“Liam Cartwright.” Instead of proffering my hand, I lift Maria’s hand to my lips, specifically her left hand. The one with my ring on her ring finger.
The diamond glitters beneath the decorative halogen lights overhead. Muriel catches the flash of light with a tight press of her lips. She says nothing as her shoulders snap back and the muscles of her jaw bunch.
“Perhaps when we meet for brunch tomorrow, we can begin on a different, more congenial, note. I apologize for my brusqueness. Your daughter means the world to me, and I may be a tad over-protective when those around her treat her poorly. Add to that a lack of sleep, and this may not be the best first impression. I assure you, however, that after a bit of rest and self-reflection, things will not be so strained in the morning. I’m looking forward to getting to know Maria’s family better. We have much to discuss.”
“Discuss? Oh, no doubt we do. Since Maria’s mentioned brunch, the invitation is for two. Your goons are not welcomed and can stay behind.”
“I go nowhere without my bodyguards.”
“You won’t need them, and before tomorrow comes around, I suggest you reflect on how it’s best to address the mother of your fiancée, or you will lose her.”
“I doubt that very much but understood about brunch. Until then.” Maria mentioned a back staircase that leads up to her apartment, but for the life of me, I can’t locate it. “Love, do you mind? I’m ready to crash.” Once again, I lift Maria’s hand to my mouth.
Muriel’s glacial gaze zooms in on the diamond adorning her daughter’s fingers. This is when a normal mother would react to such a thing, but Muriel pushes her shoulders back, lifts her chin, and glides out of the room as if it’s her choice to do so.
Maria says absolutely nothing during the entire exchange, but her mouth gapes as she watches her mother storm out. Once the door to Maria’s office shuts, Maria lets out a rush of breath and punches me in the arm.
“Holy cow. What the hell just happened?” She looks from me to the door and back again. “I’ve never seen anyone do that before. Not even my father. The very few times the two of them argued, he never managed to leave her speechless the way you just did.” She spins around and places a hand on my chest. “You were amazing. I wanted to cheer when you told her not to speak to me that way. No one’s ever stood up for me like that.”
The sad thing is that’s probably the truth.
“No one should ever speak to another human the way your mother spoke to you.”
“Well …” Maria lifts on tiptoe and kisses my cheek. “You’re officially my hero.”
Before she pulls away, I whisper in her ear. “Are there recording devices in here? Cameras? Microphones?”
“In my office?” Maria lowers herself down. Her gaze sweeps her office. “There shouldn’t be.”
“Wolfe, make a sweep.” I bark an order to Wolfe, addressing him as I would someone who works for the bold and brash venture capitalist, Liam Cartwright.
Wolfe hides a snicker as he pulls out a device from the inside of his jacket. Brady does the same. They work in silence while I look at Maria and try to decide how much support she needs or wants from me.
“I hope I didn’t overstep.”
“Don’t apologize to me. That dominant vibe is only one of the many things I love about you.” Maria cups the side of my face. “I wish I was strong enough to speak to my mother the way you stood up for me.”
“I said too much.” If there are devices listening in, this is an exchange they would expect. It also serves to remind Maria we have a cover to maintain. “Your mother must hate me.”
“You definitely made one hell of a first impression.”
Brady signals he found a device.
“Just the one?” I glance between him and Wolfe.
“One what?” Maria flutters her lashes, pretending not to understand.
“It looks like someone has been listening in on you.” I release Maria and close the distance with Brady.
He pulls a picture off the wall, flips it over, and exposes a bug. I pinch the small device and hold it up to my eye.
“Luv, were you aware of this?” I twist back to Brady. “Is this the only one?”
Wolfe completes his sweep for bugs on the other half of the room. He signals there are, in fact, three more hidden devices.
“No sir, I found another.” Wolfe moves to a lamp beside the sofa. Like Brady, he removes that bug. Wolfe brings the device over to me, where the three of us examine the listening devices.
“What’s that?” Maria grips my arm. “A bug?”
“Looks like.” I make a show of examining the device.
There’s no doubt in my mind every move we make is being recorded and transmitted in real-time to someone assigned to watch over us.
Hell, it may be Marco sitting on the other end of this feed.
After the interaction between me and his wife, Marco would be wise to watch me. He won’t be happy with another alpha male sniffing around his territory. No doubt, he’s got his security team performing a deeper dive into my background.
Mitzy left a few gems for him to find: things like a string of girlfriends for hire during my younger, more wild days.
I didn’t like that bit of backstory inserted into my fake life, but I respect its purpose. Marco needs dirt to hold over my head. Hell, maybe he’ll offer me an opportunity to bid at one of his auctions.
Those auctions used to be exclusive, invite-only events held in the private compound of Benefield, deep in the interior of Colombia. After Guardian HRS closed down that horrific operation, how did Marco Rossi pivot?
Is it all online? That exposes significant risk. Or did they open up a new location? These are only some of the questions Mitzy hopes to find answers to, and she needs us to gather that information.
“No cameras?” I hand the bug back to Brady, who crushes the device beneath the heel of his shoe. Wolfe follows suit with the device he found.
“Not that we found.” Brady signals the remaining devices are both video and voice recorders.
Fucking hell.
No stretch of the imagination as to why the devices are here. Marco would want to keep an eye on his niece and ensure she doesn’t make any move he doesn’t know about. I respect his paranoia. It’s something I would do if I were in a similar situation.
We could clear all four bugs.
I want Marco Rossi to know I care about my conversations being bugged, but he needs to know I’m fallible. He needs to sniff weakness.
That’s what will make him underestimate me.
“Thank you.” I pivot to face Maria. “Luv, how about we hit the sack? I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted.”
“Sounds perfect.” Maria’s lack of reaction makes me wonder if she knew about the bugs in her office.
Once we’re in a place where I can speak freely, I’ll let her know about the remaining two bugs. She can decide what she wants to do about those later.
Maria heads over to a bookcase and presses on a hidden lever. That portion of the wall pushes out and slides to the side, revealing a set of stairs leading upward.
“After you, my love.”
I enjoy calling Maria princess. Initially, it annoyed her, and I used it to get a rise out of her, but then it kind of grew on me.