wall. “Ted?”
“I’m working on something. Give me a minute.”
Bridget seemed amused by the younger man, even though Ted wasn’t that much younger than them. Aiden didn’t know if she remembered him, or if Ted had arrived on the scene after she left. He’d become a cop later, so he wasn’t sure on the timing.
Under her amusement, he could see worry for her friend. Between Millie and this Sasha person, it seemed like she had a decent support system. At least, they were the kind of people Bridget would stick her neck out for. She would put her life on the line and go all in to save those she cared about.
Like she would for Sydney. If she knew their child hadn’t died.
It still didn’t make sense to him—at all—that Bridget thought their baby had passed away. And then why had he been given the child? He reached back and squeezed the back of his head. How did he even begin to explain that?
Despite the danger swirling around them, he had to tell her. Even if it pulled everyone into its undertow? No way did he want to put Sydney’s life on the line. But she deserved to know. He would want to know if he was in her shoes.
If Clarke was watching, and he saw Bridget with her daughter, he would know instantly who they were to each other. No question about that. Which only made him wonder why Millie hadn’t figured it out.
Hadn’t she met Sydney?
Maybe not.
He shook his head.
“Are you okay?” Bridget pierced him with questioning eyes.
Before he could answer, his phone buzzed. He looked down to see a messenger app notification—one Sydney used to contact him through her tablet. He replied to her gif with a gif of his own, imagining her laugh when she saw it.
“Never mind.” Her tone was a little on the abrupt side.
Aiden looked up. “What—”
“Okay.” Ted’s voice cut through their interchange.
But Aiden still stared at Bridget. What had that dismissal been about?
“Thanks to the magic of technology, I present your guy, Clarke.” Ted shot Bridget a pointed look Aiden wanted to ask about.
“Well, I know now that it was a mistake. But you don’t have to give me grief about him.” She held up a hand. “I’m sure Zander will do that enough.”
Ted winced. “Good point. You know Zander?”
Bridget grinned. “Unfortunately, in this case, yes. And he warned me about Clarke. I believe his words were, ‘Later I’ll be saying I told you so.’” She rolled her eyes. “So we already know Clarke is a bad guy. Let’s cut to the chase. The phone?”
Ted grinned and glanced at Aiden. “I like her.”
Jealousy whipped like a lash through him. “I saw her first.”
“Whoa.” He didn’t know if that was Bridget or Ted. Or both of them.
Aiden shook his head. “Just tell us what you found. Please?”
“Fine.” Ted turned back to his computer. Aiden saw Bridget look at him, but pretended like he hadn’t noticed. Ted tapped a thousand keys and the TV screen on the wall—the middle of three—flashed to a picture of Clarke.
“This guy is in deep with a lot of people. He owes money to two crime families and is playing them against each other. Like one will retaliate if the other hurts him too badly, that kind of thing. To make them all think he’s a valuable commodity. Or at least more valuable alive than he would be if he was dead.”
“Is he in Last Chance under orders?”
Bridget settled on the arm of a big, cushy chair. “If he is, it’s likely related to the Capeira family.”
Ted tapped a few more keys. “They’re in here too, but I’ll get to them in a minute. What I’m seeing? It’s more like your friend Clarke is working all the angles. Getting ready for a double-cross, where he jumps on whoever will pay more and ditches the other party.”
“So he walks away and leaves a fallout that will probably destroy several people’s lives, if not your whole client list.” Aiden glanced at Bridget. “Because he’s determined to wheel and deal his way to getting clear of you guys.”
“We can’t let him get the client list.”
“Seems like he should’ve forced you to go with him.” When she started to object, Aiden lifted a hand. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m glad he didn’t kidnap you. Or try to. I’d have stopped him. I wouldn’t have let him take you.”
She bit her lip. “He said let’s do it again soon. But why doesn’t he need my