I’d panicked when I hadn’t seen Briar’s car in the driveway.

Logic had told me that Jerrel wouldn’t be so stupid as to make any kind of move that might draw attention to him, but not knowing where she was made me nervous, especially so close on the heels of his threat.

Sure, it might not have sounded like an outright threat…I’ll take good care of that sexy lady doc.

But I knew damn good and well what Jerrel was about, and he wasn’t about to go putting his hands on Briar. He’d already caused enough trouble with her, and he wasn’t going to cause any more. Not if I could help it.

It had just been a whim, driving by her place.

I’d planned on grabbing another room, one closer to her home. It would cost more, sure, but all in all, I was doing pretty well and had more than enough money to set myself up in a decent hotel for several weeks here in Philadelphia and not miss the money, even if Marcos didn’t pay out. The kind of work I did paid well, and I’d never had much of anything to spend my money on.

But when I hadn’t seen her car, I’d panicked. Since I couldn’t think of anywhere else to look, I’d gone by the hospital. Seeing the sleek red sports car tucked away in the parking section set aside for the physicians had made me breathe easier, but still, I’d needed to see her.

Most people told me I was a hard man to read, but Briar had seen something on my face because she’d known I was on edge. She hadn’t pushed, and after we’d eaten lunch, I’d felt better.

Now, driving away from the hospital, I finalized the plan I’d been toying with ever since leaving Rudy’s. Worry for Briar had gotten in the way, but I was back on track now.

I needed to talk to Marcos, and I needed privacy, some place where I could think and not worry about that arse, Jerrel.

Again, I considered a hotel, and before I could change my mind, I tapped on my phone and brought up the app for the map. A few more taps had the local hotels between my current location and Briar’s house popping up, and I randomly selected one located relatively close to her place. Traffic inched along, and once I came to a stop, the third car behind a fresh red light, I quickly reserved a room for the next week. If I needed more time than that, so be it.

It was early still, but on the off chance they might have a room open and ready, I headed in that direction, mind already working on the problem in front of me.

I lucked out.

The woman handling the desk was a sucker for an accent and a flirt. She was a sweet thing, a good twenty years older than me, and I laid on the charm until she was blushing.

She giggled like a school girl as I thanked her for all her kind help and gestured toward the elevator, which was immediately behind me. It would be hard to miss, but I thanked her for that kindness as well and grabbed my duffel, ready to get off my fucking feet and close my eyes, even if only for a minute or two.

I wasn’t even worried about falling asleep, despite how tired I was.

All the shit roiling through my head was enough to keep me awake into the wee hours if I didn’t get some of it smoothed out.

Once inside my room, the first thing I did was kick off my boots, lay down and take that one or two minutes to simply close my eyes and get my thoughts in order.

I needed to focus and clear my head. Until I’d done that, I couldn’t even begin to take the next step.

If I came off as panicked or worried or anything that even resembled out of control, I was going to lose—and that meant Briar would lose.

That wasn’t an option.

So I breathed and focused. If I could have meditated, I would have done that too. Who in the hell would believe I’d ever think something so boring as meditating would come in useful?

But there I was, wishing it was an option I had in my arsenal.

It wasn’t, though. After a few more minutes, I sat up and stared at my reflection.

My face was no longer set in such harsh lines, and my mouth wasn’t pinched tight.

My eyes looked grim, but that wasn’t anything new, not really. All I had to do was make that damn phone call.

Simple.

“Sure,” I muttered to myself. “Right.”

In the quiet of the room, my voice sounded obnoxiously loud, the sound enough to make me cringe. Already, I could feel the nerves crawling back in. I rolled my head and my shoulders, loosening my muscles like I did before a fight.

That’s what this was—a fight. It was in a different kind of arena, but it was a fight nonetheless, and one of the most important I’d ever been in.

“So get your ass to work then,” I told the man in the mirror.

With a short nod, I pulled out my phone and scrolled through my contacts until I found Marcos’s number. He was labeled simply as MC, and those two letters served as his avatar. I punched the little circle, and the screen filled with the number.

Dialing…

He didn’t answer on the first or the second ring.

I’d been prepared to leave a message on his voice mail, but halfway through the third, he answered.

“Well, well, well, Cormac. I thought you’d forgotten about me.”

“Really?” I feigned annoyance. “I don’t see how. I could have sworn we’d just talked. You even told me you understood why I needed more time. What in the hell, Marcos? Do you realize how close Jerrel came to fucking this whole thing up?”

“I don’t think I like your tone, Cormac.”

I snorted. “Yeah, and I don’t like flying to fucking Philadelphia and freezing my ass off, then getting so close to accomplishing the job I was assigned to do only to have Jerrel plant himself in the middle of it and tell Briar I was working for you.”

Marcos went quiet.

After a few seconds, he spoke again. “Excuse me?”

“What…he didn’t tell you that?” I muttered under my breath, making sure he heard. “Of course, the dumb fuck didn’t tell you. Shit. Okay, boss. Here’s what happened. Briar and I were seriously connecting, to the point where she was talking about inviting me over to her family’s house for the weekend and other shit. Then Jerrel up and plants himself by her car and tells her that I’m working for the Castellanos family.”

Again, he said nothing as he turned this information over.

When he did speak, the annoyance in his voice was clear. “Just why would Jerrel do that? He knows I don’t like it when people interfere.”

“You’d have to ask him, Marcos, but I get the feeling he did it to fuck with me, and maybe…” I deliberately let my voice trail off. “Nah, mate. Never mind.”

“Never mind what?” Marcos demanded.

I hesitated a few seconds, then finally said, “Look, I could be off base about this, so I don’t want to go saying anything.”

“I’ll decide if it’s off base or not since it involves my men.”

I smirked. Entitled prick. I wasn’t bothered, though. I was pleased.

“Fine, fine. But I can’t swear to this, so don’t go assuming this had anything to do with whatever is floating around in Jerrel’s head, okay? But…well, I got this idea in my head that…well…” I blew out an overly dramatic breath. “I think he’s got a problem with anybody who’s got money, got more power than he does, boss.”

Marcos was quiet.

“Look, mate, I hope I’m not stepping on your toes here. I know you busted your ass for all the money you got.” He hadn’t. Daddy had set him up. Sure, Marcos had done fine once he had seed money from the Castellanos clan, but he’d still fallen on his face a few times, and his father had been forced to bail him out. That know thy enemy bit was useful advice, really. “It’s not like you’re some rich kid born with a silver spoon in his mouth who got everything from Mum and Dad. Hell, I wish my mum and dad could have given me a bit of quid to get me started. But that’s not the point. I get the feeling Jerrel has a stick up his arse about the money bit. Briar’s got money.”

“I’ve got money,” Marcos said in a cool voice.

“Well, there’s that. But, he wouldn’t be daft enough to fuck around on you?” I managed to make my laugh sound just the slightest bit strained. “Right?” The silence stretched out. I cleared my throat, shattering it. “Ah…well. I mean, there is that business of him telling Briar what I was about an’ all. I mean, he didn’t tell her everything.”

“Enough,” Marcos said. His voice was cool and stilted. “I’ll be putting in a call to Jerrel. I need to figure out just where he stands. But…Cormac. I’m still not entirely pleased with the progress you’ve made.”

“You’re not pleased?” I said, pretending to be dumbfounded. “I’ve got that woman wrapped around my finger, although I’d be a damn sight closer to getting things done if Jerrel hadn’t swaggered in and tried to cause trouble. We’ve already got plans for dinner tonight, and I think she’s planning on letting me move in even closer. Tell me something…you really think Jerrel has the subtlety for this kind of job?”

I could tell by the tight, controlled exhalation of air that Marcos had absolutely no argument he could offer. I would have breathed a little easier, but he was still on the phone, so I didn’t dare let myself.

“Both of you have your talents,” Marcos said in an oblique tone. “You most definitely understand yours.”

“Thank you, boss.” I infused the words with every bit of charm I could muster.

“You’re still on the job, Cormac, but you need to understand something. You can’t let that pretty little bitch lead you around by the dick.”

“Really, Marcos. Have I ever let myself get led around? By the dick or any other body part?” Moving to the window, I stared outside at the busy street, my mind already racing. I had a bit more time. I had no idea what I’d do with it, but I had more time.

“There’s always a first. Don’t let this be yours. I want information, and I want it soon. If I don’t get something useful, then I’ll just have to make do with causing a fuck ton of trouble.” His words were like ice.

“Look, Marcos…I’m still not going to wag my dick on video or anything.”

“You won’t need to. If it comes to it, I’d rather the Downings focus all their energy on her. Nobody else. But I’d rather get information on the brothers, the father.”

“Alright, boss. Are you going to keep Jerrel out of my way? He’s a pain in the arse, I’ve got to tell you.”

He exhaled, calm and collected. “I’ll talk to Jerrel. For now, you just…stay clear of him. The two of you are giving me a headache.”

The line went dead.

I tossed my phone to the bed and continued to stare out the window.