Okay, so, maybe in the past I’d used my girlie status to cute my way out of things. Numerous things. Most especially using it with Lee, Hank and Malcolm. Dad always saw through it.

“Fine!” I stalked to the bed, giving in mainly to get away from him. He was too overpowering at close range. Then I whipped around when I reached the foot of the bed. “What are you gonna do?”

“I’m gonna calm down your friend, make a call that should set some minds at ease and tomorrow, I’ll take him to get the diamonds and make the delivery.”

“Well then,” I said snottily, the wind out of my sails, “thank you.”

Lee started to turn, stopped, dropped his head back and looked at the ceiling and then turned around and came back to me. Again, he was so close I could feel his heat.

“Normally, I charge five hundred dollars an hour for this.”

I sucked in breath.

“For what?” I asked.

“This go-between shit,” Lee answered.

My eyes rounded in shock.

Wow.

No wonder he could afford this condo with a view and an office in LoDo. Not to mention his car, he had a great car. And he still had a bike.

“You do? Why?”

He came closer, so close he was all I could see.

“Because, I make the call tonight that puts me in the middle of this mess, and, if tomorrow I don’t have the diamonds, then it’ll be me they shoot at. I don’t like getting shot at.”

I shook my head, bit my lip and agreed wholeheartedly, “Me either, it’s not very fun.”

He didn’t move and I realized he expected a different response.

“I don’t think Rosie has that kind of money,” I noted. “You wouldn’t consider doing this on, say, family discount?”

He shook his head. “We’re not family.”

“I meant you and me”

“We’re not family either.”

“Yes we are, ten years ago you told me I was like your little sister.”

He waited a beat.

Something dawned on him. I could see the flicker in his eyes as it registered. I didn’t understand it but he did and whatever it was made his face soften a little from the seriously pissed off angry look he’d been wearing all night. In fact, he looked almost… pleased.

“That was then, this is now.” Even his voice was quieter and less hacked off.

“Well, how many hours will this take? It could be thousands of dollars. Rosie doesn’t have that kind of money, even with his side business.”

“It’s not Rosie who’s gonna pay.”

My head did an involuntary little jerk when I understood what he meant.

“I don’t have that kind of money.”

“You aren’t gonna pay me in cash.”

My stomach clenched and my heart stopped for a couple of beats.

“How am I gonna pay you?”

“We’ll talk about it tomorrow.”

“We’ll talk about it now!”

“Get in bed, go to sleep.”

“Quit bossing me around!”

He came closer and I let out a little peep. I couldn’t help it, he was pressed up against me, I had nowhere to go and the backs of my knees were up against the footboard. And I’ve already told you Lee’s a seriously scary, badass individual.

“You get in that bed yourself or I tie you to it.”

His face had gone back to the seriously pissed off angry look and I decided from the hard glittering in his eyes that he was not making an idle threat.

“Okay.”

Shit, I was such a wuss.

Chapter Three

I’ll Choose Door Number Two

I tried to stay awake and listen to what was happening between Lee and Rosie but it was hard because I was tired, getting shot at takes a lot out of you. Anyway, whatever was happening took a really long time and I’m a girl who likes her sleep.

When I did wake up, it was still dark and my back was pressed up to something hard and warm and something heavy and warm was wrapped around my waist.

Lee.

Liam Nightingale was in bed with me.

Holy f**king shit.

You see, there were women in Denver who would pay a lot of money to be in this situation. Hell, there were likely women across the country who would do it.

Not me.

No way.

That boat had sailed.

There was a time when we were kids that Lee, Ally, Hank and I slept together all the time. Our parents would have dinner parties and we’d be tucked into Kitty Sue and Malcolm’s big bed, all four in a row, according to age. This put me between Lee and Ally. Of course, once we got older, we were separated.

Then there were the times when we were in the tent when Dad and Malcolm would take us camping in the mountains. Always, I was stuck between Lee and Ally in my sleeping bag. As I tumbled headlong into my teens, and thus more and more desperate for Lee to declare his undying love for me, this was a form of torture. I couldn’t exactly throw myself at him when Hank, Dad and Malcolm were around (Ally would have slept through it).

And then there was that brief time when Ally and I were nineteen and had gone off rock ‘n’ roll and discovered cowboys. Lee took us to Cheyenne for the rodeo and we got a motel room that just had a big king-sized bed. Out of necessity, we all slept in it together and I slept in the middle. Or at least I slept in middle until Lee moved to the floor, likely to give me room to move. I never woke Ally up with my restless sleeping. Ally could sleep through an earthquake.

So it wasn’t as if I hadn’t already slept with Lee.

But not alone, not just the two of us, not when we were full-fledged, consenting adults, not ever in his bed.

I moved forward, thinking the floor sounded quite comfy.

The heavy warm thing around my waist tightened.

“Don’t move,” Lee mumbled, his voice kinda husky.

My stomach fluttered and as Lee’s hand was splayed and pressed against it, I was pretty certain he could feel it.

Shit.

“What’re you doing?” I asked.

“I was sleeping.” His voice was still husky.

“I mean in this bed,” I clarified, what I thought was unnecessarily.

“It’s my bed.”

True enough.

Time for a different tact.

“I’m gonna sleep on the floor,” I said.

“No you’re not.”

I hesitated for a moment, confused, and then tried Plan C.

“Then I’m gonna sleep on the other side of the bed.”

“No you’re not.”

What in the hell?

I didn’t get it.