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“The only problem is that now I’ll get invited back again.” She was only half joking.
Mikel didn’t smile. “Given your feelings for el duque, you should hope to be invited again. They are his family.”
Quinn’s shoulders slumped. “He says it will get easier.”
“It does.”
Surprise made her straighten again. She couldn’t imagine her boss being intimidated by anyone, yet it sounded as though he once might have been overawed by the royals.
Mikel went back to business. “Tell me when you set up the call with Ricci. I want to sit in.”
Before she did that, she wanted to get started on investigating her new person of interest, Odette Fontaine.
By quitting time, Quinn had pinned Paul Ricci down to a video call the next afternoon, and she’d begun working her way through the layers of Odette Fontaine’s background. She walked home, stopping to pick up some bolos lêvedos, a sweet sort of Portuguese English muffin that Gabriel liked. She was followed by one of the bodyguards Mikel had assigned to her, while a bland sedan tracked her progress along the street. It felt strange to be shadowed, but Gabriel said she would stop noticing after a while. He should know.
As she swung open the tall metal gate to her backyard, she was surprised to hear Gabriel’s voice in the cadence of conversation. Usually, he put in a little extra time practicing his music before she got home, taking her return as his cue to put away the guitar.
Walking around the back corner of her house, she came to an abrupt halt as disbelief and fury congealed in every muscle of her body.
Lounging next to Gabriel in one of her wicker chairs, a rocks glass dangling from one hand, was her father.
“What the fuck?!”
Brendan and Gabriel turned. Gabriel stood and strode over to cup her rigid shoulders. “Quinn, your father came to visit, and I am glad I got to meet him.” He leaned down to press a kiss on her mouth before murmuring, “I don’t know what the problem is between you, but he is here because he’s worried about you, cariño mío.”
His endearment undercut some of her outrage at her father’s presence. When Gabriel lifted his head, his eyes were soft with concern for her.
“How did he get into Caleva without Mikel knowing?” Quinn hissed, hating that her father had blindsided her.
Gabriel shook his head and nestled her against his side to walk her toward her father. Brendan had put down his drink and risen from his chair. His hands were tucked into the pockets of his khaki trousers in a pose of nonchalance, but Quinn caught the tension in his shoulders under the loose shirt patterned with gaudy purple and pink flowers.
His silver-gray hair was longer than usual, brushed back from his forehead to curl over his shirt collar. He’d lost weight, so the strong bones of his face looked almost gaunt with the shadows thrown by the setting sun.
The vivid sky blue eyes were the same, though, alight with intelligence and calculation. The usual twinkle of amusement was missing today. He knew he wasn’t welcome.
When they were about six feet away, Quinn came to a standstill. Gabriel stopped as well, his arm still firmly around her waist.
“How did you—?” She waved a hand to erase her question. “Why are you here? And this had better be good.”
Gabriel’s grip tightened enough to make her aware of his strength and warmth, both of which enveloped her. More of her anger drained away as she allowed herself to lean into him.
“Why don’t we all sit down?” Brendan said, gesturing to the empty chairs near him.
“I don’t want you to get comfortable here,” Quinn said. “So talk first.” Despite knowing Gabriel would wonder what the hell was going on, she couldn’t quell her anger at her father’s broken promise.
“Ah, Quinnie, give your poor old dad a break. I’m not as young as I used to be.” He beamed one of his patented self-deprecating smiles, all crinkles at the corners of his eyes with a charming rueful twist of his lips.
Anger geysered again. She felt herself shaking with it. Gabriel feathered his fingers over her waist in a touch meant to soothe. “Give me the summary, and then I’ll decide if you can sit.”
Brendan sighed and rocked forward on his toes. “I’m concerned that you didn’t take my warning about Dupont seriously enough. I need to talk with you about protection.”
Gabriel’s body went rigid against her side. Shit! Brendan was going to make Gabriel crazy with worry about her, which would get in the way of the investigation.
“Mikel can protect me, so there’s no need for you to be concerned.” Quinn tried to shut him down.
“I slipped past your Mikel, didn’t I?” Her father raised his eyebrows.
She shifted out of Gabriel’s embrace to look up at him. “I’d like to speak with my father privately, please.”
