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“Maybe we’re about to find out,” Neal muttered.
“What?” My attention snapped to Joanna. Last I’d seen, she’d been playing pool with Matthews, a female officer she got along well with.
Now, she and Matthews were no longer alone. Detective Zachary De Luca was hovering behind Joanna as she bent over the table, his hungry stare locked on her ass. As I watched, he adjusted the position of her arm. His touch lingered for a little too long.
“Fucking De Luca.” I pushed away from the bar and strode around it, my long legs eating up the space betweenme and Joanna. The bar’s patrons wisely got out of my way when they saw me coming.
Joanna took her shot, knocking a purple ball into the pocket. She stepped back to study the table and determine her next shot. De Luca’s lips moved, as if he were making a suggestion, and she nodded. She bent and hit the ball again, this time without him laying his hands on her. She missed.
“Your turn,” she told Matthews.
I wrapped my arm around Joanna’s waist, drawing her close, and glared at De Luca. “Thanks for keeping my wife company while I was busy, but I can take over now.”
De Luca’s grin was far too cocky as he backed away. I kept my gaze on him until he’d returned to his table, and then I grabbed Joanna’s hand and tugged her toward the bar.
“I’m halfway through a game,” she protested.
“We’ll be back in a minute, Matthews,” I called to her friend.
Matthews quirked an eyebrow. “I can’t promise not to cheat while you’re gone.”
Joanna grumbled as I led her behind the bar and through the door to the Staff Only area. As soon as the door shut behind us, she snatched her hand away from me.
“What was that about?” I demanded, jerking my chin toward the bar.
She put her hands on her hips. “I could ask you the same thing. That was quite a temper tantrum.”
“That was nothing,” I bit out, seething inside at the memory of the casual way De Luca had touched her. Had he done so before? He flirted with her often enough, but she always shot him down. What was different now?
Was allowing the flirtation her way of getting back at me for lying to her? If so, it was damned effective. I wanted to tear the asshole’s hand off if he ever laid it on her again. Icouldn’t tell her that though. She was already having a difficult time reconciling my real identity with who she thought I was. If I came on too strong, I’d scare her away.
“We need to be seen to be happy.” I inhaled slowly to steady my breathing. “That means no flirting with anyone else.”
Joanna raised her chin, uncowed. “I wasn’t flirting.”
“Maybe not,” I allowed. “But De Luca was.”
She marched closer to me and jabbed me in the chest with her pointer finger. “You don’t get to be upset about that. You and I aren’t even married.”
13
JOANNA
I glared at West, my finger pressed against the firm muscle of his chest, as I waited to see how he’d respond.
He held my gaze. “Not for a lack of wanting on my part.”
My jaw dropped. “Excuse me?”
He pinched my finger between two of his and lowered it, then wrapped his hand around mine. I was so shocked, I didn’t have the wherewithal to resist. “It’s always killed me that I wasn’t able to give you my real surname. There’s nothing I want more than for you to be Joanna Conti.”
I had no idea what to say to that.
“Besides.” He clutched my hand more tightly. “If we were legally married, you wouldn’t be able to get rid of me so easily. I’m obviously eager to wrap up this operation, but I also dread the day we do, because I know you’ll walk out on me without looking back.”
“What else am I supposed to do?” I asked softly, my insides tightening. I should snatch my hand away, but I couldn’t bring myself to.
“Stay with me.” His tone was pleading. “Let me prove to you how good we could be.”
