Big Easy Temptation (The Perfect Gentlemen #3)(102)

Maybe it wasn’t a print. Damn rain. It could be anything. She was being paranoid.

“I think we’ve all been outside.” Dax looked down to the spot she examined. “Sweetheart, that’s so muddy I’m not sure what it is. Do you want to have Freddy look at it?”

“No. We just need to be careful. And maybe we should get inside.” She took his hand, leading him toward the cabin. Suddenly, being out in the open made her feel exposed. “Did everyone turn the locator off their phones?”

“Yes. Freddy made sure. The truth is someone who really wants to trace a call can get it to the nearest cell tower, but then they’d still have a search on their hands. Camps like this are all along the bayou.”

“Yeah, we tracked your father’s aide to one earlier, though it’s not nearly as nice as this one.” She glanced around as they entered. “Have I thanked you for not insisting we hide out in a hovel?”

“Yeah, we may be the target of the Russian mob, but never say we don’t lay low in style,” Dax said with a wink as he escorted her in. “I was talking to Connor about everything. After we have a discussion with Peter, it might be time to head to London. We need to go to that hospital and figure out if Constance Hayes really was there and why.”

“How is Zack handling it?”

“In his usual Zack way. He does that thing where he’s silent for a moment. Then he thanks me for the info. Roman isn’t much better. I tried to leave Gus out of it, but apparently she listens in a lot. One of these days Roman is going to fire her.”

Holland had to laugh at that. “No, he’s not. He will never, never fire Gus. Not when he’s done so much to keep her close.”

Dax stopped and stared. “What do you mean?”

Maybe she shouldn’t have said anything. After all, she merely had a theory. The truth was she hadn’t seen Gus or Roman in three years. “Nothing.”

“Are you talking about the way Roman acts kind of like a big brother around Gus and pokes at her, all while watching her like a hungry lion who wants to pounce on an antelope?” Lara asked, looking up from her laptop.

Connor frowned, looking down at his wife. “That’s ridiculous. Roman and Gus had a thing like a million years ago. She’s so not his type. And who’s the antelope in that pairing? It’s sure as fuck not Gus. She’s a predator.”

Dax sent his friend a stare that could have stripped paint off a wall. “Hey, that’s my sister!”

At least someone was willing to stand up for Gus.

“You see Roman with her long-term?” Connor shot back. “Roman, who likes his women demure and genteel?”

“No, but she’s not a predator. I’ll admit she’s got claws, but she’s not looking to take Roman down.” He went pale as he looked back at Holland. “Is she? Please tell me she’s not, because she’ll be doomed to disappointment. Roman really is looking for his Jackie Kennedy.”

She shrugged a little. “I haven’t seen them together for years. I could totally be wrong, but the air used to crackle around them whenever they stood in the same room.”

“He might think he wants a Jackie, but damn, he sure looks at the Marilyn a lot,” Lara said. “I just think you two are too close to him to see it. I know he thought he was in love with Joy, but I don’t see it from what I know about her.”

“Roman was in love with Joy?” That floored Holland. “Did they have an affair? No. No. Joy would never have cheated on Zack.”

Dax looked straight at her. “And neither would Roman. He put her on a pedestal as an example of his perfect woman. She was kind to him. Gus isn’t always kind.”

“No, but Roman would have walked all over Joy. She couldn’t have handled his ruthless side. Gus would find it hot.” The more Holland thought about it, the more she felt sure she was right. “Joy would have bored Roman to death. Two years, maybe less, then he would have moved on. But it sounds like he’s still circling—and still interested in Gus.” Holland smiled at the thought. “Zack was definitely more Joy’s speed.”

“Did she love Zack?” Dax asked.

“Yes, but then Joy tended to love everyone. I know they didn’t have the most passionate marriage. I adored Joy, but she was very quiet. She preferred to stay in the background. Her father approved of the marriage and that was that. But I’ll be honest, I worried Zack would break her heart because of his press secretary. I always feared he would have an affair with her because he obviously wanted her.”

“Liz.” Connor sighed. “Yeah, we don’t have to worry about that now. Zack hasn’t touched Liz, by the way. He’s still faithful to Joy, so don’t think too poorly of him.”

“I wasn’t. I simply worried about Joy, but she’s gone. Why wouldn’t Zack pursue the woman he so obviously wanted?” The answer hit her. “He thinks the Russians will use her against him.”

Dax nodded. “Yes. Which is why we need to deal with the situation here ASAP so we can end the rest of this mess. If Peter can’t tell us the whos and whys, we’ll need to go to England and start working it from that angle. It’s the only other lead we’ve got.”

“We might think about going to the source,” Holland urged. “The Krylov syndicate. Yesterday my uncle found evidence that our would-be assassin was a known Krylov associate. He said the bullet casings matched the murder of a woman Connor was visiting at a nursing home.”