“Phew.” I laughed, pretending to wipe my brow. “That’s a relief.”
The blonde from the stage reappeared from the dressing rooms, outfitted in a scarlet-colored lingerie set, and started heading over toward me with a frown etched on her brow, and I gave her an appraising look. Like I was here to pay for her body.
“Uh, if you don’t mind,” I said to Cass, giving him a pointed look, “I’m actually here for the entertainment.”
He flicked a glance over his shoulder at the approaching stripper, then gave a grunt. “Good choice. Enjoy your night, Leon.”
My answering smile was pure bullshit. “Thanks man, I’m sure I will.” The wink I forced out made my teeth grind. But it got rid of my company so I could get on with my real reason for visiting Timber Lounge.
“Care for a dance?” the sultry blonde offered, swaying closer on her tall heels. She didn’t wait for me to accept, just pushed me back in my seat and straddled my lap. She rolled her hips and body with the music, but it was having zero impact on me. My dick already had an owner and would no longer respond to anyone else.
“What are you doing here?” she hissed in my ear as she jiggled her tits in my face. “Is Danny with you?”
I smirked. “Oh, she told you about our relationship, did she?” I knew Sabine had flown over to Edinburgh for a girls night with Danny and Jude, but had been all kinds of curious whether my girl had told them about me.
Sabine scoffed. “Of course she did, we’re best friends. We don’t keep secrets.”
“Except when it comes to work,” I corrected her, and her eyes flashed with a fleeting moment of panic. “Or… are we still calling this work for you? Because as far as I can see, your contract could have been completed two years ago. Yet you’re still here, playing the role of ditzy stripper.” I flipped a lock of her honey-blonde hair over her shoulder and tipped my head to the side. “Why is that?”
Her nostrils flared as her eyes widened slightly, then she did a sexy little spin so her ass was in my face. No doubt buying herself time to rehearse whatever bullshit excuse she’d been feeding to her superiors to justify this hugely extended contract.
“None of your fucking business,” she hissed from an upside down splits thing with her waxed crotch right in my face, barely covered by the tiny thong she wore. “Unless you’re here to kill me? But I doubt you’d have come for the show if you were.”
I smiled, but it wasn’t a friendly smile. “I do like to play with my victims a little before I end it. Keeps the work from getting monotonous.”
To my surprise, Sabine snickered a genuine laugh. “You and Danny are fucking made for each other. So am I dying tonight? Because if so, I need to tell someone to feed my cat.”
What? “You have a cat? That’s not…” Wow, she’d defected from the Guild even worse than I had realized. If her superiors found out, I really would be here with a kill order for her. “That’s not why I’m here. I want to know why you’re lingering here instead of closing your contract.”
She grabbed onto the back of my neck with her ankles and did an impressively acrobatic twisty maneuver to seat herself upright back in my lap. “And I told you, it’s none of your fucking business, Leon.”
My eyes narrowed. “It is if you’re putting Danny in danger.”
Her nails dug into the back of my neck, showing the anger that she couldn’t display on her face if she wanted to maintain the illusion she was just giving me a lap dance. “Fuck you for even suggesting it, Leon Marx,” she hissed with venom. “I would never put her in danger. My work here is just that. Mine. I check in with my handler once a month as required, and that’s the only contact I have with the Guild.”
For a moment, I weighed the sincerity of her words. I’d told Danny that no one associated with the Guild could be trusted, and I’d meant it. Myself included. I’d like to think I was being overly cautious, but it was better than being careless and getting her killed.
“I’ve asked her not to contact you,” I said, not really caring if it offended her. “Until the Circle member who wants her dead can be dealt with. It’s for her safety.”
Sabine gave me a pitying look. “And you think she needs your protection? Clearly you have no clue who you’re talking about.”
That comment made me feel violent, but I had a sneaking suspicion Danny would blame me if I strangled her friend to death. So instead, I gritted my teeth and kept my hands to myself. Harder than it sounded.
“Have you had this little chat with Jude, too?” Sabine challenged me, her hazel eyes flashing with irritation. “Did you track her down in the archives and demand she prove that she’s not faking her disability?”
“Totally unnecessary,” I drawled. “Judith’s injury was one of the first things I confirmed when I started taking an interest in DeLuna.”
“You mean stalking,” she corrected, and I just shrugged.
“And yes, I’ll be stopping by to visit her soon, too. Because my beautiful Valkyrie trusts you both, and that seems both reckless and dangerous to me. It’s also fascinating, for a Guild-raised asset to still have the capability to form such emotional attachments to people who provide her with nothing of value.”
Sabine practically crackled with indignation as she slid out of my lap. “We’re not all as broken as you, Leon. Some of us retained our humanity despite the trainers’ best efforts to stamp it out. We’re done here.”
She pivoted on her high heels, but I snatched her wrist in an iron grip, jerking her back to me. “We’re not nearly done, Sabine,” I told her in a harsh whisper. “If I even get the slightest feeling you’ve betrayed DeLuna, I’ll slit your throat and dump your body right on your lover’s doorstep. Am I perfectly fucking clear?”
Across the bar, a handsome and heavily tattooed man was rising out of his chair, his furious gaze locked on my hand around Sabine’s wrist.
“Yes,” she quickly responded. “Understood. Now let me go before this ends up in bloodshed.” She tugged her wrist free, and I let her go, watching as the man near the stage slowly sank back into his seat.
Sabine took two steps away from my table, then paused and turned back to me with a scowl. “So we’re clear, Leon, the same goes for you. If you hurt her, I’ll personally see you killed.”
I couldn’t help myself, I laughed. She wasn’t fazed, though, just giving me one last hard glare before strutting away to continue her work for the night. Still chuckling, I tossed some cash on the table to pay for my drink and the dance, and a healthy tip for Sabine just for that parting comment. I could see why she and Danny were friends.
Ignoring the curious, vaguely threatening looks I was garnering from various patrons around the room, I headed out into the night. I’d seen enough to get my answers, not necessarily from what Sabine said but from what she didn’t say. For now, she was cleared of my immediate suspicion, but nothing was definite.
To cover my bases, I made a call to one of my personal mercenaries to keep an eye on her. When it came to protecting mon cœur, nothing was overkill.