Page 14 of Deuce

I moved to the kitchen before answering so as not to disturb Sophia.

“You think it’s the human trafficking ring our buddies in the bureau have been looking for?”Ace didn’t waste any time on small talk.

“Kind of light on details so far, but it looks like a possibility.”I leaned against the counter.“Thought maybe Shadow could dig a little deeper into the dating app Sophia was targeted from.”

“Sophia is the woman you and Rattler rescued?”

“Yeah.I’m staying with her tonight, just in case.She called a friend but they aren’t available tonight, and she doesn’t want to involve family.”

There was a pause on the other end of the line.“She okay with you being there?”

“Yeah.She seems to trust me.Feisty thing, but this shook her up.”

“Understandable.Rattler mentioned she took a fall from the vehicle.She okay, or do you need Joker to come look at her?”

“She’s got some road rash on one arm, but she seems to be okay other than that.If it looks worse in the morning we can reevaluate.”

“Fair enough.Did she report this to the cops?”

“No.Seems to have some hesitation about trusting them.Told her to sleep on it and see how she felt in the morning.”

“Good instincts.Intel from our friends in the FBI is that there might be some kind of payoff going on.Tips aren’t being acted on fast enough.Could be one rogue cop, or the whole department.Or maybe just a coincidence.Impossible to tell, but I’d be careful if I were her.Do they know where to find her?”

“She doesn’t think so.”I paused.“Maybe contacting the cops is a bad idea.If she reports the incident, anyone on the force will know who she is and where to find her.”

“Good point.Think you can talk her out of reporting?”

I snorted.“She’s not keen on the idea, so yeah.Pretty sure I can do that.”

“I’ll get Shadow to investigate the dating app.I’ll have him do a background check on her as well.Can you send him any info you have?’

“No problem.I’ll do that as soon as we’re done.”

“Good.And, Deuce?”

“Yeah?”

“Be careful.I don’t like the looks of this on the heels of that murder Emma witnessed a couple months back.Don’t have anything solid, but it feels connected.”

“Roger that.”I had the same feeling.

I pocketed my phone and wandered back into the living room.Sophia hadn’t moved.If I left her sleeping where she was, she was going to wake up stiff and sore.I could either rouse her and tell her to go to bed, or I could just carry her up and tuck her in.

The temptation to hold her in my arms won out.I slipped upstairs and folded the sheets on her bed back so I could place her in it, then went back down.

She let out a soft moan when I picked her up, turning to snuggle in tight against me.

I’m no saint.My cock rose with alacrity, straining against the rough material of my jeans.

Note to self.Don’t go commando if Sophia’s around.

It was all I could do to just carry her up the stairs and lay her on her bed.My body wanted me to snuggle up with her, but sanity prevailed.I’d promised to behave myself.

Sucks to be a guy who always keeps his promises.

I slid the housecoat off her shoulders and tossed it onto the chair in the corner of the room.She was wearing a set of flannel pajamas with kittens cavorting all over them.First time I’d ever been jealous of a bunch of kittens.

I pulled the bedding up to her chin.Her brow wrinkled, and she let out a little whimper.I wondered if it was because she missed the feel of my arms holding her safe.She tossed and turned restlessly for a few moments before settling back down to sleep.

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