Fast Burn (Body Armor #4)(64)

“Famous last words.” She smirked. “He’d annihilate you.”

Ross laughed. “Let me worry about that, and you just worry about how and when we’ll get together to discuss Scott.”

Sahara expected Brand back at any moment. Once he arrived, she’d lose her chance to ask anything about Scott, so she needed to change tactics. Insulting Mr. Moran had gotten her nowhere, and hadn’t put the slightest dent in his annoying good humor.

She drew a slow breath and accused, “You’re a cruel man, Mr. Moran.”

“I can be.” He eased closer, his gaze caressing her face. “But never to you.”

So far, so good. “No? You kidnapped me, threatened me, accosted me—”

“Don’t be dramatic,” he said with a small smile. “It was just a kiss.”

God, she wanted to slap him. “—and now you taunt me with info about my missing brother. I’d call all that very cruel.”

“I need your brother to pay up. Using you to extort the money from him seems like the best option.”

Even while trying to soften her, he still planned to use her!

Growing serious, solemn, he pledged, “Understand something, Sahara. No matter what our future holds, you have my word that I won’t ever hurt you.”

Insane. He was certifiably, undeniably, insane. “You threatened to hurt me,” she reminded him.

He gave a slight shake of his head. “I threatened to strip you naked.” His gaze became intent. The pads of two fingers brushed over her shoulder. “And tie you down.” He drew a strained breath. “But I wouldn’t have let the others touch you.”

The others...yet he hadn’t claimed he wouldn’t touch her. She locked her jaw. “You don’t think it would have hurt to be in such a vulnerable position? Let me assure you, it would have been horribly painful, worse than being struck.”

He was silent a moment, his fingers playing over her skin, then he whispered, “I’m sorry.”

Dumbfounded, Sahara shrugged away his touch and demanded through her teeth, “Tell me what you know about my brother.”

“I’m not trying to tease you, Sahara. Whatever I say, you’re going to have a million questions. But—” he added, before she could blast him again “—as an act of good faith, I’ll give you the bare bones of what I know.”

She subsided, waiting, letting her impatience show.

He cocked a brow. “You agree, no questions?”

Of course she’d have questions, but to get him talking she said, “Fine.”

“Your brother suspected one of his clients of enslaving women.”

“What?”

Ross rolled his eyes. “If you insist on doing this publicly, at least try not to draw attention to us.”

“But—”

“Uh-uh. No questions.” He watched her, and when she quieted, he continued. “The client wanted Body Armor to provide security during a special event. Scott felt like something was off, so in turn, he hired my men and me to discover what we could about the client and those on her guest list. He didn’t put his own men on it because if we got caught, he didn’t want it tracking back to Body Armor.”

Ah, that made sense.

“Naturally, your brother was right. He always did have uncanny instincts.”

“I don’t understand—”

Ross put a finger to her lips. “Didn’t I tell you there would be questions?”

Repulsed, she jerked her head away. “Don’t touch me again or this conversation is over.”

“End it anytime you want. Talking wasn’t my idea anyway.”

Damn it, he had her and he knew it. “Brand will be back soon. Can you please finish?”

“Please,” he repeated thoughtfully. “I like the sound of that on your lips.”

Her eyes narrowed. “I’m armed, Mr. Moran. Did you know that?”

He surprised her by throwing back his head and laughing. When he sobered, he teased, “Would you shoot me? Here in the DA’s house?”

“Without hesitation.”

“You know what? I believe you.” His eyes, a paler blue than hers, still twinkled with hilarity. “Actually, there’s not a lot I wouldn’t put past you.”

She didn’t want to hear his bizarre form of flattery. “How much did my brother owe you? I’ll see that you get paid in exchange for all the information you have.” As much as it galled her to reward him in any way, she wanted to know everything, not just dribs and drabs.

After giving that some thought, Ross finished his beer and set the bottle aside. “I’ll admit, getting paid had been my number one concern. Even after watching you, learning your patterns, learning you, I thought the money was the point. But once I actually met you...” To get his meaning across, he looked her over. “I’m not so sure.”

“Don’t be a fool.” He’d learned her? What the hell did that mean? Everything he said made her more uneasy—and yet, against her will, she believed he was trying to be genuine. “Tell me what you know.”

He touched her cheek. “Not kissing you is hard—”

“Don’t you dare!”

“—but I wouldn’t put it past your boyfriend to chase me through the house. He looks capable of embarrassing us all with his bad manners.”