I knew my friend well enough that, when his eyes moved from Jada’s to mine, he was wondering why I was parked at the entrance of the enormous room instead of at his side. I couldn’t tell him the truth.
Dax’s father was a French clothing magnate, and his mother was an oil baron’s daughter turned Bollywood star. Between the two of them, they were wealthier than the majority of the royal lines still in existence. It also put them high on the suspect list for more than one government agency around the world, and because of it, the Armaud family was extra cautious to remain squeaky clean.
This?what I was doing?was far from squeaky clean.
Dax would freak out if he knew.
But I’d seen Ken’Ichi and his henchman, Kenta Saito, go into the study a while ago, and I had to know what was going down in there. The influx of men going in and out since they’d shown up bordered on ridiculous.
My pocket buzzed, and it took me a moment to figure out which of my three phones it was. Pulling it out, I noted it was my secure line. To all the world, it looked like my personal phone. To all the world, it looked like the oneSaito-sanhad handed me several months ago. All three looked identical except for the microscopic dot I’d placed on them.
M1: No ears.
Fuck.
One thing staying at the villa with Ken’Ichi in attendance had proven to me was that theKyodainawere religious about sweeping for bugs. Every meeting we’d had,Saito-sanhad swept the room first. I’d taken a chance the day before, going into the study and leaving a listening device that supposedly no sweep known to man could find, and yet it had been. Which also meant they had a good idea it was someone staying here who’d placed it.
I wasn’t the only guest in the house. Dax was here, as well as a handful of Jada and Dax’s socialite friends who traveled in their inner circle, but I was the one who’d suddenly become interested in doing business with the underground side of Mori Enterprises.
I lifted the beer I’d been sipping and purposefully spilled some over me before reaching for the nearest female body I could find. I didn’t know her name. I’d seen her hanging out with Dax and Jada over the years, but she’d never interested me. Red hair that wasn’t real. Manufactured curves that she put on display regularly. She was the complete opposite of the purple-haired genius who haunted my dreams.
But for tonight, she’d have to do.
I didn’t even strike up a conversation. I just put my lips on hers with my hands on her hips and moved us toward the study all at the same time. If she’d objected, I would have let her go, but she didn’t. Instead, she shoved her tongue in my mouth and wrapped her arms around my neck. I maneuvered us so she was against the door while I fumbled with the handle. When it twisted, I thrusted us through in a way that caused us to stumble across the mosaic floor layered with Egyptian rugs.
The men in the room all looked up: a mix of Asian and Spanish faces. Some in suits, some in leather. There was a somberness to the room that was the complete opposite of the raucous party going on beyond the study walls.
Saito-sanblocked the view of the two bodies at the desk, but I was pretty damn sure I’d seen blood and gauze along with the glimmer of a knife. Double fuck.
Ken’Ichi was leaned up against the wall by the window, mimicking a shadow. Black from head to sole. Black hair slicked back. Black eyes cast in shadows by the dim desk lamp that was the only light in the room. Black suit that probably cost enough to fund a food bank. Only his white skin stood out as a contrast to the darkness he radiated.
“Shit. Sorry, man,” I said with a drunken smirk toward the small group.
The woman attached to my body giggled.
“I think you should return to the party,”Saito-sansaid.
I kissed the woman one more time, patted her on the ass in a way that made me cringe from the inside out, and then twirled her out the door. “Sorry, honey, looks like I’ve got other plans.”
I shut the door in her shocked and angry face.
I was going to hell.
Ken’Ichi hadn’t moved, but his voice dripped with disdain when he spoke. “Go back to the party, Langley.”
“Are you sure? We talking about theAda Mae?” I asked, throwing out the name of my yacht that was at the forefront of our business dealings. I faked a stumble as I stepped another foot into the room. I was trying to see aroundSaito-sanand the suited goon at his side to what was going on at the desk. I was pushing my luck. I’d never forced myself in on any of their talks. I’d posed myself as Jada’s party-happy friend who just so happened to have a suggestion for moving their products.
A groan manifested itself from a body hidden from view.
“This is none of your business.”Saito-sanwas ominous as he stepped toward me. As Ken’Ichi’sWakagashira-hosa,it was his job to make sure his boss wasn’t interrupted. To make sure that anything theOyabunand Ken’Ichi needed done happened, no matter the cost. The scar on his forehead and the one on his neck proved that the work he’d done hadn’t come easily.
“Ken’Ichi, my man, need some help?” I said, leaning a head toward the bodies I couldn’t see.
Ken’Ichi’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly. He hated the disrespect I showed him by using his proper name. I refused to call himWakagashiraorMatsuda-samalike I would if I truly gave a shit. It was the perfect way to get under his skin whenever I could. The crass American, refusing to bow to the honorifics their Japanese culture?and company?held precious.
“Hosa-san, show our guest the door,” Ken’Ichi said toSaito-sanbefore turning away to the window. In the reflection of the glass, he could watch my exit while still having the power of giving me his back.
Saito-santook two steps toward me, but I was already opening the door and stepping out where I bumped into Jada as if she’d been about to enter the room. My eyes tried to send her a warning, but if she saw it, she ignored me.
