Page 34 of Precious Hazard

“Which is?”

“The marquess tries to force himself on her. But Barbara gets saved by this introverted gardener, who recently returned home from a war. Later, she finds out that he’s actually the duke’s long-lost son. The legitimate heir to the duke’s estate and title.” A small smile pulls at her lips. “The true hero kills the evil marquess and then marries Barbara.”

I make myself look away from Tara’s lips and focus on the book in her hands. The colorful cover has a Regency-era woman in a fancy dress clinging to a bare-chested guy, whose ruffled white shirt is somehow pooled at his waistline. It looks like the kind of thing Sienna likes to read. She used to leave her paperbacks lying all over the house. I must have wondered at least a hundred times about what sort of satisfaction a woman as smart as her could get out of such trashy literature.

Shaking my head, I glance at my Rolex, eager to get the new shitshow at the construction site over with. But like a magnet, my eyes drift back to Tara’s mouth. To those… Cushiony. Soft. Lustrous. Lips.

Lips that are still smirking.

“Well, sorry to spoil your fantasy, Tara, but there is no duke in shining armor who’ll save you from marrying me.”

“I know.” She shrugs as if she doesn’t care, but I notice her smile dim for half a heartbeat. “That’s okay, because I made sure it would be worth it in the end. Didn’t I?”

That she did. What the fuck possessed me to agree to give her twelve million dollars in our divorce?

Lying on the seat beside me, my phone gives off another insistent shrill, and Ajello’s name lights up the screen. Answering it, I launch right into my report on our most recent drug shipment delivery, all while my eyes remain glued to Tara’s lips. By the time I finish updating the boss, Riggo is pulling up next to the cordoned-off site where the demolition and cleanup of the old structure have nearly been completed. We’re ready to start excavation for the new foundations next week.

Before we come to a full stop, I’m out of the car and hurrying toward two men standing next to the marked-off area.

“What the fuck is going on here?” I bark.

“That’s the owner?” a man in a cheap navy suit asks Tito.

“Yes,” my foreman confirms. “Let me introduce you. This is Mr. Arturo DeVille, the CEO of Gateway Development Corp.” He turns toward the city suit. “Samuel Daniels. He’s with the DOB Enforcement Unit.”

“All our compliance documentation and permits were approved months ago. You’re costing me money, Mr. Daniels.I’d appreciate it if you’d get your ass off my property.” I jerk my head toward the perimeter gate.

Daniels straightens and crosses his arms over his chest. “That may be, but we received information that requires further scrutiny. I’m here to advise you that all work on this site needs to cease immediately until this matter is handled.”

“What information?”

“I’m not at liberty to share the pertinent details at the moment. However, if I can ask you to please—”

A chirpy voice rings out behind me. “That navy color looks good on you, Sammy.”

I spin around a fraction of a second faster than the DOB guy, both of us finding Tara with a huge grin plastered across her face.

“Tara?” Daniels exclaims, his whole demeanor changing from cold and rigid to friendly and full of charm as he practically leaps toward her, engulfing her in his arms. “My God! How long has it been? What are you doing here, pumpkin?”

Sammy? Pumpkin?

What the fuck? The son of a bitch is lucky he let go of her before he drew his next breath. Otherwise, it might have been his last.

“Seven years, just about. You’re looking spiffy, Sammy. How’s Mama Daniels doing?”

I watch my future wife lift up onto her toes to give this motherfucker a peck on the cheek. My hands fist at my sides as I fight the impulse to snap his neck.

“She’s doing well. And how have you been, little trickster?”

“Oh, you know. Same old with me. So! What’s going on that got my buddy’s panties in a twist? You’re here to give him the gears?”

“You’re with him?”

“Yes, she’s with me!” I close the distance and wrap my arm around her waist.

Tara shrugs as if she’s indifferent one way or the other. “Let’s just say we recently struck a deal, but we’re still ironing out the kinks.”

Sammysizes me up before turning his full attention back to Tara. “We received a complaint, claiming that this location contained a building of historical significance. Someone high up the chain sent me here to put a hold on things until the bigwigs figure out who’s who and what’s what.”

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