and lean, and the hard angle of his jaw showed his Italian heritage, as did his dark hair and very bourbon colored eyes. Right now, they surveyed us, sparkling. “Hey, Donna.”
“Nick.” She grinned and leaned over for a hug. “Good to see you. It’s been years. Since graduation?”
He nodded. “Yeah. I’ve made it home a few times but spent it with family. Well, you know.” He said hi to Tessa and then to me. “Mind if I borrow your sister for a moment?”
“Keep her as long as you want,” Tessa said, a dimple flashing in her left cheek.
I cut her a look and hopped off the stool, careful to grab my wineglass as I went. I followed him toward a low table near the door, where we sat. “What’s up?”
He looked over the bruise on my jaw. “As your boss, I’m making it very clear you are no longer participating in the execution of either search or arrest warrants. Do you understand me?”
I blinked. His throat looked strong and fit above the unbuttoned shirt, and his gaze was direct. “No.”
“That’s a direct order, Albertini.” He rested his fit hands on the table. “Got it?”
“No.” I leaned toward him. “That’s sexist. You wouldn’t give me that order if I weren’t a woman.”
“Bull.” He leaned just as far toward me, leaving only about six inches between our faces. “Man or woman, anybody who ended up bruised and battered like you are right now would be on desk duty. I’m letting you remain on this case because you’ve worked hard, and well, because I’ve fired everybody else.”
I should just kiss him. Take him off guard for once. “Did my grandmother call you?”
“No. Mine did, but that’s irrelevant.” He sighed, and his minty breath brushed my face. “This case has gotten too dangerous, and your personal connection to Devlin puts you in the crosshairs. Participating in the execution of warrants isn’t normally a part of our job. Finally, you’re new at this. It’s time to step back.”
All of those were good points. Why was I mad? My job was in the courtroom. “You do make sense,” I acknowledged.
“Good.” He sat back before I did. “We both need time off. Let’s forget about this case for a few hours, all right? At least one night without you getting bruised.” He moved from the booth and stood, turning to look at me. For several seconds, he stood there, obviously debating something. “Night, Anna.” Then he strode out the door, and I’m not ashamed to admit, I watched him go. The guy moved like an athlete.
My phone buzzed just as I was about to stand. “Albertini.”
“Where the hell are you?” Detective Pierce snapped.
I winced, and then my temper took over. “None of your business.” Who did he think he was?
“I have a man at your cabin, and you’re not there. You’re supposed to be there,” he said. “Did I, or did I not, tell you to go right home after you tried to see Charles the crazy bastard?”
“You know, Pierce?” I stood. “I don’t work for you. Frankly, I don’t need a police escort. The bad guys got the car and GPS data.”
“I still want a guy on you,” he said. “Where are you?”
Sighing, I gave him the address and then promised to wait until my escort showed before I left. Then I hung up and grumbled all the way back to my sisters.
“What?” Donna asked.
I reached for the bottle to pour more wine into my glass. “I’m getting really tired of men telling me what to do.”
“Amen, sister.” Tessa held her glass up.
I did the same and drank. We ordered appetizers, ate, and basically enjoyed just being us. Soon a shadow fell across the table, and I looked up to see Bud. He’d changed into a fresh uniform and appeared all pressed and put together again. With his buzz cut, he looked like a tough guy. “Hey. How’s the head?” I asked.
“Fine. All checked out with the doc. I’m on your house tonight.” He smiled at Donna and looked like a whole different guy. “I’m Bud Orlov.” He held out a hand.
I blinked. “Is that Russian?”
Bud kept his gaze on Donna. “Yes. It means Eagle,” he said.
I bit back amusement and then introduced him to Tessa, who was clearly trying not to smile.
Donna blushed all pretty and gave him the flirty smile I’d tried for years to learn how to do. I never came close. They made kind of a cute couple, though I didn’t know