Leo (Vigilance #3) - Silvia Violet Page 0,43

Leo. This was real.

“I like the view from here best,” Leo said as if he hadn’t just taken me to a magical place that shouldn’t exist in a city apartment. Fog obscured the view, but that simply added to the sensation that we were somewhere separate from the real world.

Leo sat in an oversize chair that faced the window and pulled me into his lap. I laid my head against his shoulder as he pressed a kiss to my hair. We stayed like that for a while, warm and snuggly. Then his phone rang.

He pulled it from his pocket and glanced at it. “Shit. It’s X. I’m going to have to take it.”

I knew he couldn’t ignore the call, but I hated for our special time together to end. After he answered, he was quiet for several moments, his concern growing more intense.

“Is he sure?” Leo asked. “Then we’ve got to move quickly. We already needed to and now… I know… Yes, I’ll be in early… He’s still with me. I’m going to keep him here… I know what I’m doing… Yes, sir.” Those last words were clipped. He ended the call and set his phone beside him.

“What’s wrong?”

“Just more shit with Swain. We’ll take care of it.”

“X doesn’t think I should be here with you, does he?”

“He’s just concerned. This mission… It’s complicated.”

“I don’t want to be a distraction.”

Leo shook his head. “You’re not.”

“Are you sure? Shouldn’t you be out there tracking Swain down or something?”

“Not today. Today, I should be here with you.”

We finally left to get my clothes and a tree for Leo’s apartment. He decided we should go in early the next day to decorate the shop, so we focused on decorating his tree and putting up lights and other things from his many boxes of Christmas decor. The more decorations we used, the more his house started to look like a home.

“Why don’t you put more of your own things up? If not your art, then… something.”

Leo frowned. “This has really just been a place to sleep.

We spent the evening admiring the twinkling lights while we played chess—he won every time—watched more Law and Order, and ate delicious Thai food from a nearby restaurant.

Late that night, he laid me down in front of his fireplace, put me on my hands and knees, and took me more gently than he had before. The slower pace didn’t change anything. Having him inside me was still soul-shattering.

I’d been at the tattoo shop with Leo for several hours. I wanted to take my lunch break, but Leo had been closed in the back with the other men from Vigilance since just after we’d opened. I’d ended up rescheduling all his appointments for the day.

My phone rang, and I pulled it out to check the number. It was Agatha, the owner of my favorite bookshop. I nearly dropped the phone in my eagerness to answer. Agatha’s shop specialized in mysteries, and she’d been on the lookout for some hard-to-find classics for me. I was hoping something had come in.

“Agatha, how are you?”

“I’m doing just fine. It’s good to hear your voice. It feels like I haven’t seen you in ages.”

I was usually in her shop several times a week, but since I’d started working for Leo, my hours had changed, and I hadn’t been to see her.

“I got a new job.”

“You can tell me all about it when you come to pick up your Grace Latham mysteries.”

“You found some?”

“I did, and I even have a surprise. Ill Met By Moonlight is a first edition. Now that does mean it was a little more than the price range you gave me, but—”

“That’s amazing. Whatever it costs, I still want it.”

“Well, it cost seventy-two dollars.”

“That’s absolutely fine. How many of the rest of them did you find?”

“I have the first four in the series for you.”

“You’re the best, Agatha. It’s almost time for my break. I’ll come by in a little while and get them.”

“Perfect. It will be good to see you.”

I decided I should take her something. I was supposed to check in with Leo before leaving, but as long as there was someone to watch the front, surely it would be okay if I slipped over to Bacon and Bakin’ to get something for Agatha and then quickly walked to her shop.

Phoebe, one of the artists, was cleaning up her space. She’d returned recently from maternity leave, and I’d cooed like crazy over her baby pictures.

“Phoebe?”

“Hi, Ezra. What do you