Page 66 of Backlash

Jack groans and reaches for another clean glass. “How do you know he’s here for you, anyway? Last I checked, Luca is just as much trouble—if not more.”

“That is the nicest thing anyone’s ever said about me.” Luca drops onto the bar stool next to mine. “He’s right, you know. Noah might be looking for me. Then again, it doesn’t really matter who he’s looking for, because he wants to take us all down.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” Jack says.

Trust Luca to be sensitive to Jack’s anxiety. It’s not that he can’t read the room, it’s just that he prefers chaos to order. “Just keep minding your own business,” I tell Jack. “He’s got nothing on you.”

“What could he have on you?” Jack asks.

“That’s a good question.” I have a list of possibilities in my head already, and it’s not getting any shorter. “But I actually want to talk to you about something else.”

“Here it comes,” Luca mutters, but I ignore him.

“So, things have changed with Adair,” I begin.

“We noticed,” Jack says.

“But we’re not exactly on the same page,” I continue. “She’s got questions.”

“That’s not a surprise,” Jack says. “What does she want to know?”

“It would be shorter to list what she doesn’t want to know. I already told her that I can’t tell her everything, but—”

“I can’t believe you’re going to be the one to break the pact,” Luca interjects. “Wasn’t it his idea?” Jack nods, but, unlike Luca, he doesn’t look angry, he looks like he’s holding down laughter.

“I told you that he would,” Jack says.

“Wait, what?” I ask. “I had no intention of telling her anything when we came here.”

“That’s just it,” Jack says. “It might not have been your intention, but like I told Luca, a man doesn’t spend five years obsessing over a woman just to throw away another shot at her.”

“I didn’t come back for a second chance,” I protest.

“Then, I guess you’re lucky she’s giving you one, anyway,” Jack says.

“Can we focus on the fact that he’s planning to break his sacred vow?” Luca asks, but the edge is gone from his voice. That doesn’t mean he’s pleased about my change of heart.

“I’m leaving you two out of it,” I promise.

“Like hell,” Luca says, spinning on his stool to jab a finger into my chest. “You aren’t taking all the credit for our success.”

“Is that what you call it?” Jack asks dryly.

“Okay, I’ll leave Jack out of it,” I clarify.

“And you make sure she knows that Cairo was—”

“Tell her what you need to tell her, brother,” Jack says quickly. The last thing he needs is another fight breaking out over what happened in Egypt, especially since this time it would be his bar taking the damage.

“Whatever. Listen, want to grab lunch?” Luca asks. He checks his Rolex. “Or maybe early dinner? Whatever you eat at three in the afternoon.”

“High tea,” Jack offers dryly. “Aren’t you going to ask me?”

Luca rolls his dark eyes. “I’d ask you, but let’s face it, you’re married to this joint.”

“And it’s true love,” Jack says with a grin.

“I’ve got plans tonight and I need to prepare,” I say with intentional vagueness.