Page 32 of A Quick Buck

Noah stood, throwing off the little sarong and watching Alistair’s gaze tick slowly over his body.

There. Much better.

With an extra swing of his hips, Noah kicked off his sandals and strutted over to the pool. He could feel Alistair’s eyes on his ass, and he made sure to bend over dramatically to reach down and test the temperature of the water with his hand.

Noah dove in, gracefully swimming down deep toward the bottom and then kicking back up to resurface. He smoothed his hair back from his face, trying to nonchalantly glance back at Alistair to see if he was watching.

Son of a bitch was still on the phone.

“Love you, Ro-bow. Muah, muah, darling. Kisses.” Alistair’s tone suddenly changed. “Hello there yourself. How are you, boy?” He snorted. “Right to it then, huh? You haven’t changed a bit. Fine. Can you confirm the information I received regarding Mr. Allan yet?”

Noah spun around so fast he almost inhaled a mouthful of water.

Alistair was listening to the other side of the phone call, his expression tense. “Thank you. I appreciate you letting me know. Take care of yourself, boy. Goodbye.” He hung up.

“Gonna tell me what the big news is about my uncle?” Noah demanded as he swam up to the side of the pool.

“Good morning, Noah. It’s so lovely to see you. I’m fine, thank you.” Alistair snorted. “Come here.”

Noah climbed out of the pool, not bothering with a towel and sitting down dripping. It was hot enough that he knew he’d air dry, and he liked to think Alistair was enjoying the view.

It was impossible to tell with the stern expression he was wearing, and his voice was neutral as he said, “It seems as though my associates and I will be staying much longer than anticipated.”

“Why?”

“According to our sources, your uncle is trying to leave the country.”

Noah’s heart sank. “He’s… he’s what?”

“He’s in Florida and is apparently attempting to travel to Cuba. He’s running.”

“I’m guessing he knows you’re gonna fuckin’ kill him,” Noah snapped.

“That is undoubtedly true.” Alistair reached for his orange juice. “We can also assume he knows that we have you, and he doesn’t seem to care.”

“Wonderful.” Noah hated how his chest tightened, and he ignored the betrayal’s sting as best he could. He always knew Uncle Patrick was a bastard, but this…

He really was alone.

“Fear not.” Alistair smiled. “I have frozen his passport, and some of my dear friends from Strassen Springs are headed to Florida now to intercept him.”

“Yeah, great. You’ll be able to stop him from escaping so you can bring him back here and kill him.” Noah scoffed. “I’m so thrilled.”

“You should be. After all, once my business with your uncle is concluded, we’re going to leave.”

“And if I say anything about what you’re doing, you frame me as a drug dealer?”

“Smart boy.” Alistair raised his glass.

“I still don’t think he did it.”

“Even after he’s abandoned you?” Alistair frowned. “He’s literally fleeing the country and leaving you behind.”

“Yes. He’s not that kinda guy.”

“Hmm.” Alistair reached for a bottle of sunscreen, squirting some on his hands and then rubbing down his chest. “I beg to differ.”

“Differ all you want.” Noah watched Alistair’s thick fingers sliding through the creamy sunscreen, rubbing over his chest and his shoulder. He cleared his throat. “How about you tell me why my uncle would want to kill that Carbone guy?”