asking for you.” She popped her gum and left the kitchen. Table 10 wasn’t in my section. Must be the guy Devlin had told me about—Travis.
I finished punching in the order. My speed had increased since the night Devlin had taken over for me. I dropped off an iced tea refill for table 60 and then made my way to table 10.
A youngish, short guy with dark spiked hair and a pathetic, patchy attempt at a goatee shot me a shaky smile. “You Rena?”
“Yes. Are you—”
“Set the book down.” He tapped the table with his index finger.
“Excuse me?”
“The black book. Your order book.” After a furtive look around, he reached into his coat. His forehead glistened. Was he… sweating?
“Oh.” I pulled the book from my apron and placed it on the table. He opened it, slipped in a bank envelope—a fat one. He lifted his glass of water and sipped, keeping his eyes on the side exit.
I took his ignoring me as a hint our transaction was over. I shoved the book into my apron pocket and walked away, stealing a look over my shoulder before disappearing into the kitchen. Travis, hands in his pockets, rushed out the side exit and into the parking lot.
Odd. To say the least.
In a corner by the ice machine, I pulled out the thick paper envelope. It was sealed. My cheeks flamed.
Drug money? Had I just aided and abetted a felon? My mom was dating a cop. Maybe I should ask Roy what to do. I tucked the envelope back into the book and the book back into my apron. My hand rested over the pocket protectively.
Acting way, way too casual, I headed for Devlin’s workstation in the back.
“Rena! Table sixty going out!” another server called, lifting a tray of food onto his shoulder. I called out my thanks. I had about a minute before I needed to run out and check on my table. Just long enough to hand over the money and pretend this never happened.
I found Devlin at a stainless steel table deveining a pile of shrimp and swearing at the same time. Other than a pair of prep guys on the other side of the room mixing buckets of salad dressing and having a conversation in Spanish, the back was empty.
Devlin swore again as I approached.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
His blue eyes were bright, his jaw sharp. He was far too beautiful to be in the back of this kitchen. Busted-up face and all. Would nothing quell my attraction for him?
“Mild allergy.” He peeled off the blue gloves he wore and showed me a very red and swollen index finger. “Must have a hole in the glove. Feels like I’m fingering a jellyfish.”
A breathy laugh came from my lips.
“Sorry.” He offered a sheepish smile that made him ten times more attractive.
I shook my head to let him know he hadn’t offended me. “No, I—” But I didn’t feel like explaining. I wanted to free myself of the (possibly outfitted with a tracking device) stack of money.
“Travis was here.” I shot a look over to the other two guys. They were chatting and laughing and ignoring us completely. I stepped closer to Devlin anyway.
His lids narrowed as he studied me too closely for comfort.
“Travis,” I repeated on a whisper, “was here.”
He watched me quietly for a second. Now I was sweating.
“What do you think you have there, Rena?” His voice was low and curious. I didn’t think he was trying to be seductive, but his words poured over me like warm honey.
I started to pull the book out of my pocket, but he tipped his chin to the door behind me. “Freezer. I’ll join you in ten seconds.”
Without questioning him, I moved toward the adjacent walk-in freezer and pulled open the metal door. I pushed through the cut strips of plastic hanging from the frame. The freezer was a third of the size of the walk-in refrigerator, illuminated by a single fluorescent bulb. Bracing against the cold, I let my eyes wander to the boxes of rolls, seafood, and containers of ice cream lining the shelves and tried not to think.
But stalling my thoughts didn’t change the fact that I’d picked up drug money. Fantastic.
Just as my cheeks were starting to chill, the door swung open and Devlin walked in, black cap on backward. He separated the plastic to allow for wide shoulders, dropping the strips behind him. Dangerous and gorgeous. What a deadly—and irresistible—combination.
I fished the envelope from my black