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“What’s your father’s next move?”
“That, I’m not sure,” she tapped her fingers as she thought, “but whoever it was that called him sounded like he was going to see this through to the end.”
“Did he have an accent?”
“To me or to you?” She smirked. “He sounded like you.”
Fuck, that narrows it down.
“Grim, on a whole other subject.” She suddenly looked unsure. “Do you know where Eric is?” She rubbed her belly.
“Is Eric the father?”
She paused as though she wanted to control her emotions then nodded.
Oh, fuck.
“It’s the only reason I’m keeping it,” she admitted. My chest tightened. I felt grief. This would not go well for either of them. “Do you know where he is?” she asked again.
“No,” I lied, and I knew she caught it. She nodded a few times as she processed why I would lie.Fuck.I didn’t like the position I was in. “Talya, did Eric ever say anything to you? Anything to explain where he went?”
“No. But I know Eric loved me.”
“He does,” I corrected. I didn’t know the real Eric, but I knew the day I saw him with all his Blackstone army friends that he loved her.
“Something tells me that he won’t be coming back anytime soon.”
“Not in the way you’d think.” I should shut my mouth. I’d already crossed a line.
“Okay.” She took a deep breath.
“What do your parents think?”
“They don’t know.” More tears fell. “I left when I started to show.” She rubbed her belly again, clearly in love with the part that was Eric. “Their only daughter pregnant by a man who worked for Castillo?” She forced a dark laugh. “I just need some time to figure this out.”
“If I ever could find Eric,” I cleared my throat, “would you like me to pass along anything?”
“No.” She shut me down flat. “I need to think. Maybe sometime. I’ll let you know.” She stood, and I joined her. She hesitated for a moment then leaned over and hugged me. “Be careful. There is a lot of darkness around you right now, and I’m scared you can’t see it all.”
“Thanks, Talya. You know I care for you. Look after yourself and…” I nodded at her belly.
“Yes. But, Grim,” she pulled back and stared up at me with such concern that I almost reached out for her, “please keep my baby a secret until you hear from me. I’ve already put a target on my back talking to you, let alone having Eric’s baby.”
“I will.” I intended to keep that promise; my loyalty was with Talya, not Eric.
“I’m going to my cousin’s place in Mexico City.” She pulled out an envelope with Eric’s name written on it and handed it to me. “Por favor, when you hear from me, get this to him.”
“Okay.”
“We never spoke, and I was never here.” She turned on her heel and left without a backward glance.
I caught Jesse’s worried expression as he approached me. “Well, that was unexpected.”
“Her father Jerry was behind my hotel shit,” I grunted and pulled my jacket off the chair and shoved my arm in the sleeve. It was too tight. Leo must have my jacket. “The fucker still made a play after all I’d done for him over there.” We moved through the bar and into the already open elevator. Two women giggled at us, and from the smell of them they’d been out at the bars. I hit our floor number and glanced at Jesse. “I think it’s time we sent him a message.”
“I think so.”
“We’ve been warned countless times about,” a giggle from behind us reminded me we weren’t alone, “how we’re a mark. I think it’s time we send them all a message.”
