I shoved back from the table and lunged to my feet. Cole thought he had a temper? Well, he hadn’t yet experienced mine.
“Sit down, Kat,” he said, his voice almost bored. “Sit and think. You know I’m right.”
“I want to see my father.”
“Do you really? Because every time you go there, you add to the risk that someone has learned the connection between you two. That they’re following you. That they’ll find him.”
I sat down. I wasn’t going to admit it out loud—not until he forced me to, anyway—but he was right.
“Ilya Muratti is not the kind of man you fuck around with. And I don’t care how careful you and your father have been over the years, Muratti has resources.”
“You’re right,” I said. “I’m just worried. I want to see him. Talk to him.”
“Then call him on the burner. Let him know we have a plan.”
“Do we have a plan?”
“We will,” he said. “And until we do, your dad doesn’t need to worry.”
“You’re good at this,” I said.
“I’ve had practice,” he said, then picked up his coffee cup.
“I believe that.” I got up to get the coffee carafe, then refilled both our mugs. “What exactly do you do? Other than forge Da Vinci manuscripts, I mean?”
“Let’s just say that I have my fingers in many and varied pies, and not all of them are legitimate.”
“Still?”
“Evan’s the only one who’s gone completely straight. He’s marrying a senator’s daughter. And there are other reasons. He gets as much thrill out of running a straight business as he does planning a heist or con.”
“And you?”
“The third degree, Ms. Laron? Should I frisk you for a wire?”
“Frisk me if you want, but I’m just curious.” I didn’t say that I wanted to know every little thing about him—even though that was absolutely true.
“I promise you I have the experience and the resources to help your dad. And I’m not squeamish. Whatever needs to be done to keep him safe, it will be. Okay?”
I nodded, because that did help. I still wanted to know about Cole’s background—what happened when he was a kid? How did he end up in the scared straight camp where he met Evan and Tyler?
But all that could wait. Right now, I needed to focus on my father. “So what is the plan for my dad?”
“I’m still considering the options. Give me a day to think. To talk with Evan and Tyler and—”
“Cole, no. I don’t want them thinking . . .” I trailed off with a shrug, not sure what it was I wanted to hide.
He reached for my hand and twined our fingers. “Everyone has secrets. I think the three of us know that better than anyone. Four,” he amended, “counting you, too.”
“Are we counting me?”
“Of course.”
I waited a beat. “Just keep me in the loop, Cole, okay? This is my dad we’re talking about. This plan you say you’ll have? I want to know what it is. Promise me,” I said. “Promise me you’ll tell me the plan.”
“I promise.”
I nodded, satisfied. Then I cocked my head and studied him. “You know, you didn’t seem as astounded by my revelation that I’m not a completely honest and upstanding citizen as I thought you would be.”