Page 86 of See You There

Blazing fury swept through Luke. His heart hammered painfully against his ribs, and his lungs constricted until it was hard to breathe. There was anger at Chandler for putting her in that position, and toward Matt for not just paying an amount which meant nothing to him. And rage at the Russian mobsters who had scared her.

But most of all—a suffocating, white hot violence inside him for the man who had the privilege of calling Dahlia his own and hadn’t protected her.

“I thought Chandler might have charged the thieves because he hoped Petrov would forgive his debt. He said as much to me in the hospital after. When I realized it was Hank…” She paused. “I wondered if he might have set the whole thing up.”

Luke filed away the name Petrov in his brain. Even if the Bratva weren’t behind the attempts on Dahlia’s life, it was something that needed to be handled. Luke licked his lips, trying to control his temper. Dahlia was opening up to him, and the last thing he wanted was to say something that made her stop.

“The police came to the same conclusion—not that it was to get in the Bratva’s good graces. They think he wanted to share in the score. But according to my source, Chandler is denying it. He admits that he might have mentioned the casino in front of the trainer.”

Dahlia wrinkled her nose. “It’s entirely possible. Chandler has a big mouth. He might have bragged about going, and Hank thought it was easy money.” She shook her head. “Do you mind if we don’t talk about it anymore? It’s such a lovely evening. I kind of want to forget it’s happening.”

Luke nodded and took a sip of his wine, willing himself to calm down. His eyes strayed to her over and over, as if he needed to continually assure himself that she was safe. He’d defended a lot of bad people in his career. The Bratva were an entirely different world.

“She’s extremely understanding,” Dahlia said in an offhand tone, her gaze fixated on his phone. “Please tell her I’m sorry about all of this.”

Luke’s brows dipped. “She knows it’s not your fault. She’d love to meet you.”

“I’d be interested, too, if my boyfriend were staying in a one-bedroom cabin with another woman.”

Luke blinked. “Her boyfriend?” Male satisfaction sparked through him, banishing the last of his dark thoughts. Dahlia was jealous. “That wasn’t my girlfriend.”

Dahlia shrugged and took a sip of wine, like it didn’t bother her. “It’s none of my business, but I didn’t take you for a hypocrite.”

Luke’s eyebrows flew up. “How am I a hypocrite?”

She turned in her chair to face him, her green eyes flashed in the light spilling from the windows behind them. “When you thought I was married—”

“You are married.” After what she’d told him, that asshole had forfeited any claim to her.

Dahlia scowled at him. “When you thought I was married—for real—you were the moral police about us kissing. Now it turns out you’ve got a girlfriend.”

Luke’s smile grew wider. “Why do you think I have a girlfriend?”

“I just heard you tell her you love her.” Dahlia narrowed her eyes.

Luke met her eyes. “That was my mother, Anne.”

“Oh,” Dahlia said dumbly, her cheeks going bright red.

“I call her every night,” Luke said when Dahlia looked at him dubiously. “She has multiple sclerosis and I like to check in on her. James called to let her know what was going on, but I knew she’d worry, and that’s not good for her condition. Plus, she’s the smartest woman I knowand keeps me on my toes.”

Dahlia’s thoughts raced across her face. Now that she was no longer hiding behind her ‘Lia’ mask, she was practically an open book. She clearly thought he was lying.

“Do you want me to call her back? I could put her on speaker. She’d love to talk to you. She’s been following all the news about the movie closely because of Cara.”

Dahlia’s eyes softened. “I believe you.”

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

She shook her head. “I’m just surprised. You didn’t strike me as the type to call his mom every night.”

“I’m an unashamed mama’s boy.”

“I think it’s sweet.”

“What about you?”

“What about me?” her face shuttered. “My parents are both gone.”