Page 17 of Worth the Risk

“Maybe Sean can give me her address. I’d like to check on her, to be sure.”

“He and Mara left right before you walked in.” He raised his hand. “And before you ask, I saw Dex and Elena go upstairs after her last set. If you want to disturb them...”

Dan wouldn’t hesitate to interrupt anyone if it was important. A new girl with a cut on her knee that Sean, a former Army medic, had treated, didn’t exactly rise to that level.

With a sigh, he stood. “If you hear anything different, let me know. She’s new in town and probably doesn’t have anyone to ask for help or know where to go if she needs something.”

Ben agreed, and Dan, without recourse, left the bar, disappointed but also full of questions. Why was a twenty-something girl, who wasn’t a submissive, working in a kink club 2000 miles from home?He walked out into the humid night and through the nearly empty parking lot, with a nagging feeling something wasn’t right with Bella. His instincts had served him well as a Marine, a cop, and plenty of times working cases for Rossi and, right now, alarm bells were going off in his head.

He pulled out his phone, scrolled through his contacts then, despite the late hour, sent a text to Jonas Mitchell, their IT guy.

Dan:I need what you have on Bella Rinaldi.

Less than a minute later, he messaged back.

Jonas:Her file is back, all two pages. She’s clean.

Dan:Only two pages?

Jonas:DMV and a credit report. She’s twenty-seven and has barely left a footprint.

Dan:Dig deeper.

Jonas:Something I should know?

Dan:I’m interested and thinking about staking my claim before someone else does. You know my track record.

There was a longer pause.

Jonas:If that’s so, are you sure about this?

He wasn’t. If it turned out to be nothing, he would have invaded her privacy. If she found out, it could mean they were over before they started. But he had to know why at twenty-seven her life could be summed up in two pages. He dashed off a terse reply.

Dan:Do it.

Jonas:Roger that.

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