Jareth and let him know about my involvement with the DEA sooner rather than later with the mixup tonight. His team would have to mitigate the fallout with the press. Thank God, Jareth only hired the best. I was confident he could spin everything in a way that would benefit me.
Plus my assistant Oliver Smee needed to know so he could do damage control and work with Jareth’s people.
Even though they discreetly took Tris off the yacht, I’d never shake the image of her face. The firm press of her lips, the pinched look in her eyes, the pallor of her skin … the disappointment that replaced her fear when she saw me.
I hated that she felt evenone ounceof disappointment in me.
“Killian,” Judd’s voice cut through my thoughts. “Be careful. Don’t let your feelings for Trissa compromise the operation.”
And there it was.
“I don’t have feelings for Tris.” Maybe if I said it enough, he’d believe me. Now I just had to sit here and wait for my lawyer to show up and do my bestnotto think of the sexy, curvy goddess that I couldn’t stop obsessing over.
The late afternoon sun created long shadows across the VS Music Production parking lot. A gentle breeze carried the faint scent of coffee from a nearby café, mingling with the metallic tang of city air. In the backseat of the car, I drummed my fingers against the cushion beside me, the half-formed rhythm in my head a constant reminder of a song that was just out of reach and how my creative muse had seemed to desert me over the past year.
Max’s gaze met mine in the rearview mirror. It had only been twenty-four hours since I’d been released, yet I found myself stalking Trissa, unable to leave things the way they were.
“She’ll be out soon,” I said, unsure if I was reminding him or myself.
After a shitty day of attempted songwriting, I decided to find Tris. Yesterday, Judd had asked her where she’d be on Monday if he needed to reach out to her for a follow-up. She’d mentioned being at VS Music Production, in meetings on Peter’s behalf.
I checked my watch. She should’ve left thirty minutes ago. If she didn’t come out soon, I’d go in and find her. Maybe I’d bump into Peter, and I could tell him what a dick he was. Although with my luck, I’d run into Jareth, and he was thelastperson I wanted to see. He hadn’t been pleased with my deception and undercover work when I’d spoken to him this morning. Especially since it could affect my career and his business.
Tris emerged from the building, and my heart rate quickened. She had a slight furrow in her brow and tension in her shoulders as she spoke with another woman. A mixture of anticipation and regret churned in my stomach.
I exited the car and leaned against the open door, waiting for her to walk closer instead of calling out to her.
Tris chatted with the other woman, and nodded a few times all while barely hiding the faint scowl lining her face. She appeared irritated but I could tell she was trying to stay cool. I wondered if this might be the Wendy Darling that got my girl in such an uproar the other day.
Notmy girl.
What the fuck was I thinking?