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Gabriel raised a skeptical eyebrow at the latter statement, but how could he refuse a father’s request? “I’ll suggest that you and Quinn take your drinks outside while I clean up. You’ll have to persuade her to agree.”
When Quinn returned to the table, Gabriel handed her the opened wine bottle. “Go out on the patio with your father while I handle the dishes. He should see the full moon while surrounded by the perfume of vaho hibiscus.”
She narrowed her eyes at him as she accepted the bottle. “You’ll join us as soon as you’re done.”
“Por supuesto. Of course.” He gave her knee a quick squeeze of approval. That had been easier than he’d expected.
Quinn went through the door Brendan held open for her, inhaling the warm air saturated with floral perfume. Gabriel hadn’t fooled her. He had engineered this time alone with her father.
Brendan followed her out and stopped, closing his eyes as he, too, drew in a deep breath. “You’ve found yourself a good place,” he said as he exhaled. “And a good lad.”
She almost laughed at him calling the Duke of Bencalor a lad. But one of the few things she secretly admired about her father was his lack of awe about status like money, power, and title, possibly because he evaluated everyone as a mark. He wouldn’t care that Gabriel was royal or rich, except in order to part him from his money.
“I like it here.” Quinn sat and plunked the wine bottle on a side table. “So don’t screw it up for me.”
Of course, he already had. Her stomach flipped again at the thought of explaining her history to Gabriel.
For once, Brendan made no excuses. He reached into the overnight bag he’d brought with him from the living room and pulled out a thick, rubber-banded packet of American money. “This is the money Pete owes you.”
“He paid me back already?” She took the packet from her father’s outstretched hand.
“I’m taking over his debt.” Brendan scowled. “He should never have borrowed from you, the poxy eejit.”
“This is your money?” Quinn balanced the heavy stack of bills on her open palm.
“No, it’s your money that Pete had no business taking from you.”
She held her father’s gaze for a long moment as she debated. Then she closed her fingers around the money. Her father owed her after all.
“Thank you.” Brendan fidgeted with the handles of his bag. “I’m sorry to break my promise not to come here, but once I heard Dupont had you in his sights, I had to. He’s an ugly customer, one of the ugliest I’ve ever met. I needed to find a way to stop him.”
“Stop him from what?”
“Hurting you.”
“He’d have to go through Mikel first.” Her boss would never let Dupont get to her.
“After meeting your boss, I feel somewhat less concerned,” Brendan conceded. “Silva has a reputation, but I needed to see for myself.”
“What kind of reputation?” It should be interesting to hear about Mikel from a criminal’s perspective.
Brendan shook his head. “He’s treated you well, so I’ll not speak ill of him.”
“Go ahead. Given the source, you won’t change my opinion of him.”
“He wasn’t always on the right side of the law. His past… Well, let’s just say that it’s worse than mine.”
Had she suspected that? Maybe. Mikel’s eyes sometimes went dark in a way that would frighten her if she didn’t trust him one hundred percent. “God knows I believe in second chances,” she said. “Mikel’s given me one, so I can’t hold his past against him.”
“He still crosses the line when he needs to, Quinnie. To be honest, that’s why I think he might be able to protect you from Dupont.”
Quinn tilted her head back to stare at the stars. If someone threatened Mikel’s daughter, Quinn could imagine him crossing every line there was. That’s how protective he was as a father. Suddenly, she didn’t want to hear any more about her boss. “He’s responsible for the safety of the royal family. He had better be good at protecting people.”
“And that’s why I’m entrusting him with your safety,” Brendan said easily. “But let’s talk about pleasanter topics. That young man of yours—”
“Is off-limits in this conversation,” Quinn said, throwing a glance toward the closed French doors.
“All I was going to say is that I like him.”
