Page 64 of Her Passionate Hero

“Who’s the other guy?”

“He grew up around here. Now, he’s really from the olden days, so you can tell him he looks fifty.”

Nicolas gave him a sideways look, “I’ll pass.”

Yep, a smart kid.

“Zed is another Navy SEAL, I’ve got a third buddy who is over at her grandmother’s right now watching her place.”

“Is―”

“Yep, he’s a SEAL, too.”

“Damn, but still, unless you have all of Las Nuevas Espadas, I don’t think you’re going to be able to take down Los Demonios,” he warned.

Zed was standing outside the car and overheard what Nicolas said, Lottie wasn’t there anymore.

“We’re not looking to take down your brother’s gang. We’re looking to keep Aliana safe. Does that mean taking your brother off the board? Yes, but we want to do this the easy way,” Zed assured him.

“Prison isn’t easy,” Nicolas said.

“It’s better than dead,” Zed said harshly. “He tried to kill a woman who has been nothing but good to you. Look at her,” he motioned to Aliana. She was sitting back with her head against the headrest. She looked pale. She should never have put her hair in that bun. It had probably given her a headache, then with this heat, she must be really hurting. She needed to go home.

“We also want to talk to your sister, Darla.”

“Why?” Nicolas asked. It was clear he was not happy with the idea.

“Ms. Rodriguez suggested she might have helpful information,” Hunter said.

“That makes no sense. She’s been sick. She wouldn’t have anything to say.” He sounded protective.

“Nicolas, if Ms. Rodriguez thinks Darla might have something to offer, she probably has a good reason why,” Aliana called out softly from the car window.

All three males looked at her.

“How far do you live from here?” Hunter asked Nicolas.

“About a mile.”

“Zed, why don’t you take a slow walk with Nicolas, while I drive Aliana home. I’ll meet up with you in thirty minutes at Nicholas’ house, we’ll talk more there.”

“Wanna go to the taco truck on Conroy? My treat.” Zed asked the kid.

“That wouldn’t be too bad.” Nicholas said.

“Make it an hour,” Zed said. “What’s your address?” he then asked Nicolas.

The kid rattled it off, and Hunter plugged it into his phone.

He got into the driver’s seat and turned to Aliana, who looked too pale for his peace of mind. He rolled up the windows and put the air conditioning on max. About four blocks from her grandmother’s, she started to look around.

“Take your hair down.”

“What?”

“Your hair, take it down.”

He pulled in behind Dalton’s truck.