I grabbed my wallet out of my purse and popped off the barstool, rounding Hector but I only got a step away before I was halted by fingers curling into the waistband of my cords. I looked back as Hector pulled me to him and his mouth came to my ear.

“Give me your wallet and put it on the tab,” he muttered in my ear.

“I’ve got money,” I told him.

“Mi cielo, wallet.” His tone didn’t invite discussion.

I figured I was lucky to get away with the “Fred and Wilma” argument so I wasn’t going to push my luck. I cocked my arm so my hand with the wallet was over my shoulder. He took it from me then kept talking in my ear.

“This end of the bar, I wanna be able to see you at all times.”

I turned my head, nodded to him and he let me go.

I smiled to myself on the way to the bar, that warm, happy glow mingling with the lovely, safe, snugly comfort.

It felt good to be looked after.

“Four Fat Tires,” I called to the bartender when he jerked his chin at me.

I felt a presence slide in beside me and I looked to my right then over the shoulder of the beautiful, dark-haired woman there to ascertain if I could still see Hector. I could so my body settled.

“I’m Natalie,” the woman said and my surprised eyes went to her.

Wow. She was nice. Walking right up to me and introducing herself.

“Hi. I’m Sadie,” I returned the niceness.

“Saw you with Hector,” she said to me.

I blinked at her, not certain sure where this was going and thinking it might not be nice at all.

“Yes,” I said hesitantly.

She leaned in. “Not bein’ a bitch or anything, but, girl to girl, be careful.”

I blinked again.

“What?”

“Hector. Be careful. He’s a dawg.”

“A dog?”

“A dawg,” she repeated.

My eyes narrowed and my back went straight. “He’s not a dog. He’s a man.”

“Not a dog, a dawg, d-a-w-g. Dawg. A player.”

I knew what a player was.

I looked back over her shoulder at Hector. He was listening to Ava, however Luke, I noted, was watching me.

My eyes went to Natalie. “Maybe you’re thinking of a different Hector,” I tried.

“Nope. He’s nailed me and half the women in this place. Girls look at him as a challenge, I know because I did it too. He’s got the reputation for bein’ good, as in good, which, by the way, he was, off the f**kin’ charts. He’s also got a reputation for not hangin’ around, at all, not even spendin’ the night in most cases. Every girl here probably thought she’d be the one to get a return visit but, far’s I know, he never went back twice, not to me, not to anyone.”

After the words “nailed me” I felt like she started repeatedly punching me in the stomach.

Hector had sex with Natalie?

And half the women in this place?

I looked around the bar scanning the women. Luckily, the place wasn’t packed but it was relatively busy. Busy enough to mean, if this was true, Hector had been busy.

Again, I looked at Natalie and breathed, “You’re joking.”

She shook her head and I tried to read her face. She didn’t look like she was being catty, just… real.

Natalie went on, “You look like a fairy princess who lives in an enchanted castle not exactly a Lincoln’s regular. We girls have to stick together, I’m just givin’ you the head’s up.”

It was my turn to shake my head. “He’s changed. He’s different now.”

“Yeah? He f**ked me six weeks ago. No joke, it was so good, I remember when, where and every second of it. I’m not complainin’ but just so you know, I called him three times and he didn’t return a single call.”

The bartender put my beers on the bar just as I grabbed onto the edge to hold myself up.

Six weeks ago was when I walked into Nightingale Investigations Offices right before I got raped.

And Hector had been in Natalie’s bed.

Or, worse, she’d been in his!

She interrupted my crazed thoughts by putting her hand on mine on the bar.

“Listen, Sadie, I’m sorry. You look freaked. I gotta say, I been watchin’ and he looks into you, way into you. Never seen him like that with anyone so maybe I’m wrong. Put it in the back of your mind. All I’m sayin’ is, be careful.”

Then she was gone.

I was so busy trying not to hyperventilate it took the bartender several tries to get my attention. I told him to put it on our tab, grabbed the beer bottles by their necks and, on shaky legs, I carried them to the table.

I saw Luke’s eyes on me and I avoided them, scooted behind Hector and, taking great care, like it was a priceless artifact, I tucked my wallet, which Hector had set on my purse, inside.

“Everything okay, Sadie?” Luke asked and my eyes flew to him.

“Fine, great, wonderful,” I lied, nabbed my beer and took a long swallow.

I felt Hector’s eyes on me but I turned my attention to tracing the label on my bottle with my thumb and trying not to let my hand shake.

“Mamita, look at me.”

My eyes lifted to Hector.

His brows went together.

“You’re not fine,” he said.

From my peripheral vision I saw Ava and Luke look at each other but I was too busy lying again to Hector to take much notice. “I think painting the living room just hit me, what with all the food and beer. All of a sudden, I’m tired.”

“I’m going to the bathroom. Sadie, do you need to go to the bathroom?” Ava asked suddenly.

I shook my head, too freaked out to catch her hint.

Hector’s hand went to the back pocket of his jeans.

“We’ll get you home,” he said.

My head jerked to him.

“No!” I cried, his narrowed eyes came to me and I made an effort to calm down. “No. You’re having fun, everyone’s having fun. I just got more beer. We’ll drink them and go.”

Ava looked at Luke, slid off her stool and headed to the bathroom. Hector pulled out his wallet and came of his stool too.

“I’ll pay the tab so we’ll be ready to roll.”

He walked to the bar, I watched him stop and I realized my happy glow was long gone and my heart actually hurt.

“Natalie was before you, Sadie,” Luke said.

I tore my eyes from Hector and looked at Luke to find he was watching me.

“What?” I asked.

“Don’t know what she said to freak you out but I got a fair guess and you gotta know, Natalie was before you.”